Star Wars Outlaws hands-on — A scoundrel’s life for me

Jedi are fun and all, but it sure is nice to have a new Star Wars game that isn’t about Force powers and lightsabers.

Star Wars Outlaws is a new game from Ubisoft that focuses on scoundrel Kay Vess, a Han Solo-type character who navigates the galaxy’s seedier elements with blaster in hand. Outlaws releases on August 30 for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S and PC. I had a chance to play almost five hours of the open-world experience during a recent preview event.

Now, some people might have a very specific idea of what an Ubisoft open world game will play like. If, like me, you’re maybe a little tired of Far Cry-style “find the towers and fill your map with quest icons” loop, you shouldn’t worry. Outlaws is different flavor of open world.

Sneak attacks

It also isn’t primarily a shooter. At least, I didn’t get that impression during my preview. Yes, you have a blaster, and you’ll have to use it. But most missions I played had me focusing on stealth. I’d have to infiltrate and pass through hideouts and areas that I’m not supposed to be in.

This means sneaking by enemies when they aren’t looking, either by learning their routes and timing your movements or by using the environment to help you distract enemies. You can also use your little friend, Nix, an adorable creature who can distract enemies, fetch items and even push buttons and flick switches.

If you get caught, you can use your blaster to try and get out of the situation. And there are still moments, sometimes during escapes, where you have to get blasting. Plus, again, I just played a slice of the game. But from my impressions, I’d call Outlaws a stealth game way sooner than I’d call it a third-person shooter.

Into the stars

You also do some spaceship shooting. One mission tasked me with infiltrating an Imperial base. This meant taking off from a planet (well, technically a moon; same thing) and actually flying around in space. Spaceship controls felt good, I was flying through debris and shooting at some space pirates.

It’s not the deepest space combat, but I love that it’s part of the experience here. When you think of Han Solo, you think of the Millenium Falcon. Kay’s ship is the Trailblazer, and I’m glad that it feels like a key part of Outlaws.

Planet-side

Most of the action does take place on planets. Or, uh, moons. I actually spent most of my preview on the Moon of Toshara, a location entirely new to the game. Outlaws takes place between the events of The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi, so you’ll see a few familiar places and faces. But there is also a lot here that’s new.

While Toshara is new, it still feels like classic Star Wars. It looks old, lived-in, kind of junky (in a rustic, charming kind of way). But it also takes inspiration from savannah biomes, which gives it a unique flavor that we haven’t seen in the franchise before.

Toshara has both open plains and a metropolitan hub. The latter houses things like shops and cantinas. It’s also where the majority of the story missions I played took place. This was a dense area, populated with a lot of NPCs.

Many of these characters belong to different factions. Gaining favor with these different groups is a big part of Outlaws. You can become friendly with the Hutts, for example, based on certain decisions you make. This could give you discounts at certain stores and other perks. But if one faction likes you, chances are another doesn’t.

This isn’t a static system. You will fall in and out of favor with these factions as you play. You shouldn’t think of it as some kind of reputation bar that you just fill up. It’s an interesting idea, and I’m curious to see how dynamic it feels in the full games.

Deal me in

You can also find other activities, like side missions. And then there’s Sabacc, an in-universe card game that has been mentioned in Star Wars for years. You can play Sabacc with some unique rules here, and even during my short preview … I got kind of addicted. Look, I’m a sucker for card minigames (shoutouts to Final Fantasy’s Triple Triad).

Sabacc seems relatively simple. Without spending too much time trying to explain, you’re basically trying to make the “best” pair of cards possible. But since you’re a scoundrel, you can actually cheat and have Nix try to spy on opponents’ hands. You could get caught, so it is risky.

You can even access higher stakes Sabacc tables by exploring by a bit. And if cards aren’t your thing, you can bet on a Star Wars version of horse races. You could leave things to chance, but if you’re an explorer, you can find some interesting info. I came across a data pad at one point that said to bet on the only male in the next race. That was a fun way to earn some credits.

Entering a larger world

Again, I spent less time in the more open areas. But this is where you get to ride around in a speeder bike. As a fan of both Return of the Jedi and the Nintendo 64 game Shadows of the Empire, I loved zooming around on this vehicle.

You can eventually learn some new abilities for your speeder bike and, well, for lots of things. Outlaws has an interesting system for this. It doesn’t just depend on skill trees. Instead, you get new abilities by talking to and completing tasks for different experts. I like this change. Look, I’ve seen thousands of skill trees and XP-based progression systems. I’m glad to have something a bit different.

Smuggler’s fun

I got to play a good chunk of Outlaws, and it definitely felt like a dense experience with a lot of promise. I didn’t talk a lot about the story or characters, but they all seem likable (well, maybe not the best word for the mob bosses and space fascists, but you know what I mean) and well-acted. Hopefully it all comes together to tell a memorable story.

I do have a bit of a “jack of all trades, master of none” concern. Outlaws has a lot going on. I hope that some of those components grow in complexity to feel especially satisfying. Again, a lot of my gameplay focused on stealth. And while it felt fine, it wasn’t near something you’d see in something like Hitman.

Of course that’s the case. Hitman is pretty much all about stealth. Outlaws is about that, shooting, factions, open world shenanigans, spaceships and more. And there’s a good chance that the scope of the game alone will make it feel special.

Disclaimer: Ubisoft covered my travel and lodging for the preview.