The exact kind of fun I hoped for

There’s actually one thing to be mentioned 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, slender openings and reloading weapons feels equal elements 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 is just not 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 approach.

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 couple of weeks.

My expectations have been firmly up in orbit, hovering someplace between the brightness of Tatooine’s two moons and the joys of a wonderfully executed blaster shot from the hip. What I didn’t anticipate, 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 sizzling water when a job goes downhill, quick. With a deathmark on her title and nowhere within the galaxy to soundly cover, she and her merqaal companion Nix staff up with a slew of surprising allies in an Ocean’s Eleven-esque heist that would change all of their lives.

And I can not stress this sufficient: it’s a number of the most enjoyable I’ve had in a sport all 12 months.

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

Emotional pay-off

They are saying that profitable is the buddies you make alongside the best way, 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 simple for her mates to belief her. However as soon as she’s in your aspect, 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 the most effective character in all the sport, even once I take sizzling droid ND-5 under consideration), or it’s the newfound sense of loyalty and vulnerability that she discovers with the broader heist crew, Kay is a automobile for progress – each for the participant, and for the staff.

It may’ve simply felt like drudgery to be traipsing everywhere in the universe, in search of 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 all of the sudden thriving with out all that effort. Star Wars Outlaws straddles that line effectively, with sufficient connection and pay-off to make the questing appear participating, and the relationships natural.

I didn’t anticipate 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 surprising, even when a number of 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 anticipate to have your again winds up coming by means of – and all of the extra tense when it’s the opposite approach round.

And whereas Kay and Nix actually do kind 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 staff effort. Pure dialog companions emerge – the droidsmith and the droid, the explosives professional and… effectively truly, anybody who doesn’t need to get blown to smithereens.

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

World-building? Nah, that is universe-building

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

Not solely are there numerous quests, intel hunts, mini-games, contracts, consultants, and extra, however there’s a complete lot of area to discover too. With “solely” 4 orbits – Toshara, Kijimi, Akiva and Tatooine – you’d be forgiven for pondering the world might really feel considerably restricted. As an alternative, the expanse of star-dotted area 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 have been very lucky to listen to about prematurely at a preview occasion), and it helps take your thoughts off the truth that you’re probably 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 might have each proper to really feel.

That’s to not say it doesn’t nonetheless have repetition. From the Uncharted-like platformer routines by means of to a gradual trickle of vents that Kay clambers by means of, we’re seeing plenty of 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 wanting inflicting frostbite or trench foot, fortunately.

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

Progress in a brand new kind

One side that actually does really feel contemporary about Star Wars Outlaws is the Professional system of levelling up. At no level do you ever see a quantity to suggest Kay’s progress, 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 Specialists in chosen fields.

From mercenaries with heavy artillery by means of to slicing consultants that may assist you to hack into extra superior methods, these Specialists don’t require fee within the type of credit – they merely have duties that it’s essential to obtain in your common gameplay that unlock additional skills.

This could possibly 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 gained’t lie, did wound me to do).

Once more, this technique helps foster a progress trajectory that feels natural and aware, quite than haphazard. It is smart from a story perspective as a lot because it does a sensible stage, and for that I’d simply mark it as probably the greatest 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 likely one of the very first components you’ll encounter, because it asks you to match the rhythm of a clicking secure along with your controller, and the slicing mechanic asks you to finish a line of code by selecting the best numbers in the correct order.

Others, it’s a must to stumble throughout by yourself, just like the meals mini-games you’ll find at every spaceport’s helpful little droid-operated eating places. That includes a choice 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 potential or expertise for Nix to utilise in your subsequent adventures.

As somebody who’s not tremendous into QTEs as a basic rule, I didn’t initially gravitate in the direction of them, however the builders knew what they have been doing – every interplay is so unbelievably lovely that they’re unimaginable 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 largest sign for the way a lot I genuinely loved Star Wars Outlaws is how fervently I’m already kicking my ft in anticipation of enjoying extra. With so many various alternatives and challenges you possibly can face, the world is one which I’m comfortable 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 similar, and if you happen to look solely 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 really 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, plenty of 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 may really feel virtually like a chore.

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

Returning to this universe daily for the previous week was one thing I felt wanting to do, not simply obliged in any form of approach. 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 really loathed me by the tip). Perhaps I’ll go for brute pressure and heavy artillery quite than the consolation blanket of a stealthier method. Perhaps I’ll work tougher at not careening my speeder headfirst into an surprising 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 long-lasting line, “By no means inform me the chances.” In a 12 months the place we’ve all been ready for a standout sport to stand up, I really feel like – not less than for now, and with out anybody saying it out loud – Star Wars Outlaws has crushed the chances.

4-and-a-half stars: ★★★★½

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

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