The verdict is now available for Star Wars Outlaws, a game that has garnered significant anticipation since its announcement. As it is the first open-world Star Wars game, it offers players the unprecedented ability to freely travel between planets without interruptions. Previews have highlighted several strengths, particularly in graphics and atmosphere, though some weaknesses have also been noted, especially regarding gameplay. So, what is the reality? Fortunately, I completed the game over the weekend at 100%, as shown in this image, and will not only share my impressions and final score but also detail both its impressive aspects and areas where it falls short. Here is the full review of Star Wars Outlaws.
In “Star Wars Outlaws,” players will experience the adventures of Kay Vess, an outlaw who bears similarities to Han Solo in both her representation and character development. This includes her weaponry, spaceship, and distinctive attire. Ubisoft has made deliberate references to Harrison Ford’s character, particularly through his attire and specific scenarios within the game. Upon visiting Jabba’s lair, players will notice a nod to Han Solo, though he remains encased in carbonite. It is worth noting that other recognizable characters from the Star Wars universe appear as cameos but do not play significant roles beyond these appearances. One character’s portrayal in “Star Wars Outlaws” stands out particularly well, with a memorable cinematic sequence that left a strong impression on me. I will refrain from divulging further details, except to say that understanding their significance requires reaching the latter stages of the game…
A BETTER TOMORROW
Let us return to Kay Vess, our central character. At the beginning of her adventure, she takes on various odd jobs to make a living until one day someone offers her the heist of the century. The reward is a staggering 157 million credits to recover from a safe; naturally, she cannot pass up such an opportunity. By agreeing to participate in this space heist, Kay will also encounter numerous individuals, both significant and minor, and most importantly, become acquainted with factions known as “Syndycats of Crime” within the game. These criminal syndicates are central to the story and are divided into four factions: the Pyke Syndicate, the Red Dawn, the Hutt Cartel, and finally, the Ashiga Clan.
Kay Vess will therefore maintain contact with each of these unions throughout her journey, and it is noteworthy that she can choose to prioritize the interests of one union over another. Several times during gameplay, players will encounter decisions that influence the progression of events. While it remains unclear whether cinematics change based on which clan receives favor (as I have not played through the game twice), there is a significant impact in-game. Each planet visited features territories and districts controlled by these prominent unions. Depending on the relationships cultivated with specific factions, players may or may not be able to navigate through monitored zones freely. The rapport Kay establishes with these criminal networks is measured across five levels: Atrocious, Bad, Mediocre, Good, and Excellent. By undertaking tasks for different syndicates, players can improve or deteriorate their relationships. In fact, all the supplementary and secondary content in the open world revolves around crime syndicate assignments. This not only allows recovery of cosmetic items to customize Kay’s, Nix’s, or their vehicles’ appearance but also provides access to equipment upgrades and significant gameplay enhancements.
ABNORMAL GRAVITY
Let’s discuss the gameplay, which was one of the elements that raised concerns during previews, particularly regarding the excessive reliance on stealth mechanics, which felt somewhat outdated. Additionally, the gunplay seemed sluggish, and Kay’s movements appeared to have too much inertia, giving an impression of floating. Julien Gerighty had assured that the stealth mechanics in Star Wars Outlaws would be a minor aspect of the game and not its core gameplay. However, upon completing the game, it is clear that everything revolves around stealth to an excessive degree. While I do not dislike stealth, it did not align with my expectations when starting Star Wars Outlaws. This is particularly evident during the first 10-15 hours of gameplay, where a lengthy tutorial emphasizes missions requiring stealth, failing which results in a game over and forces players to replay entire sequences. Furthermore, the automatic save points need significant improvement; they are poorly placed and inadequate for the mainstream, mass-market appeal that Star Wars Outlaws aims to achieve. Why such sudden difficulty spikes that even experienced players find frustrating? This situation mirrors Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora from eight months ago. In fact, Star Wars Outlaws shares many similarities with Avatar, which was developed by the same studio.
