Skip to main content

Star Wars Jedi: Survivor offers a big glimpse into Disney’s High Republic era

After Star Wars Jedi: Survivor, it will be impossible for Star Wars fans to ignore The High Republic era. Once limited to books, Disney is starting to make the fictional time period matter a lot more to the overarching narrative of Star Wars. If upcoming shows like The Acolyte weren’t already an indication of that to you, then The High Republic’s presence and relevance in Survivor will be. Although the game isn’t set during The High Republic — it takes place in the Reign of the Empire time period between Revenge of the Sith and A New Hope — characters and locations heavily tied to that era play a major role in the game’s narrative. 

Image used with permission by copyright holder

For a significant chunk of Cal Kestis’ latest adventure, he’s going toe-to-toe with Dagan Gera, a Jedi from The High Republic era that was sustained in a Bacta Tank for hundreds of years after betraying the Jedi Order. Especially on Koboh and the Shattered Moon, players will explore a lot of High Republic facilities and learn more about how the Jedi Order functioned and trained new Jedi at its height, and be able to contrast that with Cal’s current situation. 

Recommended Videos

So, what exactly is The High Repbulic, and why does it matter? This is what you need to know as the franchise looks to a new era.

What is The High Republic?

The High Republic is the third of nine Star Wars eras designated by Disney. It’s snuggled between The Old Republic, which we see in the aptly named Knights of the Old Republic, and the Fall of the Jedi era seen throughout the Star Wars prequel film saga. Disney first unveiled it in 2020, and Lucasfilm described it as “an era when the Galactic Republic and Jedi Order are at their zenith, about 200 years before Star Wars: The Phantom Menacein a blog post.

Star Wars: The High Republic poster
Image used with permission by copyright holder

For several years, Disney-canon Star Wars only ever focused on Jedi at their weakest. This era, while not devoid of conflicts and problems, is supposed to serve as a Renaissance of sorts for the Jedi Order, where ornate dresses and structures reflect the Jedi’s feeling of relative optimism and safety. Referencing it in something like Star Wars Jedi: Survivor chillingly contrasts with the oppressive nature of the Empire while still showing that Jedi from that era like Dagan still suffered with similar internal strife to Order 66 survivors like Cal.

The High Republic is a unique era that stands out from anything we have received from Star Wars before. For the past couple of years, though, it hasn’t been that relevant to fans who engage with the more notable movie, TV show, and video game releases. Instead, it has been the focus of several novels and comic books that tend to appeal to the most hardcore devotees.

When Lucasfilm unveiled The High Republic in 2020, it said: “This period on the Star Wars timeline will not overlap any of the filmed features or series currently planned for production, giving creators and partners a vast amount of room to tell Star Wars stories with new adventures and original characters.” That is starting to change.

Remember The High Republic

The High Republic will take center stage in several more mainstream Star Wars projects over the next year. First, there’s the significant role that this period plays in Star Wars Jedi: Survivor. Even though it’s not set during this time period, Respawn Entertainment’s game will likely be the first time a lot of people are introduced to the era and learn more about it from the game’s characters as well as all the lore scattered throughout the game. Certain teases from the Ahsoka trailer also indicate that characters from The High Republic will pop up in that The New Republic-era show.

More importantly, we are getting two TV shows set during The High Republic. First is Star Wars: Young Jedi Adventures, which is a children-focused animated series for Disney+ and Disney Junior about Yoda mentoring a group of younglings that begins on May 4. This, like Star Wars: The Clone Wars in the 2000s, should introduce a less explored era of Star Wars to a whole new generation of Star Wars fans, and it will do so during The High Republic period. Because it’s meant to appeal to children, this show will likely provide the most positive glimpse at that time. 

