I played Star Wars Outlaws and it’s an immersive open world every Star Wars fan should explore
WITH so many Star Wars video games through the years, it’s astonishing that no title can be called a real open world.
We’ve played through great stories but they have always been more or less limited by linear levels, loading screens, or other restrictions on where you can go and when.
Touted as the first truly open-world game in the Star Wars universe, Outlaws promises to change that by offering not one but several open worlds to explore and travel between whenever you want.
You play as Kay Vess, a young thief who is just minding her business, trying to survive in the galaxy and living the Han Solo-like scoundrel lifestyle.
There are no lightsabres or Force abilities in this game, but Kay’s journey gives us a unique perspective on that galaxy far far away.
The story, set between The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi, feels fresh because it’s removed from the grand conflict between the Empire and the Rebellion.
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It presents us aspects of life in the universe that have only been hinted at in the films and rarely fully explored in other Star Wars media.
Doubling down on the allure of the scoundrel fantasy, it’s a stealth game with its fair share of sneaking, stealing, shooting, and space combat.
The story starts in Canto Bight, the gambling city we first saw in The Last Jedi, and it soon moves to Toshara, an entirely new world created for the game, and the largest explorable planet in Outlaws.
You also visit Luke and Anakin’s home planet of Tatooine, arguably the most iconic setting in Star Wars, which is full of easter eggs and familiar locations that long-time fans of the series will appreciate.
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Star Wars Outlaws’ open worlds feel unlike those of other Ubisoft games, relying more on true exploration rather than chasing a question mark icon on the map.
Kay won’t be climbing towers to reveal the next set of quest markers, but will discover opportunities and secrets around her in ways that feel natural and satisfying.
Eavesdropping on conversations at the local market or cantina, or talking to the right person to obtain valuable intel are just some of the many things you do to find jobs and hidden treasures.
It all fits great with the scoundrel fantasy and makes the completion of an intel chain to uncover a secret location or chest all the more rewarding.
Side quests are not just a way to earn some extra credits or valuable materials to upgrade your gear, but they can also help you improve (or ruin) your reputation with the underworld’s four criminal syndicates.
This gives you extra incentive to seek opportunities, as your standing within the criminal network determines what areas you can visit, brings you additional rewards and contract opportunities, and even influences the prices you get when trading with merchants.
Being just a regular thief, Kay’s own arsenal of weapons is very limited but quite versatile, relying on her trusty blaster and grenades.
As you progress through the game, you unlock upgrades and mods for your blaster that spice up combat.
There are more than a dozen types of more powerful weapons you can pick up from killed enemies that add more variety to combat, until their mags last.
Your minimalist loadout is complemented by Nix, your cute little alien companion who can do all sorts of stuff for you.
Nix will be distracting and attacking enemies, unlocking doors, fetching items, sneaking through tiny vents, or just wreaking havoc by detonating explosives.
You order Nix to perform these actions by holding the left bumper on your controller and pointing him to an interactable object in the environment.
The system is similar to hacking in Watch Dogs, but it’s more streamlined and satisfying to use. Nix’s help is essential to exploration and can save your life in combat.
Speaking of combat, cover shooter action can be a viable way to approach some situations, but it’s mostly a last-resort plan for when your stealth fails and enemies discover you.
Star Wars Outlaws is first and foremost a stealth game, and you will be doing a lot of sneaking behind enemies, crouching through vents, and hiding behind big boxes.
The stealth system and enemy AI are competent and in line with what we’ve seen in recent Ubisoft games from the Assassin’s Creed series.
Imperial entanglements can increase your Wanted level, and you will soon feel the heat if you commit crimes in front of imperial officers.
In line with the game’s high-stakes outlaw fantasy, failing a lengthy stealth section and getting killed can be quite the setback and there’s no save scumming, so you have to think through your every move.
Kay is also the proud owner of a big starship, The Trailblazer, which is how you hop between planets.
The first time the ship jumps into hyperspace will be a highlight for every Star Wars fan, not least because of how well-executed ship mechanics are.
Takeoff, landing, and interplanetary travel feel great, with no loading screens and unnecessary menus to break the immersion.
Space combat and ship handling in the orbit around each planet are on point, and the game gives you more than enough reasons to engage in dogfights and explore space around its worlds.
The experts abilities system lets Kay learn new tricks from masters of different trades by doing quests for them and meeting specific conditions, keeping gameplay fresh.
Your blaster and vehicles are upgradable in a meaningful way that really makes a difference in gameplay, prompting you to sneak into enemy bases to snatch rare materials and earn credits.
Traversing the worlds on your speeder is a joy, even more so once you get to grips with its handling and unlock a few upgrades.
Star Wars Outlaws' bustling worlds are littered with all sorts of activities to discover, including a version of the iconic card game Sabacc, which is playable for the first time in a Star Wars video game.
Kessel Sabacc is instantly addictive and you may find yourself spending hours at gaming tables, oblivious of your contracts and main quests.
Outlaws is a cinematic experience with great cutscenes supporting its hours-long story, but that filmlike quality carries over during gameplay sections too.
The entire game is presented in an ultrawide 21:9 format with film grain and other post-processing effects, emulating the look of the classic Star Wars film trilogy.
Cinematic mode is the default setting, but if you prefer the game to fill up your entire TV screen or monitor, you can switch the aspect ratio from the settings menu at any time.
All in all, Star Wars Outlaws lives up to its ambitions of being the first truly open-world Star Wars game with a strong focus on immersion and exploration.
Its story, characters, and brand-new world, are strong new additions to the ever-expanding Star Wars lore that fit nicely with the classic Star Wars films and which fans will love.
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In terms of performance, the game ran stable on the PS5, with only a few small glitches during my entire playthrough, none of which were game-breaking.
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