When you write a review of a video game, especially a game as big and deep as Star Wars Outlaws (PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, PC), you think of a lot of things that just don’t belong in a review. Like, how you’d make it better, or how you wish it a different kind of game. You’re supposed to review the game as it is, not as you want it to be.
But you still think of these things. And I had a lot of these thoughts when I was writing my review of Star Wars Outlaws.
Here are a couple I could remember now that my review is done and the game is out.
Be More Divisive
Star Wars Outlaws is made by the good people at Massive Entertainment who previously made two games I really loved: The Division and The Division 2.
So part of me wished Star Wars Outlaws was basically a Star Wars version of The Division.
Like maybe you’re a rebel during the original trilogy, and you’re trying to liberate a city from The Empire using guerilla tactics.
Or maybe The Division meets Star Wars: Republic Commando, in which you’re a Clone Trooper during the time of the prequels, and trying to liberate a city occupied by separatist forces.
Heck, if they could make a Star Wars version of Dance Dance Revolution, anything is possible.
This Could’ve Been The Way
Star Wars Outlaws is an open world action / adventure game with blaster-based combat.
Which is why I also found myself wishing Outlaws was a Mandalorian game. Maybe one set after the third season, but before the upcoming movie, The Mandalorian And Grogu.
Outlaws hero Kay Vess even has an adorable sidekick like Din Djarin, one who is just as big of a foodie.
Now, there have been rumors of a Mandalorian game for a while, but there’s no word as to whether it will be Outlaws-esque or something else. And I really don’t think Djarin could really count on Grogu to pick people’s pockets, crawl into tight spaces and unlock doors, or play dead to distract someone.
Which is why I think it could be even better if Star Wars Outlaws: The Mandalorian was set before the TV show (and before Grogu came into Djarin’s life), back when he was just a bounty hunter trying to make his way in the galaxy. Sure, people would miss Grogu, but if you gave Mando a cute (and criminally minded droid), it could totally work.
It Is A Dark Time For The Galaxy…
Star Wars Outlaws is set between The Empire Strikes Back and Return Of The Jedi, a time that’s been explored before in other games as well as books and comics.
But unlike those other games and books and comics, Star Wars Outlaws is not about the conflict between The Empire and The Rebellion. Sure, The Empire play a role in Outlaws, and The Rebellion is mentioned as well, but it’s not about them. Or, more accurately, not directly about them.
Which got me thinking: I’d like to see more of this. I’d like to see more stories about what else happened during the time of the original trilogy. And, for that matter, the time between the original and prequel trilogies. Outlaws shows us what it’s like to be a criminal under The Empire, but what was it like to be, say, a cop on a crime-ridden planet?
Crime Doesn’t Pay
A moment ago I said the hero of Star Wars Outlaws is Kay Vess.
But that’s not really true; Vess is no hero. She’s a thief and a criminal, and while she does have a heart of gold, she’s also a cold blooded killer. Well, when she’s under my control, anyway.
Which makes me wonder if the basic tenets of Star Wars Outlaws couldn’t be adapted for some other unscrupulous Star Wars characters.
I mentioned Mando earlier, and Han Solo is a given. But what about Jango Fett before he went to work for the cloners on Kamino? Or his kid Boba when he was trying to learn the ropes of bounty hunting.
Though my favorite would be Doctor Aphra, the former sidekick to Darth Vader, and the closest the Star Wars saga has to Indiana Jones.
Which gives me another idea…
Look To The Horizon
Star Wars Outlaws has a lot of jumping and climbing and figuring out how to get into places you’re not supposed to get into.
What if they doubled down on these aspects, and got even more creative with it, and made something along the lines of Shadow Of The Tomb or Horizon Forbidden West.
Heck, they’ve already got a character who could front that game: the aforementioned Doctor Aphra. She’s even got two sidekicks at the ready: Triple Zero (who’s like if C-3PO learned protocol and etiquette from Hannibal Lector) and BT-1 (think R2-D2 with anger management issues).
Droid Rage
Which brings me to the last thought I had while playing Star Wars Outlaws. Well, last one I could remember, anyway. And it’s one I’ve had since I saw R2-D2: Under The Dome, and always think about whenever I play a Star Wars video game: R2-D2: The True Hero Of The Skywalker Saga.
Yes, R2-D2: The True Hero Of The Skywalker Saga (or The True Hero Of The Star Wars Saga, if you prefer), a stealth action / puzzle game that shows how the plucky little droid saved the day over and over during the original trilogy and the prequels, and probably during the time in between.
Granted, I don’t have all the details worked out, but I can see a puzzle part when R2’s trying to stop the trash compactor on the Death Star, and a sneaky section when he’s helping Leia, Chewbacca, and Lando in their escape from Cloud City.
I’d even take LEGO Star Wars: R2-D2: The True Hero Of The Skywalker Saga.
I await your call, Lucasfilm.
