Summary
Enough time has passed since its launch and if that’s when most players beat it and moved on it can be difficult to remember precisely how expansive and lengthyStar Wars Jedi: Survivorturns out to be. Even without considering a third act that follows Jedha’s devastation and Dagan Gera’s death,Star Wars Jedi: Survivoris a massive semi-open-world game considering the degree of exploration on Koboh alone. However, both games in Respawn’sStar Wars Jedifranchise share storytelling similarities, such as how they choose to make a tutorial out of their respective openings and introduce players to the larger galaxy ahead of them thereafter.
It’s expected that thethirdStar Wars Jedigamewill do the same, and in doing so it must accept a responsibility its predecessors have wielded to great effect. LikeFallen OrderandSurvivorbefore it, a third entry needs an optional boss that players can test their might against in a fight that’s purposefully overwhelming due to it being available early on and intended for players to return to when they’re better equipped; inFallen Orderit was the infamous Oggdo Bogdo on Bogano, whereas inSurvivorit was a rancor on Koboh that players are pushed into the direction of as one of the earliest optional side quests to embark on.
Fallen Order’s Oggdo Bogdo is a Surprising Nuisance on an Otherwise Peaceful Planet
Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order’s Oggdo Bogdois a vicious and deceptively quick foe whose move-set isn’t terribly distinct from regular oggdos, who are terrifying in their own right, and therefore it’s a wonderful optional boss because there are clear ways to eventually overcome it. Battling oggdos can prepare players for particular attacks the tongue-lashing threat will employ, for instance, and players will naturally be better equipped if they come back later on.
Oggdo Boggdo is by no means impossible to defeat the first time players arrive on Bogano, though. All it takes is patience telegraphing Oggdo Bogdo’s instantaneous attack patterns and a learned knowledge of the formidable creature’s hitboxes to succeed. Plus,Fallen Orderactually gives players a big chunk of damage on Oggdo Bogdo for free if they perform a prompted plunging attack on the enormous amphibian from above.
Either way, players don’t have a huge incentive to kill Oggdo Bogdo early because they won’t be able to access the loot it guards—and therevered pink poncho for Cal Kestiswithin it—until players have retrieved the ability for BD-1 to slice locked chests, though there is also a third of a Life Essence.
Survivorthen brought the nostalgia of this encounter back with asurprise encounter on Koboh against Oggdo Bogdo’s spawn, but unfortunately that special moment, however tedious, is doubled down on to horrible effect with a Force Tear that pits players against both the spawn and Oggdo itself. Nonetheless, Oggdo Bogdo remains a terrific optional fight introduced at the beginning of the original game and the sequeldoesn’t disappoint with its own.
Survivor’s Rancor is an Early-Game Treat the Sequel Exploits to a Fault
It can take a little while to get to sinceStar Wars Jedi: Survivor’s opening on Coruscantis quite long and it takes Cal and BD-1 a lengthy bit of time before they finally reach the wide-open region of Koboh, but eventually players may encounter a rancor deep within a mine where Cal can be sent to search for lost prospectors. The rancor is introduced brilliantly—before players is a cavern where a boss fight is fully predictable given its arena-like stage, but the rancor waits to slowly creep out from behind a rocky pillar and reveal itself until players hop in.
Much like Oggdo Bogdo,Star Wars Jedi: Survivor’s rancor bossdeals crushing damage with one- or two-hit kills and is tremendously tanky. Rather, the difference between them in terms of difficulty cannot be overstated as the rancor, if fought against tirelessly and diligently early in the game, can take much longer to slay. The rancor also doesn’t have an opening in a ceiling players can plunge down onto it from.
The only exploit players have is that they can pull a Luke Skywalker and Force Push a bone into the rancor’s mouth to temporarily stun it, though the damage players can deal in that small window likely isn’t enough to make a drastic difference.
The reward for killing the rancor is also much more substantial than the reward for killing Oggdo Bogdo—players complete the side quest they had embarked on, earn a ton of XP, and receive aperk that’s incredibly valuable inStar Wars Jedi: Survivorif they’re able to conquer the rancor that early in the game, which is precisely the reward an optional boss fight of that magnitude should provide. This rancor isn’t horribly iconic aside from its role as an arduous adversary, especially since more rancors are encountered later in the game.
In the same way that a cool and seemingly rare moment was robbed of Oggdo Bogdo for the sequel,Star Wars Jedi: Survivoralso regurgitates its rancor with a double rancor Force Tear challenge. If the side quest rancor boss fight wasn’t grueling enough for players to begrudgingly lower their difficulty settings then this Force Tear will surely pressure that resolve, and it’s disappointing because the lone rancor could’ve been outstanding if it was the only one.
Instead, it doesn’t even end up being the hardest rancor encounter. So whileStar Wars Jedi: Survivor’s sequel probably will and absolutely should reprise its early-game optional boss threats, it will hopefully make its own memorable and special like Oggdo Bogdo was inFallen Order.
Star Wars Jedi: Survivor
WHERE TO PLAY
The story of Cal Kestis continues in Star Wars Jedi: Survivor™, a third person galaxy-spanning action-adventure game from Respawn Entertainment, developed in collaboration with Lucasfilm Games. This narratively-driven, single player title picks up five years after the events of Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order™ and follows Cal’s increasingly desperate fight as the galaxy descends further into darkness. Pushed to the edges of the galaxy by the Empire, Cal will find himself surrounded by threats new and familiar. As one of the last surviving Jedi Knights, Cal is driven to make a stand during the galaxy’s darkest times - but how far is he willing to go to protect himself, his crew, and the legacy of the Jedi Order?Explore an Untamed Galaxy – Discover new planets and familiar frontiers in the Star Wars galaxy, each with unique biomes, challenges, and enemies. Master new skills, equipment, and abilities that will augment the ways you explore, fight, and roam. With larger areas to explore and more to discover off the beaten path, players who adventure beyond the horizon will find hidden rewards.
