The Things Star Wars Outlaws Does Better Than Most Other Star Wars Games

If players were to begin Star Wars video game adaptations from the very beginning in the 80s and then work their way to the latest iteration, Star Wars Outlaws, they wouldn’t have enough time in a single year. There are small games on retro consoles like the NES, but then there are bigger experiences too, including two successful MMOs on PC.

The point is, developers have tried several things with Star Wars video game adaptations over the years, from platformers to RPGs. Is Star Wars Outlaws any different and if that is the case, how has it evolved the medium? Let’s look at some innovations that make Star Wars Outlaws a memorable experience.

Diving Into The Underbelly Of Society

Factions Make The Universe Go Round

There have been Star Wars games that have touched on the criminal organizations around the greater universe for years. The MMOs, for example, have allowed players to be a bit underhanded. Star Wars Outlaws is the first game where that is the sole focus though, and there’s a big gameplay mechanic around the idea of mobsters.

Four Factions exist within the world of Star Wars Outlaws including Crimson Dawn, The Hutt Cartel, The Pyke Syndicate, and The Ashiga Clan. Pleasing one Faction will disrupt the bond with another, forcing players to choose how they play each mission based on who they want to work with, or who they want to betray. Like any video game, players can definitely rig the system to maximize their own potential, but either way, it’s an interesting way to play a Star Wars adventure. Kay is in a position unlike any other character players have controlled in a single-player Star Wars game before.

Stealth Gameplay

Kay And Nix Execute Stealth Espionage Action

Coinciding with the Faction focus is the idea that Kay cannot be seen. She’s an outlaw working for crime lords — often by stealing from other crime lords — and that requires a bit of stealth. She can fight her way through battles with a Blaster, but she is not armed to the teeth like a Stormtrooper, nor does she have any Force powers like a Jedi, which means she is much more vulnerable. Besides her Blaster, Kay does have the assistance of her pet Nix in Star Wars Outlaws.

Players can command Nix to distract guards so that they can sneak up behind and take them out. Nix can be upgraded to follow other commands as well, and Kay has a few underhanded tricks too, like whistling to attract the attention of guards. It’s not quite on the level of Metal Gear Solid, but the stealth gameplay in Star Wars Outlaws is certainly the best it has ever been in the series.

An Intuitive Skill System

Learning From The Best

Star Wars Outlaws has an interesting approach to abilities and leveling up. Players will meet NPCs throughout the adventure called Experts, and most are side characters that can be missed entirely. Befriending and completing an Expert’s side quest will reveal their skill tree. To unlock the abilities within, players have to execute certain in-game actions in certain ways, or have the right materials.

For example, players may need to use Nix to distract enemies several times or defeat enemies using only melee attacks. These abilities will unlock passive and active skills, from deafening Kay’s footsteps to increasing her health in Star Wars Outlaws. It may lack the standard EXP of most RPGs, but some of the best RPGs use oddball leveling systems anyway, like the Sphere Grid in Final Fantasy 10.

The Open-World Sections

Going Wider Than Star Wars Jedi: Survivor

Star Wars Jedi: Survivorwas the first game to offer players a more traditional open-world system. Players could traverse several planets, find secrets, take on side quests, and so on. That scope was expanded further in Star Wars Outlaws to make the four planets stand out more, save for one planet which consists mostly of a single city.

It’s still not what purists would call a true open-world experience that allows players to explore one ever-expanding map. That may happen one day, but it would not be as interesting. After all, the Star Warscanon has dozens if not hundreds of named planets already. It would feel like a waste to confine a game to one open-world planet when there could be many open-world areas to explore like in Star Wars Outlaws.

Space Exploration

Transitioning From Planet To Space Easily

Beyond the scope of planetary exploration, players get to cruise around space. They can fly through shipwrecks and excavate cargo, dive into meteor fields to see the sights, and get into dogfights against various rival ships. Ship combat has been done incredibly well in games before this, like Star Wars Rogue Squadron 2: Rogue LeaderandStar Wars: Squadrons.

While the shooting is adequate in Star Wars Outlaws, it’s the exploration part that should excite players the most about space. It’s also invigorating when players get to see themselves launching from planet into space, and vice versa, in a matter of seconds. It’s another new thing added to the Star Wars video game market.

There Are Mini-Games

Opening Up Star Wars To Video Games

Almost since the property began in 1977 with the first Star Wars film, there have been in-universe video games. Han Solo has a holochess table in the Millennium Falcon. However, Star Wars Outlaws takes a very meta approach to its gameplay, because players can play very Earth-like arcade games within this game world. It’s bizarre, but it’s a cool inclusion to know that people in a galaxy far far away like video games too.

Besides the arcade games, there are other mini-games within Star Wars Outlaws, like Kessel Sabacc which is kind of like poker meets golf. The slicing and lock-picking segments are kind of mini-games too, and players can even compete in Speeder races. The amount of mini-games in Star Wars Outlaws does not rival another big open-world RPG from 2024, Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth, but the amount and quality are still commendable.