The news is out, Star Wars Outlaws is coming soon!
I feel like now is a great time to be a Star Wars fan, there are so many exciting projects developing across the games, movies and so many books to read (canon or not).
As I write this, I’m sat watching Andor and loving it, (I cannot wait for the second series).
But back to Star Wars Outlaws, it is set to arrive sometime in 2024 and is being developed by Ubisoft Massive.
So we have a bit of time to wait, but that gives us plenty of time for more trailers, gameplays and other exciting bits of content to drop to tempt us. As a big Star Wars fan, I just get excited every time they announce a new anything. I like to play any of the games and this one looks like it could be one of the best.
“This is the first-ever open world Star Wars™ game, set between the events of The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi. In this game, you get to explore distinct planets across the galaxy, both iconic and new. Playing the protagonist as Kay Vess, a scoundrel seeking freedom and the means to start a new life, along with her companion Nix. Fight, steal, and outwit your way through the galaxy’s crime syndicates as you join the galaxy’s most wanted.
If you’re willing to take the risk, the galaxy is full of opportunity.”
Ubisoft Massive
So let’s jump into the 5 reasons i’m looking forward to playing Star Wars Outlaws next year:
1. Open-world game play- a busy, exciting galaxy.
I love open world game play. It makes for a far more immersive experience and a nice departure from reality if the world you’re in is incredibly designed. Any game I can play where I can explore and feel like I live in that world, I want to play it. From the first glimpses of the cinematic trailer, I was hooked. Knowing that I will get to run around different worlds from the Star Wars Universe in an exploratory way (not just combat mode) sounds very appealing to me.
I want a game where if i’m bored and decide to hop on and play but I’m not interested in progressing in the game at that point, I can run around and explore, maybe build relationships or do short quests/tasks. From watching both the cinematic and gameplay trailers, I feel this is going to be a game like that.
The game has been described as having “distractible” features such as overhead flying ships that might make you want to chase them to see where they land. I can totally see myself doing this.
There is also a high amount of detail, landscapes and characters to interact with which excites me. There will be dense living cities with plenty of NPC’s to interact with and you get to choose how to interact with NPC’s. We get the options of choosing responses and interactions with NPC’s which I think will allow the game to feel more custom to you and your decisions, which I like.
There will also be large landscapes to explore and travel. Think vast deserts and forests. Having watched the gameplay run through on Youtube, I am so looking forward to just exploring what the designers have created.
To get to explore the worlds we have come across already in the universe such as Tattooine, Kojimi and Toshara (which seems like it may be one of the main planets in the game) will be great fun.
As you are playing a scoundrel, I can imagine there’s going to be plenty of opportunities to make credits, trades etc. I wonder if there will be a bounty hunter element here, perhaps even gambling and bribery from what we see in the trailer. It already sounds like a game where you can disappear off on side quests and live the scoundrel life as much as you want to around the main story.
You can explore land on foot, on vehicles like speeders or go into space in a spaceship (I’m curious to see if there will be opportunities to steal ships from others?)
I didn’t see anything in the gameplay trailer but I really hope you will able to use animals like Bantha’s or Eopi’s too.
2. NYX
Nyx is clearly inspired by Axolotls and you know what? I for one am so glad that those awesome little creatures are getting their moment on social media, popular culture and now in Star Wars Outlaws. What a cute little side kick to help you along in your missions!
We had an Axolotl in my school’s biology lab and my seat was next to its tank. It was the coolest little creature (an Albino one too!) and ever since I’ve been a big fan of them. The internet has clearly got the same obsession as we are now getting this cute sidekick.
You can use Nyx to your advantage during missions and explore the world with him. I’m curious to see what neat little tricks this critter can do.
I love the idea of having a companion (especially one as cute as Nyx!) with me as I explore the galaxy. I’m also curious to see if there will be other creatures to interact with as you go from world to world, perhaps fathiers, eopi’s or banthas?
