Star Wars Outlaws, one of the year’s most divisive open-world games, just got the first of several game-altering updates just in time for the launch of its first story expansion starring a beloved character from the classic sci-fi films.
Lando Calrissian joins Star Wars Outlaws’ expansive cast of rogues in the new expansion titled Wild Card. The new download, which is free for Season Pass owners, sees lead Kay Vess hired to infiltrate a high-stakes Sabacc tournament on the planet Akiva. There, Kay crosses paths with the charismatic gambler and future hero of the Republic. The expansion’s first trailer alludes to the idea that this isn’t the first time Kay and Lando have crossed paths, though The Empire Strikes Back-era Lando isn’t the most trustworthy guy to begin with.
Whatever follows the high stakes card game leads the duo of lawbreakers on a planet hopping space adventure with plenty of gunslinging and Empire-sabotage. It looks to be another fun romp through the familiar beats of Star Wars co-starring the smoothest (and best dressed) dude in a galaxy far, far away.
While I have my criticisms of Outlaws continuing the franchise’s bad habit of making the galaxy feel as small as a single city, the addition of Lando is undeniably cool. Hopefully, Lando sticks around longer than the story expansion’s runtime as he’s a welcome addition to any Star Wars story. That being said, his addition isn’t the Outlaws’ debut that I’m eagerly waiting for. That honor instead belongs to the fan-favorite space pirate, Hondo Ohnaka, who is set to return in the next expansion, slated for release next spring. He will surely add some levity to the at times dire-stakes of Outlaws story.
Those who jump back into Outlaws for the new story content will also find some notable added depth to the game’s core mechanics. As promised last month, developer Massive Entertainment has added a bunch of requested features, tweaks, and player choice across the board. The biggest change is the removal of mandatory stealth sections. Now, instead of triggering an automatic fail state, blowing Kay’s cover results in an all-out fire fight.
Blasting your way through enemies has some added depth as well, as enemies now have improved AI, weak points that can take them out instantly, and a better enemy detection system. For those who prefer the game’s focus on stealth, players can now hide and try to remain undetected until enemies resume their normal patrols.
Some smaller nagging issues, like Kay’s refusal to holster larger weapons picked up from enemies, wonky facial animations, an improved wanted system, and jumping controls have also been changed for the better. Ubisoft released a full patch list on the game’s website.
Today’s wave of additions and updates is the first stop on Star Wars Outlaws’ redemption tour. The game is one of the most immersive Star Wars experiences fans can enjoy on PC and console. But the basic gunplay, the hive of bugs and graphical issues, and some unpopular design choices at launch made it an underwhelming release going into the fall season. By Ubisoft’s own admission, early sales of Star Wars Outlaws didn’t meet its expectations, likely the result of word of mouth. Its “soft sales” one of the major reasons the publish decided to delay Assassin’s Creed Shadows to February.
Massive continued to work on the game, like it has promised to do with the underrated Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora before it. Today’s update is the first of many substantial changes coming to the fame according to the developer.
If you’re one of many players who waited until Star Wars Outlaws was a little cheaper (or less buggy), now’s a great time pull the blaster trigger. Not only is the game finally available on Steam as of today, its also one sale for 25 percent off across all platforms. The discount even applies to the Gold and Ultimate editions of the game which includes some stylish cosmetics and the aforementioned Season Pass.
