# Survivor: Game Changers
**Survivor: Game Changers** (also billed as *Survivor: Game Changers — Mamanuca Islands*) is the 34th season of the American CBS competitive reality series *Survivor*, in which 20 returning contestants competed in the Mamanuca Islands of Fiji for the title of Sole Survivor and a US$1,000,000 prize.[1](https://survivor.fandom.com/wiki/Survivor%3A_Game_Changers) It was the fourth season in the series to feature a full cast of returnees, after *Survivor: All-Stars*, *[Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains](https://www.edgepedia.org/survivor-heroes-vs-villains)*, and *Survivor: Cambodia*.[1](https://survivor.fandom.com/wiki/Survivor%3A_Game_Changers) After a season marked by repeated strategic shifts, [Sarah Lacina](https://www.edgepedia.org/sarah-lacina) won in a 7-3-0 final vote over [Brad Culpepper](https://www.edgepedia.org/brad-culpepper) and Troyzan Robertson.[1](https://survivor.fandom.com/wiki/Survivor%3A_Game_Changers)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Season | 34th season of US *Survivor*; 13 episodes over 39 days[1](https://survivor.fandom.com/wiki/Survivor%3A_Game_Changers) |
| Filming | June 6 to July 14, 2016, Mamanuca Islands, Fiji[1](https://survivor.fandom.com/wiki/Survivor%3A_Game_Changers) |
| Broadcast | March 8 to May 24, 2017, on CBS; 7.980 million viewers[1](https://survivor.fandom.com/wiki/Survivor%3A_Game_Changers) |
| Cast | 20 returning players, the fourth all-returnee season[1](https://survivor.fandom.com/wiki/Survivor%3A_Game_Changers) |
| Tribes | Mana, Nuku, and Tavua, merged as Maku Maku[1](https://survivor.fandom.com/wiki/Survivor%3A_Game_Changers) |
| Winner | Sarah Lacina, 7-3-0 over Brad Culpepper and Troyzan Robertson[1](https://survivor.fandom.com/wiki/Survivor%3A_Game_Changers) |
| Legacy | Produced six returning players for later seasons: Aubry Bracco, Cirie Fields, Ozzy Lusth, Sandra Diaz-Twine, Sarah Lacina, and Tony Vlachos[1](https://survivor.fandom.com/wiki/Survivor%3A_Game_Changers) |
## Production
The season was filmed 25 days after the filming of *Survivor: Millennials vs. Gen X*, continuing the back-to-back filming pattern the show has used since *Survivor: Samoa*.[1](https://survivor.fandom.com/wiki/Survivor%3A_Game_Changers) It carried a nautical theme, and its Tribal Council set was built from ten actual shipwrecks, most retrieved after [Cyclone Winston](https://www.edgepedia.org/cyclone-winston), the cyclone that struck Fiji before production of *Millennials vs. Gen X* began.[1](https://survivor.fandom.com/wiki/Survivor%3A_Game_Changers) The pre-jury trip took place in Vietnam.[1](https://survivor.fandom.com/wiki/Survivor%3A_Game_Changers)
## Cast
The cast was announced in May 2016 by the fan site Inside Survivor, which listed all 20 returning players with their ages, prior seasons, and placements.[2](https://insidesurvivor.com/cast/season-34-cast) The roster mixed former winners with players returning for a second or later attempt:
- **Former winners**: [Sandra Diaz-Twine](https://www.edgepedia.org/sandra-diaz-twine) (41, winner of *Pearl Islands* and *Heroes vs. Villains*), [Tony Vlachos](https://www.edgepedia.org/tony-vlachos) (42, winner of *Cagayan*), J.T. Thomas (31, winner of *Tocantins*), and Sarah Lacina (32, 11th on *Cagayan*).[2](https://insidesurvivor.com/cast/season-34-cast)
