As a seasoned space scoundrel myself, I’ve sailed through the cosmos on the cusp of danger and fortune, so let me tell you about my latest adventure with Star Wars Outlaws. Now, this ain’t no sleek starship, but it’s got a heart as big as a Corellian freighter.
In the game titled “Star Wars: Rogue’s Path“, players assume the role of an ordinary scoundrel instead of a Jedi or Sith with supernatural abilities. This is a fascinating concept for a Star Wars enthusiast, allowing them to wander through Kijimi City, cruise across the deserts of Tatooine on an antique speeder, or battle TIE fighters from a hijacked starship. By their side, Kay Vess, our protagonist in “Star Wars: Rogue’s Path“, carries a reliable blaster and an endearing companion named Nix. In this universe, Kay is simply a commoner trying to earn a living through theft, combat, deception, or betrayal of her potential allies.
Massive Entertainment poured an immense amount of effort into creating Star Wars Outlaws, meticulously crafting every detail. It was no small feat to encapsulate the entire Star Wars saga into approximately 20 hours of gameplay, knowing that the scrutiny of millions of dedicated fans would fall upon any mistake. Thankfully, they had Lucasfilm’s backing, and the two entities worked closely together to produce a game that seamlessly fits within the established Star Wars universe.
Characters will explore familiar territories, engage with established alien races such as Crimson Dawn and the Hutts, and even collaborate with them. Additionally, Massive Entertainment has introduced fresh factions for the protagonist, Kay, to form alliances or confront: the Ashiga Clan and Sliro Barsha’s Zerek Besh, who swiftly issue a bounty on her. The charming creature Nix, one of the game’s highlights, belongs to a novel species called Merqaal, specifically created for the game Outlaws. Much (sort of) of this adventure kicks off on Toshara, a recently discovered moon within the Toshaal space system.
Shortly following the commencement of the game, Kay Vess acquires the Trailblazer, a unique starship specifically designed for Outlaws. This is a nimble freighter, one of the few remaining models, and Sliro claims it’s remarkably durable. For gamers, it offers an exciting and customizable means to navigate the Outer Rim, engaging in activities such as smuggling goods, battling pirate vessels, infiltrating Imperial space stations, and exploring the five accessible planets within the Outlaws universe.
Each destination offers a unique experience that stirs up a sense of exploration. Toshara, for instance, is a savannah landscape filled with vegetation, diverse wildlife, and numerous waterfalls. Kijimi is snow-capped, Cantonica is mountainous, Akiva is lushly jungle-covered, while Tatooine remains uniquely itself. However, despite the differences, players might start noticing a growing sense of familiarity across all locations. The buildings, inhabitants, quests, and even smaller details like storage boxes, tables, and door trimmings share striking similarities.
And this is where things turn a little negative because, unfortunately, it doesn’t take long before the awe of being a regular Joe in Star Wars (probably everybody’s dream at one point) wears off and the cracks begin to show. The game is fun, absolutely, but it’s also bug-ridden, repetitive, and lacking in some fairly obvious quality-of-life considerations. Some people won’t even see it, thrilled to simply be playing a more-than-decent Star Wars game. For others, all the small, and sometimes nit-picky, pebbles pattering on the roof will quickly become too loud to ignore.
Star Wars Outlaws: Stealth, Sneak, Stealth Some More
In the game “Star Wars Outlaws”, being a rogue or trickster is heavily emphasized, which some players might find excessive. The protagonist, Kay, moves through ventilation systems that are surprisingly tidy, hides in strategically placed tall grass, and swings to hard-to-reach spots. You’d think with stealth being such a significant aspect of the game, it would be well-developed, thoroughly tested, re-tested, and refined. Unfortunately, this isn’t always the case.
It appears that Kay mainly executes around ten distinct mission categories repeatedly. One of the key ones involves infiltrating a site, either snatching an object or hacking a computer to gather information, and then slipping away undetected. Remarkably, some missions occur in identical locations, making it monotonous to clear out the same base on three separate occasions, particularly given its slow pace.
Kay’s blaster can knock out an enemy with an energy pulse, which would be fantastic and oft-used if the cooldown weren’t a minute long. Imposing such an excessive time limit on a key stealth mechanic in a game that focuses so heavily on stealth seems unnecessarily controlling. It won’t stop people from relying on the stun to get through missions, and it won’t push them to play in the “guns blazing” way that the devs seem to want. It just forces players to waste a lot of time waiting for the gun to recharge, feeling bored and slightly resentful.
In the game “Star Wars Outlaws“, there’s a wanted system similar to GTA, where an escalating number of Imperial soldiers chase Kay if she continues causing chaos. If a soldier spots her, she gets arrested, loses some money, and the game resets to the previous save point. However, it often seems illogical as Kay frequently gets caught in situations where it shouldn’t be possible, such as being apprehended by a Trooper while hidden behind a cliff that was 100 meters away and hadn’t even entered the facility yet…twice. Even on a ledge far beyond the reach of enemies or hiding behind a tree from a distance, she could still end up getting arrested. To avoid these unexplained glitches, saving the game manually before starting a mission became essential.