Cal confronts Dagan Gera in Star Wars Jedi: Survivor.
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Older fans, meanwhile, will get a hefty dose of The High Republic when The Acolyte drops on Disney+. The Acolyte, a TV series by one of Russian Doll’s co-creators that stars Amandla Stenberg, is described by Lucasfilm as “a mystery-thriller that will take viewers into a galaxy of shadowy secrets and emerging dark-side powers in the final days of the High Republic era.” The show will be the biggest stage The High Republic will get, but it also seems like it challenges the status quo of that era.

If you don’t want to be a bit confused about what kind of Star Wars time period is being disrupted, you’ll definitely want to learn more about it through not only its books but other media like Star Wars Jedi: Survivor beforehand. If how relevant The High Republic will be in Star Wars universe over the next year is any indication, EA and Respawn Entertainment’s latest may be the start of a High Republic renaissance for Disney and Lucasfilm.

Star Wars Jedi: Survivor is available now for PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S.

Tomas Franzese
A former Gaming Staff Writer at Digital Trends, Tomas Franzese now reports on and reviews the latest releases and exciting…
Star Wars Jedi: Survivor’s arachnophobia toggle removes all spiders
Cal Kestis with BD-1 droid on his shoulder.

From endless hordes of Empire goons to hulking Rancors that can crush you in one or two hits, there are no doubt a lot of things to be afraid of in EA's new action-adventure sequel Star Wars Jedi: Survivor. However, if one of your fears happens to be spiders, developer Respawn has got you covered with an arachnophobia toggle that completely removes spiders from the game.

Survivor's Arachnophobia Safe Mode ensures that players who aren't particularly fond of eight-legged creepy-crawlies will never have to engage with any spiders that might crawl their way on-screen partway through the campaign. It's an unexpected addition to a game that is otherwise filled to the brim with strange and unsettling creatures to observe and fight, but spiders no doubt have a special way of freaking some of us out. Many folks are certain to appreciate seeing a choice to avoid arachnids altogether when they find themselves scrolling through the game's suite of accessibility options.

Read more
The best skills to buy first in Star Wars Jedi: Survivor
Jedi Cal Kestis.

Star Wars Jedi: Survivor has improved upon the original game in almost every way, and that includes expanding main character Cal Kestis' wide selection of skills and abilities. Whether it's new stances to engage with or entirely new skill sets to acquire, you'll find plenty to unravel throughout the game's lengthy adventure. If you're just getting started, though, you may find that your limited skill points leave you wondering which skills are worth your investment. Don't fret, though, as we've got the best skills for you to buy first in this guide.

Before we get started, however, be aware that the decisions you make in your skill tree can be reversed by spending 1 skill point, giving you the option to try new builds as you play. Luckily, that shouldn't generally be necessary – especially if you're thorough with your exploration – as Jedi Survivor has no level cap. Because of this, you can continue to grind out infinite skill points whenever you wish. In other words, you can max out the entire skill tree by the end of the game. With that out of the way, here are the best skills to buy first.
Survival Skills

Read more
Star Wars Jedi: Survivor brings balance back to an unstable universe
Jedi Cal Kestis.

It’s funny to think about how much has changed about Star Wars since EA released Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order in 2019. The action-adventure game would launch just weeks before The Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, a polarizing conclusion to its sequel trilogy that would create a disturbance in the force. In the years since, Disney has entirely changed its approach to the series by expanding the cinematic universe with a mixed bag of content, from the critically acclaimed Andor to more middling projects like The Book of Boba Fett. More than ever, the series is in desperate need of stability. It’s somewhat fitting, then, that Star Wars Jedi: Survivor could be the project that gets Star Wars back on track.

During a demo event ahead of the sequel’s April 28 release, I got to play a sizable chunk of the game – spanning over three hours of playtime. What stood out most during that session wasn’t its visual glow-up or fleshed-out combat. Rather, it was how tightly packaged it all is, both as a AAA video game and as a piece of Star Wars media. It’s an almost classic Jedi adventure, filled with dramatic lightsaber battles and some lighthearted comedy in-between the galactic melodrama. It’s hard to imagine anyone being upset over it (though the fan base always finds a way, doesn’t it?).

Read more