At this point, it is Star Wars canon – nay, the law in galaxies far, far away – that every protagonist of any of its shows, games or films is accompanied on adventures by a cute little sidekick.
Cal Kestis has BD-1. Osha, the protagonist of recent Star Wars show The Acolyte, had Pip. And so it follows that there is also an loveable buddy at the heart of Star Wars Outlaws, the latest addition to the ever-expanding George Lucas universe.
Although we play as Kay Vess, the sarcastic grifter on the hunt for a big score, we can rest assured that she’s a Good Guy thanks to the presence of perhaps the cutest lil’ friend yet: Nix, the dog-lizard hybrid that accompanies her on all of her missions.
There are a lot of them to complete, too. Star Wars Outlaws has been heavily touted as the first-ever open world Star Wars game, and it’s got big shoes to fill. Last year’s release, Star Wars Jedi: Survivor, was a masterclass in level design, combat and story.
It also marks a change of pace for the game’s developers, Ubisoft. This time, our hero doesn’t have any Jedi powers to speak of: Kay is a thief and con artist, on the lookout for the big job that will let her retire for good.
Instead, she ends up in a world of trouble when a simple criminal caper goes wrong, and leaves her on the run from one of the galaxy’s most dangerous gang leaders, Sliro. Via a convoluted series of events, we end up on the grassy Moon of Toshara, once again looking for that elusive final score that will allow her to bid farewell to petty crime. It’s easier said than done, when these missions keep going wrong.
It’s a fun concept for Star Wars – think: Han Solo, if Han were a woman and a bit less obnoxious – and the game milks the premise for all its worth, setting up a system of shifting loyalties among its criminal underworld that change according to the jobs Kay carries out.
There are three main gangs in town – the Pyke, the Hutts and the Crimson Dawn – with which Kay can ingratiate herself. In doing so, she gains access to hidden areas and special deals with the affiliated merchants littering the vast universe she operates in.
It’s a fun system and feels rather unique, not least because getting in with one gang invariably means annoying another, meaning you have to pick and choose your battles carefully. Annoying the Pykes while you need to access their territory means having to sneak around, rather than simply strolling through the front door.
There’s a good mix of stealth and action in the gameplay as a whole, and the DNA of Ubisoft’s Assassin’s Creed is on full display here. The guards are very smart, meaning I was forced to be tactical about infiltration missions rather than rushing in, all guns blazing. Just as well you can hide in bushes and attract your foes with whistles before knocking them out.
When things eventually do go downhill, though, Kay’s equipped with a blaster, which can be tricked out as the game progresses. Her most valuable asset, though, is Nix, who can be ordered to distract guards or security cameras, pickpocket marks and even attack people, leaving them open to a follow-up blow from Kay.
The worldbuilding is also extensive. In addition to Toshara, there’s Tattooine (yes, the famous one, where Luke Skywalker lives in the films), the wild jungles of Akiva, and Canto Bight, which we first saw in The Last Jedi and has here been built out into a sprawling casino city.
I’ll be honest – many of these destinations look pretty similar, tapping into 1970s retro futurism. But at least there’s plenty of stuff to do, even if the game frustratingly deprives us of a miniature on-screen map to help players orient themselves. I ended up having to pull up directions every time I got lost. Which was often.
As Kay steadily assembles her crew, the story kicks off proper; things stop being solely about ticking off boxes on a map, and start getting interesting. And while I won’t spoil things here, Ubisoft mostly succeeds in building out the Star Wars universe in a whole new direction. Despite its troubles on the small screen, it continues to go from strength to strength in gaming: more Kay in future please, and of course more of her little pal Nix.
