Ubisoft Massive is almost ready to let PS5 players take on the role of iconic space rogues in the first open-world Star Wars game, coming to PS5 on August 30. After crash-landing on the lush but unsafe moon of Toshara, I spent time as budding rogue Kay Vess, meeting her little buddy Nix, discovering visual options inspired by the original trilogy, and taking on jobs for crime syndicates.
Nix, the adorable creature companion
Kay’s furry and adorable partner, Nix (“not an animal,” voice actor Dee Bradley Baker emphasizes) has already gained a devoted and adoring fan base. Yes, the doe-eyed Merqaal is a real support, from distracting guards with candy (or setting off explosions) and picking up weapons to showing players interactive elements in the environment… but it’s Nix’s little touches that will win fans across the galaxy.
Get boosts for your speeder and Nix will be forced to hang on tightly, waving his little tail and hind legs in the air. If you aim Kay’s blaster at him, he’ll playfully pretend to be shot and fall over, playing dead, making Kay giggle and encourage him to perform.
Star Wars at its most lively
Outlaws executes the Star Wars open world with flair, delivering a wealthy and responsive environment that’s alive and exhilarating to explore. Floating fishing nets billow in the wind. Ruined spaceship debris is strewn across lakes, mountains, and moisture farms. And yes, you can pet… well, animals far more exotic than dogs, and even feed some of the fauna native to Toshara.
Ubisoft Massive has also created vantage points where you can stop and take in the stunning but deadly world. The views are striking enough to encourage players to seek them out.
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Capturing the feel of the original trilogy
The Star Wars Outlaws team knows that setting the game between The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi is a massive undertaking, so they went a few parsecs further to ensure the game stayed true to the source material.
To do this, you can select a special 21.9 Cinema mode that creates a widescreen effect and recreates the lenses Lucasfilm used to film Episodes 4-6. The result is a gritty, nostalgic grain with a newfangled, high-definition sound.
Variety is the spice of a rascal’s life
Whether it’s eavesdropping on the juiciest gossip from the bad guys or finding work with the gang bosses, there are plenty of goals to complete in Outlaws.
One of the missions, New Tricks, involves hunting down an ion blaster module in order to disrupt some annoying electrical systems. The quest begins with a hunt for the right merchant, then moves on to an adventure through the bustling city of Mirogan and into the rocky wastelands.
Meanwhile, the Hutt’s mission requires you to steal a client list, but you can deviate from your current mission at any time to sneak into a facility, “cut” through encrypted information databases, race speeders, infiltrate mysterious bunkers, or support the townspeople fend off gun-toting bandits (…or not. You’re an outlaw, after all).
Whether you want to put your blaster to good employ or venture into the Outer Rim, there are plenty of squalid lairs of scum and villainy to explore in Star Wars Outlaws, coming to PS5 on August 30.