Quality-of-Life Issues in Star Wars Outlaws
In addition, there were debatable choices in assigning keys for actions, particularly on consoles with controllers. It’s unexpected that Massive didn’t make the controls entirely adjustable, considering the extensive accessibility features this game offers. While there are some pre-set configurations available, they don’t effectively solve the main issues, such as accidentally hanging from a ledge instead of crouching because they share the same command.
In some instances, button prompts may not show up when Kay is very near an object, or they might fail to appear even when she’s in the exact spot where she successfully triggered them earlier. This could lead players to expect rapid action like climbing ladders or escaping using grappling hooks. However, due to these unexpected non-appearances, there’s a good chance that players may find themselves feeling let down if they rely too heavily on quick maneuvers.
1. If things begin to unravel, they often spiral out of control quickly. The Wanted system means that if Kay gets into a fight with Imperials without a well-thought-out escape strategy, it’s easy for the game to end. Furthermore, even other adversaries pose an additional hurdle due to the game’s lack of complex combat mechanics. Shooting can be problematic because of the sensitivity issues and invisible collisions where they shouldn’t occur. However, there’s a useful dead-eye feature when Kay accumulates enough adrenaline. This feature seems more like a requirement than an added benefit, as it’s the only way to swiftly and consistently defeat enemies without sustaining too much damage.
In Star Wars Outlaws, the combat feels unengaging and unsatisfying. The enemies consistently drop the same two items, making each encounter feel repetitive. Additionally, the difficulty level remains consistent throughout the game, and even with upgrades, the blaster seems underwhelming. This wouldn’t be a major issue if Kay only used these weapons as secondary options, but she insists on discarding any weapons she finds, regardless of their potential use. Even energy weapons run out of ammo, and she’ll drop them immediately. This behavior is puzzling, especially since it often prevents tactical maneuvers such as sniping.
Here are some of the numerous gameplay problems found in Star Wars Outlaws. It would take quite a bit to cover them all thoroughly, but to put it simply, these issues, combined with the many bugs – such as enemies floating or circling endlessly, the character Kay passing through walls, missing quest dialogue, game crashes, and so on – make it difficult to maintain that initial excitement of being a scoundrel in the Star Wars universe.
Star Wars Outlaws’ Redeeming Qualities
If you’re seeking a game with cutting-edge graphics that truly stand out in this generation, I would advise looking beyond Outlaws. While it boasts some attractive visuals on consoles and offers a few scenic vistas, it doesn’t exactly leave one awestruck. It might not induce jaw-dropping reactions, but this could be due to the game’s expansive universe, which spans outer space and five planets in Star Wars Outlaws. The exploration of this vast playground is where the game truly excels, offering a genuine sense of adventure. It also has an engaging narrative that helps propel the action forward, and delving into every hidden corner will yield rewards such as collectibles, new armor, customizable blaster skins, and even accessories for Nix to wear.
In the game “Star Wars Outlaws”, Kay’s ability enhancement process is unique and engaging in several aspects. Unlike typical Role-Playing Games (RPGs) where skills are unlocked through point accumulation, Kay must seek out trainers to learn new abilities. These mentors gradually expand her skillset upon completion of specific tasks. For instance, a useful skill called Lightfoot, which makes Kay harder to detect while sneaking, can be acquired by assisting a certain Non-Player Character (NPC), earning their respect, picking three locks, completing a smuggling mission, and performing a takedown on an Imperial officer. The skill system in “Outlaws” developed by Massive is refreshing, offering a departure from the conventional method of navigating intricate skill branches.
Similar to Star Wars Outlaws’ character, Nix, presents an enjoyable and humorous spin on the conventional RPG sidekick. This diminutive Merqaal is incredibly beneficial in assisting Kay with her roguish desires while keeping trouble at bay. He has the knack for disabling or trapping security systems to prevent adversaries from calling reinforcements. His heightened awareness of his surroundings enables him to indicate hidden treasures, vents, and potential pickpocket targets, allowing Kay to send him to retrieve and filch without arousing suspicion. Additionally, Nix will engage enemies or feign death as a diversion so that Kay can escape unnoticed. There’s even a charming mini-game featuring Nix and Kay taking a snack break that provides a welcome respite from the continuous sneaking and waiting for the blaster’s stun to recharge.
In the game Star Wars Outlaws, players often find themselves captivated by a particular mini-game – a card game known as Sabaac. This game is easy to grasp yet offers an immersive experience. It might not be as complex as Gwent, but it’s certainly worth giving a try for a few rounds or more. Additionally, there are Fathier races where you can wager credits and earn Kay some extra income, and an asteroid-themed game called Raven Six that turns out to be quite enjoyable too.
In spite of its flaws, the game, Star Wars Outlaws, is still worth giving a shot because it provides a fairly quick adventure that doesn’t overstay its welcome and avoids becoming too unbearable due to the downsides. The developers, Massive, either took on too much or perhaps played it too conservatively, resulting in a game that sits slightly above average. It has potential and hopefully will lead to a more polished sequel that tackles many of the issues with Outlaws.
As a gamer, I’ve got my hands on Star Wars Outlaws, which is now playable on PC, next-gen consoles like the PS5 and Xbox Series X/S. For this review, I was fortunate enough to receive a PS5 code from Game Rant.
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2024-08-30 03:44