- **Multi-time returnees**: [Cirie Fields](https://www.edgepedia.org/cirie-fields) (45, 4th on *Panama*, 3rd on *Micronesia*, 17th on *Heroes vs. Villains*), Ozzy Lusth (34, runner-up on *Cook Islands*, 9th on *Micronesia*, 4th on *South Pacific*), Ciera Eastin (27, 5th on *Blood vs. Water* and 10th on *Cambodia*), Jeff Varner (50, 10th on *Australian Outback* and 17th on *Cambodia*), and Andrea Boehlke (26, 5th on *Redemption Island* and 7th on *Caramoan*).[2](https://insidesurvivor.com/cast/season-34-cast)
- **Second-time players**: Aubry Bracco (29, runner-up on *Kaoh Rong*), Caleb Reynolds (28, 15th on *Kaoh Rong* by medevac), Debbie Wanner (50, 9th on *Kaoh Rong*), Tai Trang (52, second runner-up on *Kaoh Rong*), Malcolm Freberg (29, 4th on *Philippines* and 9th on *Caramoan*), Brad Culpepper (46, 15th on *Blood vs. Water*), Sierra Dawn Thomas (29, 5th on *Worlds Apart*), Hali Ford (26, 11th on *Worlds Apart*), Troyzan Robertson (54, 8th on *One World*), Zeke Smith (28, 9th on *Millennials vs. Gen X*), and Michaela Bradshaw (25, 14th on *Millennials vs. Gen X*).[2](https://insidesurvivor.com/cast/season-34-cast)
Casting did not go entirely as planned. *[Survivor: Fiji](https://www.edgepedia.org/survivor-fiji)* winner Earl Cole was asked to compete but dropped out due to injury, and several contestants, including [Ethan Zohn](https://www.edgepedia.org/ethan-zohn), Danni Boatwright, Corinne Kaplan, Sabrina Thompson, Kelley Wentworth, and Joe Anglim, were asked to return but declined the offer.[1](https://survivor.fandom.com/wiki/Survivor%3A_Game_Changers)
## Format and gameplay
The season's premise selected players "for the impact they had made on the game of *Survivor*", and the game began with three tribes of returnees, Mana, Nuku, and Tavua, before merging into the Maku Maku tribe.[1](https://survivor.fandom.com/wiki/Survivor%3A_Game_Changers) The finale aired as a two-hour episode in which, as CBS described it, "after a game changing season, one castaway will be crowned sole Survivor and awarded the $1 million dollar prize".[3](https://www.cbs.com/shows/survivor/episodes/34/)
Sarah Lacina's winning game was built on calculated flips that let her control most of the post-merge, and she defeated Culpepper and Robertson in the final vote, 7-3-0.[1](https://survivor.fandom.com/wiki/Survivor%3A_Game_Changers)
## Reception and legacy
The season nonetheless fed the show's returnee pipeline: six of its players, Aubry Bracco, Cirie Fields, Ozzy Lusth, Sandra Diaz-Twine, Sarah Lacina, and Tony Vlachos, returned in later seasons.[1](https://survivor.fandom.com/wiki/Survivor%3A_Game_Changers) Fields, who finished 6th here after placements of 4th, 3rd, and 17th on her first three seasons, later returned again for *Survivor 50*, where she was described as often considered the best *Survivor* player to never win.[4](https://time.com/7289276/survivor-50-cast-what-to-know/)
## References
1. [Survivor: Game Changers, Survivor Wiki (Fandom)](https://survivor.fandom.com/wiki/Survivor%3A_Game_Changers)
2. [Season 34 Cast, Inside Survivor (Martin Holmes, May 31, 2016)](https://insidesurvivor.com/cast/season-34-cast)
3. [Survivor Season 34 Episodes, CBS](https://www.cbs.com/shows/survivor/episodes/34/)
4. [Everything to Know About the 24 Players Cast in Survivor 50, TIME](https://time.com/7289276/survivor-50-cast-what-to-know/)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Series and fictional screen worlds › Unscripted, reality, and web-native series › Reality and competition franchise editions › Survivor and survival-competition franchises*
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