It seems impossible that Star Wars Outlaws is the first-ever open-world Star Wars game, but indeed it’s true. With that first comes plenty of expectation, but also lots of excitement – particularly when the studio handling the effort is Massive Entertainment, the talented developers of The Division. Speaking personally, I confess that I don’t often get hyped up for too many open-world games these days outside of those made by Rockstar – as those can be counted on to raise the bar every single time – but I have been plenty hyped for Outlaws. After all, it’s set after Empire Strikes Back, you play as a Han Solo-caliber scoundrel instead of yet another Jedi, and you’ve got an awesome alien creature pet named Nix by your side at all times, who promises to have an impact on gameplay and not just follow our hero Kay Vess around being adorable. In other words, it’s got a lot going for it on paper.
And while it doesn’t seem like Outlaws will do any Rockstar-like bar-raising, after playing a near-final build of it for four hours across two different sections of gameplay, I can say it’s still one of my most anticipated games yet to come out in a busy second half of 2024, and it feels very Star Wars in all the right ways.
Ubisoft has developed a reputation for making “checklist” open-world games; big spaces where you’re given a to-do list of sidequests and activities to complete outside of the golden path. Generally this is not a compliment. But one of the things that impressed me about Star Wars Outlaws is that I didn’t get the sense that I was just checking boxes to inch closer to 100% game completion. Don’t get me wrong – there is plenty to do in Outlaws, but those sidequests and activities feel a lot more organic than they do in the publisher’s other games. For example, while wandering around the town of Mirogana on the planet Toshara, I walked by an arcade mini-game of sorts. I wandered up and played a round. I also stumbled upon a betting stand where I could wager on holographic-horse races. I managed to bet on the right one by sheer good luck, which gave me a chuckle later when I discovered a datapad lying around elsewhere that gave me a strong hint on who to lay my money on. I also encountered a down-on-their-luck gambling addict who begged me for money. I obliged, enabling his vice and leaving with a promise that he’d share in his winnings should he find himself back on Lady Luck’s good side. Naturally, there’s also a cantina, and I even saw a Sabacc table, but I lacked sufficient funds at the time to buy in and play.
All of these optional activities feel very natural on the planets and towns of Outlaws, and that’s true in part because of the excellent art direction that makes every location ooze Star Wars authenticity. From the lighting to the architecture to the NPCs milling about, Massive has, based on what I’ve seen so far, done an excellent job of setting an authentic Star Wars stage.
I’d be remiss if I didn’t add how the story of Star Wars Outlaws only supports and reinforces all of this. Kay is just out to make her way in an unforgiving galaxy, lying or double-crossing as she needs to in order to look out for number one. This plays out in occasional dialogue choices that pop up during cutscenes, adding a bit more player agency to what would otherwise be a mini-Star Wars in-game movie. Will those choices affect how the plot ultimately plays out? I wouldn’t bet on it, but there is a laudable faction reputation system that tracks how much (or little) each of the in-game syndicates likes you. Double-cross the Hutts and you’ll harm your reputation with them, but increase your standing with the Crimson Dawn. Piss off a faction enough and they won’t let you into their territory (meaning you’ll have to sneak in and stay undetected if you want access).
But, you’re probably wondering, what of the moment-to-moment gameplay? In this, Star Wars Outlaws made me happy. This is a stealth game if you want it to be. And if you mess up in that attempt, I honestly like that you don’t have a lightsaber to save you. You’ll have to use Kay’s blaster – which, yes, is upgradeable – to get out of trouble, and that adds to the sense of danger because you’re not a laser sword-wielding demigod. As such, the blaster battles felt like they had meaningful stakes, and the stealth gameplay had a bit of weight to it because I knew that I’d be up against it if I messed up.
Naturally, there’s lockpicking too in the form of data spikes, and I quite like how Outlaws handles it. Each lock has a particular audio signature, and it’s up to you to match that pattern by pressing the right trigger in time with the beeps. The longer you take, the more likely you are to be spotted. Similarly, the hacking minigame is also really fun. Here, you’ll need to line up the right symbols in the right order, which usually takes multiple attempts. Fail too often and you’ll fail the hack entirely. It took me a few tries to wrap my head around, but once I did I really enjoyed the opportunities I got to do some hacking.
The core stealth gameplay is aided by the breakout star of Outlaws, Nix. Yes, Nix is the BD-1 of this game, but compared to Cal Kestis’s droid companion, Kay’s organic pal can do a lot more for you. He can distract an enemy – by getting the bad guy’s attention and adorably playing dead – or flat-out attack them. He can hit buttons or switches too, and retrieve items. This is useful when you’re pinned down in a firefight and a more potent A300 Blaster Rifle is across the room. Nix can fetch it and drop it at your feet without you leaving cover. I even like how Outlaws handles these larger weapons: they can’t be reloaded, meaning that once you fire all the rounds, you just drop the empty gun and go back to your trusty blasters. This is likely a design decision to ensure that Kay never feels overpowered, thus making sure the player is always on their toes in combat.
Finally, you couldn’t have an open-world Star Wars game without ways to get around that expanse, and in Outlaws, Kay has a speeder bike that, as you’d guess, can also be upgraded. You can win credits doing races, or just stop off along the way to your destination at some interesting-looking pit stop. The bike controls well – it almost feels like driving a boat in Waverace 64 in that it’s pretty fast and maneuverable but hardly handles like it’s on rails.
Complementing this is Kay’s ship, the Trailblazer (and yes, it’s upgradeable). I got to do a bit of outer-space ship-to-ship combat, and I had a good time! I’ll need plenty more time in the pilot’s seat to really solidify my opinion here, but flying the Trailblazer made a good first impression.
If there’s one thing that concerned me during my hands-on time, it’s bugs. Outlaws went gold well before the preview event, meaning that if I wasn’t playing the certification build, it was something mighty close. And while yes, there will inevitably be a day-one patch as most games have nowadays, it was still disappointing to see as many annoying little – admittedly mostly visual and harmless – glitches as I did. Hopefully that day-one update will knock out the bulk of them.
Ultimately, though, I had a fantastic time with Star Wars Outlaws. Open-world games tend to be jacks-of-all-trades, masters-of-none, and while I’m not sure Outlaws will master any of its gameplay components, it nonetheless not only does them all very well, but it does so with a convincing Star Wars sheen. And since there’s somehow never been an open-world Star Wars game before, it feels new, fresh, and most welcome. I’m glad this is arguably the first big-name game out this Fall on August 30, because I can’t wait to play more of it.
Ryan McCaffrey is IGN’s executive editor of previews and host of both IGN’s weekly Xbox show, Podcast Unlocked, as well as our long-form interview show, IGN Unfiltered. He’s a North Jersey guy, so it’s “Taylor ham,” not “pork roll.” Debate it with him on Twitter at @DMC_Ryan.