In Star Wars Outlaws, the enemy artificial intelligence is notably inept and ineffective, necessitating developers to maximize difficulty settings to compensate for its shortcomings. It is common to observe soldiers being easily knocked out within arm’s reach of allies or explosive barrels being detonated without attracting any nearby enemy attention within a 20-meter radius. This highlights their limited alert zones, allowing players to exploit these weaknesses with stealth attacks. Once an alert is triggered, however, enemies transform into one-shot snipers who relentlessly target the player, which is exacerbated by the game’s less refined gunplay system. Initially, the combat may seem outdated and somewhat clunky for a title focused on blaster fights, but it does improve as players progress through the adventure or simply grow accustomed to it. At times, hand-to-hand combat can be more effective due to enemies often surrendering after a few weak punches, except against tougher opponents or invulnerable robots.
Gears of Redemption: Vess Fortune
At the beginning, Kay’s blaster is extremely basic with a single shot that is neither powerful nor precise. However, improvements are needed by finding capabilities within the open world to upgrade. Between the second ion shot, the charged powerful shot, and other options like smoke grenades to disorient enemies, things improve, but the process is slow and time-consuming. This is one of the major criticisms of Star Wars Outlaws – its frustrating progression system. Unlike typical skill trees with XP points to accumulate and exchange for upgrades, players must now assist people in the open world to find components that can then be attached to weapons and vehicles for upgrades. While interesting on paper, it’s less so in practice, especially since many of these updates are found in side missions. To make Kay a more capable character, including in movement, players must delve into secondary quests. This does encourage players to complete the main storyline and side missions, but I find the balance lacking.
The transition feels smooth, though Kay Vess often appears awkward in her movements and animations when discussing balance. There has been mention of floating gameplay characterized by inertia and magnetism similar to that seen in the Star Wars Outlaws character, yet issues persist with managing jumps, climbing, and interactions between Kay and the environments. Her jumps are unusual, creating a sensation as if she is slightly gliding, akin to moving on the Moon under reduced gravity. Likewise, during many climbing sequences, her responses lag, animations become exaggerated, and reactivity is lacking. For example, when Kay Vess slides, players must wait for her to stand up or take cover. Additionally, even the Gears of War reload mechanic and the famous Dead Eye from Red Dead Redemption exhibit a lack of responsiveness and dynamism, making certain battles challenging due to this diminished functionality.
Another point that particularly bothered me about the game is the limited number of puzzles. There are only two throughout the entire adventure. One involves a locking pick system that requires replicating an exact tempo to unlock doors or chests, while the other includes hacking computers by placing symbols in the correct order through trial and error, as there’s no logical approach to it. Spending 36 hours solely on these puzzles can be frustrating enough to drive someone mad. As for the story, it lacks captivating elements. Massive has incorporated typical Star Wars tropes such as factions at war with each other, but their attempts to delve deeper into Vess’ backstory fall short. The AI of enemies is inefficient and ineffective, leading developers to increase difficulty levels to compensate. It’s not uncommon to take out a soldier within arm’s reach of his comrades without alerting them or triggering explosive barrels nearby due to the enemies’ blindness and deafness. This results in absurd and often ridiculous situations… Despite this, once alerted, enemies become relentless snipers, making the gunplay system’s weaknesses more apparent. Initially, the combat mechanics may seem outdated with a clunky feel that doesn’t align well with a game focused on blaster fights, but they improve as you progress through the adventure, either due to adaptation or familiarity. The sluggishness and frustration can be so intense that melee combat often becomes more effective, as enemies typically succumb after three well-placed punches, except for tougher adversaries or robots, which are immune to such attacks.