3. Kay Vess: A female protagonist scoundrel
In Star Wars Outlaws, you play the part of Kay Vess (click here to find out more about her).
As a female gamer, I always love seeing games (and movies) with female leads.
Thinking back to the original scoundrel, Han Solo, I remember wanting to know more about his life when I watched the original trilogy as a child and teenager. Now, many years later, we have some more of his back story through content such as the Solo movie and now we have a game where you can be a scoundrel. It’s awesome that we’re getting a game that isn’t just all focused on the other types of people in star wars (e.g. Jedi or the Empire), i’m looking forward to trying to scrape together a living as Kay and seeing what trouble there is to get into.
I have already seen some of the tweets of people complaining about the main character being a woman but so what? There are the Jedi: Fallen Order, Jedi Survivor and so many other games over the years that haven’t had a female protagonist, anyone who complains, i’m sure they’ll live, I personally can’t wait to play as her.
I also secretly hope to come across some Jedi in this game. Although I know the story isn’t about it, to me it isn’t Star Wars if there aren’t some Jedi in it. I also wonder if we are going to meet any of the main characters at all or hear NPC’s discussing main events from the films?
As happy as I am about having a female protagonist there is one thing I would like to see brought into games like this. The choice to choose between 1-3 main characters. They may all have different story lines or all work together on the same team, I don’t mind which. Perhaps a Star Wars game where you choose between Empire, Jedi or Scoundrel and who you choose affects how the game develops? Now that would be awesome. But for now, I am excited to see what other exciting characters appear in this game.
4. Wanted mode – evade the Imperials or you’re in trouble!
Watching the gameplay showdown, i love that they have incorporated something similar to Red Dead Redemption or Grand Theft Auto. (This makes me very excited as these are two of my all time favourite games and nothing gets the gaming adrenaline going than trying to evade capture!)
If the empire comes across you, WANTED will flash across the screen and the empire will start to track you, so you’ve got to get out of there!
Depending on your decisions, it looks like Kay can make it through dangerous situations safely, or find herself with a Wanted tag that will have the Imperials chasing her, at least until she can lose them by hiding out on some other planet. (I’m assuming this will be a situation where you’ve got to high tail it to your ship and get up out of the atmosphere and jump into hyperspace?)
I wonder if the Wanted tag will cause you issues in later parts of the game. For example, if you’re still classed as too hot, perhaps you won’t be able to do certain missions? Will you get bounty hunters on your tail that you’ll have to evade even beyond the Wanted flashing on the screen? Now that could be interesting!
The Wanted scenarios add a really interesting depth to the game and I can’t wait to be on the run for the first time from the empire. So it might be best to watch your behaviour around Imperials in this game or you might have to make a quick getaway!
5. The risky space travel and combat in Star Wars Outlaws
One of my favourite parts about the Star Wars stories is there always action. There is always someone running for a ship and trying to escape an enemy. Now we get to do that for ourselves in a world of unreal graphics and detail, I am excited!
If you fire your ship off into space, you may find yourself in the middle of a battle, fire fight or being chased! This sort of random excitement in the game is something I am looking forward to. The jump from ground to space seems seamless in the trailers, so i’m excited to try it for the first time. You can even jump into hyperspace to escape your enemies and i’m assuming use it to travel, which I think will be amazing to try.
It also seems like Ubisoft have been paying attention to all the big trends and games over the years. From the gameplay I saw, there seems to be third-person shooting styles to the game which look amazing, very similar to older games like Call of Duty.
What parts of Star Wars Outlaws are you most looking forward to?
Watch the gameplay trailer below.
Creative director Julian Gerighty says this of the new Star Wars game:
“When we first imagined the first open-world Star Wars game, we explored where and when it could take place, and quickly realized that we had all the right ingredients for the journey of a scoundrel. These outlaws live life under the thumb of the Galactic Empire, but can still thrive given the opportunities that the criminal underworld opens up for people looking to take advantage of the turmoil. The time is ripe for a new outlaw to make their name, and Kay Vess is written in the stars.”
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