The exact kind of fun I hoped for

There’s actually one thing to be stated for staring down the barrel of a stormtrooper’s grenade launcher, as you dip and dive from cowl to cowl. The pew pew pew of missed pictures, slim openings and reloading weapons feels equal components invigorating and nostalgic. That is what a lot of you grew up with. That is adrenaline personified. That is what Star Wars means.

As such a beloved property, the collective grip that Star Wars has on followers signifies that breaking new floor can really feel dangerous. Vocal dissent from the worst a part of the web will not be unusual on this neighborhood, and so growing an open world sport with a feminine protagonist that largely tries to not get too concerned within the battle of Jedi vs. Sith… It may have gone both method.

As a fan of each Star Wars and open-world video games, I knew I had a fairly robust likelihood of having fun with Star Wars Outlaws. I had a good time with the preview builds, I used to be fascinated by the worldbuilding, and I’ve actually spent extra time cuddling with a Nix plush than I’ve had actual human contact over the previous few weeks.

My expectations had been firmly up in orbit, hovering someplace between the brightness of Tatooine’s two moons and the fun of a superbly executed blaster shot from the hip. What I didn’t count on, nonetheless, was for the sport to exceed even these expectations.

Star Wars Outlaws tells the story of Kay Vess, a two-bit scoundrel from Canto Bight who finds herself in some severe scorching water when a job goes downhill, quick. With a deathmark on her identify and nowhere within the galaxy to soundly disguise, she and her merqaal companion Nix crew up with a slew of sudden allies in an Ocean’s Eleven-esque heist that would change all of their lives.

And I can not stress this sufficient: it’s among the most enjoyable I’ve had in a sport all yr.

Learn: Star Wars Outlaws interview: Freaks, discovered household, and A Fistful of {Dollars}

Emotional pay-off

They are saying that successful is the buddies you make alongside the way in which, however not since Mass Impact 2 have I felt that sense of crew accumulation and located household. Kay is an enigmatic character who, certain, doesn’t at all times make it straightforward for her buddies to belief her. However as soon as she’s in your facet, she’ll keep there – and boy can she accumulate a rag-tag bunch of miscreants.

Whether or not it’s her relationship with Nix (who is way and away one of the best character in your complete sport, even after I take scorching droid ND-5 into consideration), or it’s the newfound sense of loyalty and vulnerability that she discovers with the broader heist crew, Kay is a car for development – each for the participant, and for the crew.

It may’ve simply felt like drudgery to be traipsing all around the universe, looking for out shadowy figures who inevitably need you to scratch their again earlier than they scratch yours. It may additionally very simply have felt ill-won to have the crew’s relationships abruptly thriving with out all that effort. Star Wars Outlaws straddles that line effectively, with sufficient connection and pay-off to make the questing appear partaking, and the relationships natural.

I didn’t count on the sport to delve so keenly into the discovered household versus actual household trope, with flashback snippets demonstrating precisely why Kay has such a chip on her shoulder in terms of counting on anybody aside from herself. However that dialog is dealt with with a level of nuance that was sudden, even when among the supporting characters may’ve been fleshed out extra.

In a world the place scoundrel is as scoundrel does, the place syndicates and crime lords betray and backstab willy-nilly, it’s all of the extra welcome when somebody you didn’t count on to have your again winds up coming by way of – and all of the extra tense when it’s the opposite method round.

And whereas Kay and Nix actually do type a symbiotic core that retains the heist crew collectively, seeing the friendships and interactions between the opposite members helps make it really feel like rather more of a crew effort. Pure dialog companions emerge – the droidsmith and the droid, the explosives skilled and… effectively truly, anybody who doesn’t wish to get blown to smithereens.

And sure, I’ll take another minute to sing out the praises of the recent droid, ND-5. On the danger of placing such a sentence onto the web, the GamesHub crew was unanimous: it’s actually nice when he’s being slightly bit imply to you. And he’s virtually at all times slightly bit imply to you.

World-building? Nah, that is universe-building

Presumably probably the most hanging factor about Star Wars Outlaws is simply how expansive it actually does really feel. The open-world was a brand new, probably dangerous endeavour – there have undoubtedly been video games which have claimed the descriptor earlier than but didn’t fairly dwell up to speed, however there was no disappointment on that entrance right here.

Not solely are there numerous quests, intel hunts, mini-games, contracts, specialists, and extra, however there’s an entire lot of house to discover too. With “solely” 4 orbits – Toshara, Kijimi, Akiva and Tatooine – you’d be forgiven for considering the world might really feel considerably restricted. As an alternative, the expanse of star-dotted house feels open, like a yawning mouth of pirates, particles and planets.

Every of the visitable planets has its personal distinct biome and flavour (which we had been very lucky to listen to about prematurely at a preview occasion), and it helps take your thoughts off the truth that you’re possible as soon as once more heading into one compound or one other to piss off one faction or one other. Environmentally, thematically and virtually, it by no means feels as drained as it could have each proper to really feel.

