Highlights

  • The opening sequence of Star Wars Jedi: Survivor puts Cal Kestis through an emotional wringer, showcasing his anger and humanity.
  • Cal is one of the few Jedi left who wields their lightsaber as a symbol of hope against the Empire.
  • The Mind Trick ability in the game could be improved in a sequel to have more substantial effects and lead to diverse paths in the story.

The Star Wars Jedi franchise has never struggled to put Cal Kestis through an emotional wringer, and that’s never made more apparent than in the opening sequence of Star Wars Jedi: Survivor alone. Cal has experienced great loss in his life, but the tutorial sequence on Coruscant forces him to suffer even more when his merry band of rebels gets killed off one by one around him. It’s interesting to see Cal express his anger when a traditional Jedi might be more composed, and that humanity is what makes Cal a far more intriguing character than many Jedi tend to be.

Of course, not many Jedi are left at this point and those that are around are in hiding or have been turned to the dark side already. Bode Akuna exists somewhere in that grey area, for example, while Cal is one of the few Jedi who wields their lightsaber defiantly as a symbol of hope against the Empire. Cal’s Force attunement is also repaired now, and he’s learned several new tricks alongside his unique Psychometry ability. One new ability players get to see is Survivor’s Mind Trick gimmick in sparse, scripted moments, and though that is a fun way to represent the iconic ability it could be made much more engaging in a sequel.

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Star Wars Jedi: Survivor’s Mind Trick Only Barely Scratched the Surface

Survivor’s Mind Trick Ability was More of a Gimmick Than a Feature

Interrogating Senator Sejan in Survivor leads Cal to use a Mind Trick ability on him that requires players to choose between two dialogue options with an expiring timer. However, because either dialogue option results in the same outcome, it hardly has an effect outside its fun reference to the humorous gimmick in other Star Wars media.

There are several more that players come across but they each similarly have no wider effect on the story or any changes in outcome. Therefore, while fun as an inclusion, it is yet another mechanic in games that gives players the illusion of choice when there really is none.

There’s no way to make Mind Tricks more difficult and maybe not having them determine an actual outcome is for the best for that reason, but creating branching paths seems obligatory when a choice like that is presented to the player. Otherwise, it loses all the luster and tension that such moments have in other representations.

The Mind Trick shouldn’t be conflated with Survivor ’s Confusion Force skill tree , even though they are fairly similar in theory, but that’s where a sequel could make the most use of improving the Mind Trick’s functionality in gameplay.

Survivor’s Sequel Can Let Mind Trick Be Significant to the Story

Fortunately for Respawn, the Mind Trick ability has nowhere to go but up from Survivor. In Survivor’s inevitable sequel, it would be excellent to see Mind Tricks be far more substantial and actually lead to diverse paths, even if they’re unable to have a profound impact on the story at all.

This way, if players fail a Mind Trick they would be set on a different path from other players and eventually reconvene on the main path later on. This is sort of what Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy attempted to achieve in its own choice-based interactions, and Star Wars Jedi could make that premise even more engaging by sending players down perilous paths if their dialogue choice is an improper one for the circumstance.

Soulslikes tend to mislead players into misfortune, and Survivor’s sequel could easily make quick work of such pitfalls, traps, and mob ambushes in similar scenarios. Of course, Cal failing to Mind Trick an ordinary stormtrooper seems impossible, especially with Cal being as skilled as he is now, so it may be more difficult to implement Mind Tricks in a way where the player either suffers or is awarded for their related choices.