Key Takeaways
- Star Wars Outlaws offers a mix of strengths and weaknesses, with customization being one of the former.
- The customization in Star Wars Outlaws builds on the legacy of previous Star Wars games, offering practical and cosmetic effects.
- Players can expect a satisfying sense of progression in Star Wars Outlaws through ship, speeder, and character customization.
The modern era of Star Wars video games has been a bit of a mixed bag. EA’s two Star Wars Battlefront entries were met with rough receptions on launch, though Battlefront 2 has managed to regain a strong following in recent years. The Aspyr ports of classic Star Wars games have been pretty dire across the board as well. But at the opposite end of the spectrum, Respawn’s Star Wars Jedi series has offered some of the best Star Wars gaming experiences ever. By most accounts, Star Wars Outlaws sits somewhere in between them all.
Though its gameplay feels a little half-baked in its early hours, its minigames vary in quality, and its story isn’t the most original, Star Wars Outlaws has plenty of strengths that balance the experience out. Star Wars Outlaws features some breathtaking world design, a ton of fan-service, and a good sense of progression, the latter of which feels like a great continuation of Star Wars Jedi: Survivor‘s own customization system.
Star Wars Outlaws Takes Jedi: Survivor’s Customization In New Directions
Star Wars Jedi: Survivor Set a New Bar for Customization in Star Wars Games
Customization has often played an important role in Star Wars video games. Even in earlier Star Wars games like Jedi Knight: Dark Forces 2, players could choose different skins for their multiplayer character model. This element of customization only grew stronger with each subsequent Star Wars video game entry, with the Knights of the Old Republic duology giving players an expansive gear system that changed the player’s visual appearance as well as their stats.
Respawn’s Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order continued this legacy of customization in Star Wars games, letting players find an array of equipable ponchos, different lightsaber hilts and blade colors, and different cosmetics for both BD-1 and the Mantis. Star Wars Jedi: Survivor doubled down on these customization features, setting a new bar for Star Wars video games in the process.
In Star Wars Jedi: Survivor, players can customize Cal Kestis in several key ways, such as changing the hero’s hairstyle, jacket, shirt, and pants, mixing and matching each component to create a one-of-a-kind Cal. The same was true for the player’s lightsaber and blaster, which each had multiple components that could be mixed-and-matched, and which could each be given a unique color scheme. BD-1’s customization was expanded on as well. These cosmetics were a great way to incentivize exploration.
Star Wars Outlaws May Have Raised That Bar Even Higher
Star Wars Outlaws features some very similar customization options to Star Wars Jedi: Survivor. Players can mix and match Kay Vess’ jacket, holster, and pants, change the look of their alien companion Nix, and equip their speeder and ship with a unique visual design. But what sets Star Wars Outlaws‘ customization apart from Jedi: Survivor‘s is that it has a bevy of customization options that have both practical and cosmetic effects.
Each one of Kay Vess’ unlockable outfits comes with a distinct bonus, such as increased grenade capacity or reduced damage from blaster fire, and wearing all three pieces of a set will grant an additional bonus ability. Players will also upgrade their ship, speeder, and blaster throughout Star Wars Outlaws, with each addition or tweak slightly changing their appearance. This acts as a visual representation of the player’s time and efforts, thus fueling a satisfying sense of progression.