That’s to not say it doesn’t nonetheless have repetition. From the Uncharted-like platformer routines by way of to a gentle trickle of vents that Kay clambers by way of, we’re seeing numerous the identical. However there’s sufficient of what’s completely different that it feels balanced out.

From snow-covered buildings in Kijimi to the regular pitter-patter of rainfall in Akiva, the panorama shifts simply sufficient to maintain you in your toes – although it stops in need of inflicting frostbite or trench foot, fortunately.

Learn: Large Leisure used movie strategies to craft Star Wars Outlaws

Development in a brand new type

One facet that actually does really feel recent about Star Wars Outlaws is the Knowledgeable system of levelling up. At no level do you ever see a quantity to suggest Kay’s development, nor do you see progress bars of XP rise over the course of the sport. As an alternative, you might be requested to find and develop alongside Consultants in chosen fields.

From mercenaries with heavy artillery by way of to slicing specialists that may aid you hack into extra superior methods, these Consultants don’t require fee within the type of credit – they merely have duties that you should obtain in your common gameplay that unlock additional skills.

This may very well be so simple as touchdown a headshot 15 occasions, getting an ideal rating on the lockpicking mini-game 3 times, and even merely making Nix jealous by petting one other creature (which I received’t lie, did wound me to do).

Once more, this technique helps foster a development trajectory that feels natural and conscious, relatively than haphazard. It is sensible from a story perspective as a lot because it does a sensible degree, and for that I’d simply mark it as among the finest inclusions.

A smattering of Star Wars Outlaws mini-games

It ought to be famous that for an enormous, vibrant open world sport, there certain are a bunch of mini-games hidden inside Star Wars Outlaws. Some are extra apparent – the lockpicking mechanic is among the very first parts you’ll encounter, because it asks you to match the rhythm of a clicking secure together with your controller, and the slicing mechanic asks you to finish a line of code by selecting the best numbers in the precise order.

Others, you need to stumble throughout by yourself, just like the meals mini-games you could find at every spaceport’s useful little droid-operated eating places. That includes a number of quicktime occasions, Kay and Nix will take pleasure in a spot of a brand new deal with to eat, which unlocks a brand new skill or expertise for Nix to utilise in your subsequent adventures.

As somebody who’s not tremendous into QTEs as a common rule, I didn’t initially gravitate in the direction of them, however the builders knew what they had been doing – every interplay is so unbelievably cute that they’re inconceivable to withstand.

When you’re satiated, sliced and lockpicked to oblivion, there comes the one mini-game that we at all times knew would advantage dialogue: sabacc. From lowly cantina tables to the very best of excessive rollers, it gave me nice pleasure each time a brand new sabacc questline popped up – to the purpose the place I’m severely considering buying my very own real-life set.

Roaming round for roaming’s sake

The most important sign for the way a lot I genuinely loved Star Wars Outlaws is how fervently I’m already kicking my toes in anticipation of enjoying extra. With so many various alternatives and challenges you may face, the world is one which I’m completely happy to simply let myself dwell in.

There are nonetheless tiny gripes, as there are with just about each sport – at one level a glitch meant my enemies went unintentionally invisible for a minute or so, which admittedly did elevate the stakes significantly. Plenty of the vent environments really feel an identical, and should you look completely on the core gameplay loop on paper, I can see why it’d really feel repetitive. Nonetheless, it had a grip that stored me effectively and actually entertained, and that’s all I need out of a Star Wars sport.

To not go too inside baseball, however whenever you’re reviewing a sizeable sport like this, numerous your free time goes into ensuring you’ve uncovered each rock and stone. Whereas I’m extremely acutely aware of the privilege, for some video games, this will really feel virtually like a chore.

For Star Wars Outlaws, I felt real pleasure each time I booted up the console. It’s not excellent, however neither are the scoundrels that the story depends upon. The place some may have a look at an absence of polish and really feel wanting, I really feel snug.

Returning to this universe on daily basis for the previous week was one thing I felt desirous to do, not simply obliged in any type of method. What Large Leisure have achieved is genuinely spectacular.

Perhaps subsequent playthrough I’ll give the Pyke Syndicate extra of an opportunity (sorry to Gorak, who actually loathed me by the top). Perhaps I’ll go for brute drive and heavy artillery relatively than the consolation blanket of a stealthier method. Perhaps I’ll work more durable at not careening my speeder headfirst into an sudden rock in the course of Tatooine – although in equity, they actually do sneak up on you.

In The Empire Strikes Again, Han Solo says the enduring line, “By no means inform me the chances.” In a yr the place we’ve all been ready for a standout sport to stand up, I really feel like – no less than for now, and with out anybody saying it out loud – Star Wars Outlaws has overwhelmed the chances.

4-and-a-half stars: ★★★★½

Star Wars Outlaws
Platform(s): PlayStation 5, Xbox Sequence X and Sequence S, Microsoft Home windows
Developer: Large Leisure
Writer: Ubisoft
Launch Date: 30 August 2024

_{A code for Star Wars Outlaws was offered by the writer and performed for the needs of this evaluation. GamesHub evaluations had been beforehand rated on a five-point scale. As of 29 July 2024, they’ve been rated on a ten-point scale.}