On the Radar: Star Wars Outlaws

GamesRadar+ picks apart the promise and pitfalls of the scoundrel fantasy Massive Entertainment sought to deliver. We found Star Wars Outlaws to be an exceedingly authentic experience, at its best when it's letting wannabe scoundrel Kay Vess quietly exist in a very particular place and time – Outer Rim territories, caught between the events of The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi. There's a purity to the way Outlaws brings the background scenes of the original trilogy's underworld to life, although Massive does struggle to match an evocative universe with a compelling critical path. You can learn more in our full Star Wars Outlaws review.

It takes a little while to settle into the rhythms of Star Wars Outlaws' combat. At the outset, it comes across as a little basic – particularly when compared to Massive's The Division. But over time I came to enjoy the inelegance of the iconic Star Wars blaster, especially once I understood the value of including a mechanic which is ripped right from the action of Gears of War. Here I'm joined by Massive's lead systems designer Matthieu Delisle and lead concept artist Samuel De Vos to better understand the fantasy which informed Outlaws' combat. 

There's an intentionality to the design of Star Wars Outlaws' speeder. While the vehicle is largely customizable over time, allowing you to improve its torque, turning circle and the like, Kay Vess never gains the ability to freely shoot from the saddle as she zips across some of Star Wars' most famous horizons. Instead you're left to utilize an 'Adrenaline Rush' mechanic that lets you mark and execute enemies in pursuit with cinematic style – it's cool, but limited. Lead gameplay designer Fredrik Thylander walks us through the decisions which led to this restriction. 

There have been hundreds of Star Wars games released over the past 40 years. Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back started it all in 1982, a licensed tie-in released for the Atari 2600 – and it's incredible to think how far franchise games have come. We've had smart strategy games and solid shooters, games which broadened the Star Wars timeline, flight action games which helped define console launches, and legendary RPGs. But which are still worth playing today? With Star Wars Outlaws in mind, we ranked the best Star Wars games. 

Star Wars Outlaws has been a long time coming, following its reveal back in 2021. But where should you invest all of that anticipation next? Thankfully there's still plenty of developers working away at their own Star Wars projects; word on the street is that Respawn is already turning its attention to the next Jedi game, following the success of last year's Jedi: Survivor, but that certainly isn't all. You'll find details of all the projects in our breakdown of the upcoming Star Wars games.