Chad Sapieha

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Ubisoft's new sandbox game clearly gets Star Wars, but it somehow forgets to give us a charming scoundrel to cheer for

Advertisement 1 Share this Story : Star Wars Outlaws review: So many wretched hives of scum and villainy Star Wars Outlaws review: So many wretched hives of scum and villainy Ubisoft's new sandbox game clearly gets Star Wars, but it somehow forgets to give us a charming scoundrel to cheer for Author of the article: Article content Score: Platform: Xbox Series S/X (Also available for PlayStation 5, Windows) Developer: Massive Entertainment Publisher: Ubisoft Release Date: August 30, 2024 ESRB: T Advertisement 2 Article content Star Wars Outlaws review: So many wretched hives of scum and villainy Back to video Remember the scene in Star Wars: The Force Awakens where Han and Chewie find themselves confronted by multiple gangs fed up with their fast-talking shenanigans? That's pretty much Star Wars Outlaws , just stretched out over dozens of hours. It's the franchise's first truly open world game, built on Ubisoft's well-worn and undeniably sturdy foundation of sandbox play. It's a galaxy of planets brimming with criminal activity headed up by three syndicates: the Pykes, the Hutts, and the Crimson Dawn. You'll be dealing with these hoods as a free-spirited outlaw named Kay Vess. A ne'er do well from the gambling metropolis Canto Bight, she uses her street smarts to engage in the sort of seamy high jinks of which Han would approve, such as heists, gambling with scruffy looking scoundrels, and befriending untrustworthy nogoodniks. Advertisement 3 Article content The game attempts to create what's known in the industry as emergent play, which is when we're given choice in how we achieve objectives rather than being forced along a path. This is meant to result in unscripted action scenarios. For example, Kay can go into a gang's hideout with guns blazing or hide in tall grasses and crawl in through vents. She can subdue enemies quietly or avoid them altogether. And each choice changes how the situation will play out. Unfortunately, if you're the kind of player who likes to choose combat, you may be disappointed. The third-person firefights are chaotic and clumsy. Enemies have all the intelligence of a mynock chewing on a ship's power cable, and the controls feel awkward. To throw a grenade, for example, you need to press a directional button to have Kay reach into her pouch, then select the grenade with another button, then hold down a trigger and manipulate a thumbstick to set its arc. Battles can still be weirdly satisfying, though I credit this mostly to the art and sound department, which absolutely nails the blaster fire effects. There are some really good pews and blaster bolt echoes in this game. Advertisement 4 Article content I much preferred stealth when possible. Enemies still aren't that smart—Kay can whistle to repeatedly lure single foes into the same patch of grass for silent takedowns as their comrades simply look on—but the options are more varied and interesting. This is mostly thanks to Nix, an impish but adorable little alien companion that reminded me of Stitch from Lilo and Stitch . We can command him to open doors, cut cables to drop objects, hold switches, and even attack foes. Using him creatively—to, say, distract one guard while you take down his partner to keep from raising an alarm—made for some of the most rewarding action in the game. I definitely enjoyed playing with Nix more than I did working through the platforming sections. Traversing rocky passages and bottomless air shafts by climbing walls, jumping over small gaps, and swinging across wider ones Luke-and-Leia-style felt forced and monotonous. It's not as though Kay has the seemingly superhuman parkour skills of other Ubisoft protagonists in franchises like Prince of Persia or Assassin's Creed. She's just a thief and ruffian from the slums. Her main skill should be talking her way out of jams with Hutts and Imperials, not risking her life dangling over a chasm to help Nix find a new snack to munch on. Advertisement 5 Article content In fact, Kay is kind of my biggest issue with Outlaws . If you're going to make a game inspired by the likes of Han Solo and Lando Calrissian, your protagonist better be charming as heck. They should have swagger to spare, deliver a waterfall of witty one-liners, dress and strut with the self assurance of Donald Glover, and have the ability to, I don't know, just sort of charisma their way to victory. Alas, Kay is regrettably bland. Her reputation and standing with the game's various criminals and gangs has little to do with clever dialogue and almost everything to do with who she's been shooting and where she's been sneaking. Big missed opportunity here. And that's strange, since the rest of the game captures Star Wars to a tee (even if the graphics are a tad low-fi compared to other current-generation games). The parlours, pubs, garages, and hideouts we visit fit in perfectly alongside iconic locations like the Mos Eisley Cantina, Maz Kanata ‘s castle, and Watto's workshop. And Kay's ship—the beat up but sneaky powerful Trailblazer—sits with the Millennium Falcon, Razor Crest, and Ghost as one of the franchise's great vehicles. Advertisement 6 Article content Next to these great details, poor Kay feels like one of the background thugs in Jabba's palace. Forgettable at best, perhaps a little unlikeable at worst. A magnetic personality is vital if the audience is supposed to cheer for someone as morally ambiguous as she is (she kills a lot of people). My lack of interest in Kay could be why I had such a hard time getting into the swing of things. As is often the case in open world games, it takes a long while to know where the story is headed, feel a sense of purpose, become comfortable with all the mechanics, and understand how new abilities are earned. It wasn't until around the 10 hour mark that things started to really click. Had I liked or even just felt more sympathetic towards Kay, perhaps the rest of the game would have grabbed me a bit quicker. I've been a die-hard Star Wars guy for decades, so I'm always happy to get a new movie, book, or game. I just wish this one turned out a tad better. Article content Share this article in your social network Share this Story : Star Wars Outlaws review: So many wretched hives of scum and villainy Comments Join the Conversation Postmedia is committed to maintaining a lively but civil forum for discussion. Please keep comments relevant and respectful. Comments may take up to an hour to appear on the site. 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By Chad Sapieha The Curator Team The Curator independently decides what topics and products we feature.

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Your future sick self will thank you.