BEAUTY & TOTAL IMMERSION
After 36 hours of gameplay, here is a summary of Star Wars Outlaws:Star Wars Outlaws, an eagerly anticipated open-world game set in the Star Wars universe, follows Kay Vess, a female character modeled after Han Solo, on her spacefaring adventures. The narrative includes Kay’s involvement in various heists and encounters with major Star Wars characters as cameos, featuring one particularly noteworthy representation.Gameplay features include:- Players can align themselves with different criminal factions (Pyke Syndicate, Red Dawn, Hutt Cartel, Ashiga Clan), which influences game progression and access to open-world content.- Stealth mechanics dominate the early stages of gameplay, accompanied by lengthy tutorials. Inadequate handling of stealth scenarios can lead to game-over situations due to exploitable weaknesses in enemy AI that become formidable snipers once alerted.- Gear upgrades are obtained through assistance provided to NPCs in side missions rather than traditional skill trees, which may feel tedious and slow. Kay’s movement animations exhibit gravity-defying effects that appear unnatural.- Puzzles are limited (only two) and involve a locking pick system requiring guesswork rather than logical reasoning. Gunplay mechanics improve as players progress but initially feel outdated and clunky.The story incorporates familiar Star Wars themes such as warring factions and betrayal, with Kay’s backstory explored albeit not extensively.In conclusion, while Star Wars Outlaws offers an immersive open world with intriguing lore and cameos from the franchise, it struggles with balanced gameplay mechanics in areas like stealth, combat, movement, and puzzle design. Despite these shortcomings, the game provides a unique perspective within the Star Wars universe but requires improvements in its execution.
Star Wars Outlaws is a game set in the Star Wars universe, featuring Kay Vess as the protagonist. The game offers an immersive experience with rich and diverse environments across various planets. However, it faces criticism for its frustrating progression system, unresponsive gunplay, and lackluster storyline. Despite these issues, the game boasts impressive visuals, dynamic weather and day/night cycles, and a vast open world to explore. Its strengths lie in the immersion and freedom provided to players, while weaknesses include unsatisfying combat mechanics and a shallow narrative.
Star Wars Outlaws is an eagerly anticipated open-world game set within the Star Wars universe, featuring Kay Vess, a female character modeled after Han Solo. Players engage with various factions such as the Pyke Syndicate, Red Dawn, Hutt Cartel, and Ashiga Clan, making choices that influence relationships and access to planetary territories. The game offers stunning graphics, dynamic weather systems, and a vast open world filled with cosmetic upgrades. However, it faces several challenges: gameplay is dominated by excessive stealth elements early on, requiring repetitive tutorials and encountering punishing difficulty spikes due to poor AI. Gunplay feels sluggish, and combat mechanics can be frustrating, often necessitating slow and ineffective upgrades along with unresponsive controls for movement and interaction. Additionally, the game features only two puzzles that rely heavily on trial-and-error rather than logical thinking, contributing to a narrative lacking in depth and relying on clichéd faction dynamics. Despite its impressive visuals and immersive world-building, Star Wars Outlaws struggles to balance its strengths—such as freedom of exploration—with weaknesses like unsatisfying combat mechanics and a shallow plot. Overall, the game presents an enticing Star Wars universe but falls short in delivering a cohesive and engaging gameplay experience due to problematic game mechanics, AI issues, and weak narrative execution.
Star Wars Outlaws is a game set in the Star Wars universe, featuring a character named Kay Vess. The game provides an immersive experience with rich and diverse environments across various planets such as Toshara, Akiva, Tatooine, and Kijimi. Its open-world design allows players to explore these planets, complete with dynamic weather patterns and day/night cycles.Players can engage with multiple factions including the Pyke Syndicate, Red Dawn, Hutt Cartel, and Ashiga Clan, influencing the narrative through relationship-building efforts. However, the game has received criticism for its heavy reliance on stealth mechanics, initial sluggish gunplay mechanics, and a frustrating progression system that necessitates completing numerous side quests to upgrade weapons and equipment.Movement controls are often unresponsive, with peculiar jumping and climbing animations detracting from the overall experience. Combat encounters suffer from ineffective enemy artificial intelligence (AI), leading to difficulty spikes where melee combat sometimes proves more effective than ranged duels.Despite these issues, Star Wars Outlaws offers an expansive open world for exploration, featuring cameos of well-known Star Wars characters and a narrative that attempts to delve into Vess’s backstory but ultimately falls short. The game’s visual appeal and dynamic environments make it an intriguing addition to the Star Wars gaming canon, though its core mechanics and storytelling face significant criticism.
