On August 27, 2024, early access for Star Wars Outlaws began. Since the review embargo lifted just before, a flood of tests reveals what the open-world adventure has to offer for the Star Wars franchise. MeinMMO summarizes the strengths and weaknesses for you.
What do I need to know about Star Wars Outlaws? The new game by developer Massive Entertainment (The Division) and publisher Ubisoft is an action-adventure with an open world that tells a story set between the events of “The Empire Strikes Back” and “Return of the Jedi.”
You assume the role of the outlaw Kay Vess, who together with her companion Nix wants to build a new life in freedom. In doing so, she becomes one of the most wanted criminals in the galaxy and finds herself on several vast planets, where she encounters some of the most notorious syndicates and cartels in the Star Wars universe.
The official release is on August 30, 2024; Star Wars Outlaws will be available for PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series. Those who secured the Gold or Ultimate Edition or have a Ubisoft+ premium subscription can already play from August 27, 2024.
Here you can get a first impression of Star Wars Outlaws:
What do the reviews say about Star Wars Outlaws?
Let’s first look at the tests from the colleagues at GamePro and GameStar, which you can find under the following links:
- Test of Star Wars Outlaws by GamePro
- Test of Star Wars Outlaws by GameStar – 24 hours free for everyone, after that part of GameStar Plus
Colleague Dimitry Halley from GameStar rates it an 84 and is surprised by how much fun the new Star Wars adventure is, even though the individual gameplay areas often turn out to be merely solid to decent. The varied rhythm, the great main characters, and the elaborately staged single-player missions stand out.
GameStar editor-in-chief Heiko Klinge also emphasizes that Outlaws is more than just the sum of its parts. Although the game does not shine as a cover shooter, a space shooter, or a stealth experience, it is simply fun to play as a “seasoned smuggler” in the Star Wars universe.
Dennis Michel, the main tester from GamePro, gives it an 85 and underscores this in his conclusion: Kay and especially Nix’s debut is successful, even though Star Wars Outlaws squanders some potential and cannot raise the bar for AAA adventures.
What does Metacritic say about Star Wars Outlaws?
On the well-known review aggregator Metacritic, just over 110 reviews have been submitted so far, which average slightly lower than those of GameStar and GamePro.
- Star Wars Outlaws on Xbox Series – currently 21 ratings for an average score of 78
- Star Wars Outlaws on PlayStation 5 – currently 62 ratings for an average score of 77
- Star Wars Outlaws on PC – currently 28 ratings for an average score of 78
The ratings range from 95 to 30. The two lowest ratings come from gamersrd.com (rating: 30) and eurogamer.net (rating: 40). Chris Tapsell from Eurogamer writes in his conclusion:
It lacks the intricate, open stealth of an Arkham game, the systemic options of Dishonored, or the sharp, unrelentingly satisfying speed of taking out enemies in Assassin’s Creed. It lacks the linear polish and charisma of Uncharted. It lacks the fluidity of animations when jumping on yellow edges in Horizon or the sheer joy of turning platforming into a standalone game, as in Star Wars Jedi.
And, somewhat nightmarishly for Ubisoft Massive, who could not have known this when they engaged with it, Outlaws decides to tell a Star Wars rogue story in a world post the Andor series, which has already done so with such sensitivity, humanity, and precision that Kay’s non-events driven by cameos unfortunately fall light-years behind.
Chris Tapsell via Eurogamer
You see: The judgments on Star Wars Outlaws vary widely. Most tests land – as the average reveals – at about 80 out of 100 points. If you want to make your own opinion, we recommend the Ubisoft+ premium subscription, which at just under 18 euros is significantly cheaper than the prices for the paid versions of the game.
Since the campaign is not too huge at about 30 hours, you should be able to complete Star Wars Outlaws within the month. And maybe there is enough time to also check out other relatively new Ubisoft titles like Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown, Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora, or Assassin’s Creed: Mirage. By the way: Star Wars Outlaws is causing trouble before release.
