Star Wars Outlaws Dev is Pleased That Players Compare It to GTA and RDR
In a recent interview, the lead developer of Star Wars Outlaws revealed a little more information about the upcoming Star Wars game, not hiding his satisfaction at it being compared to Rockstar's hits.
Star Wars Outlaws proved to be one of the biggest surprises of Monday's Ubisoft Forward.
The game developed by Massive Entertainment (known for The Division series) is to be an ambitious open-world game from the AAA segment. In it, players will face not only the infamous Empire, but also numerous dangerous galactic syndicates.
The secret about the nature of the upcoming Star Wars game was revealed by its creative director, Julian Gerighty.
Huge project
In an interview with GamesRadar, Ubisoft veteran, and creative director of Star Wars Outlaws, answered some interesting questions about the upcoming work and the behind-the-scenes involved in its creation.
- Gerighty revealed that Massive Entertainment wanted to break away from the live-service developer label and make a "solo experience," which made the studio eager to work on the project.
- The developer also revealed that it "feels great to see comparisons with Red Dead Remption 2" because he holds Rockstar's games in high regard, referring to them as "the model for open-worlds."
- Massive aims to build a seamless experience without loading screens. Planets are to be large and open, and will be explored on foot, as well as behind the wheel of a speeder or from the cockpit of the Trailblazer, an EML-850 light freighter.
- What's more, players will use the freighter not only to traverse planets, but also for longer journeys across the galaxy or battles with fighters.
- The game, although expected to be large, will offer interesting content at every turn. "It doesn't matter if you're in a city, in an open world or in space, you're never far from something that will grab your attention," he said..
- There is to be very little procedurally generated content. The vast majority of locations will be "polished" manually.
Reputation as central theme
The plot in Star Wars Outlaws will focus on introducing a "mercenary villain" operating in the Outer Rim. The story will take place in the time period between The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi.
Players will take on the role of Key Vess, who traverses the galaxy with her pet friend Nix. The two characters will encounter not only the Empire, dangerous as ever, but also numerous gangs, such as the Pyke Syndicate.
As Gerighty revealed, the basic idea behind the game is the motto: "you live and die by your reputation".
Reputation is not only the theme, but also one of the key mechanics in Outlaws. Its level will depend on the decisions made by the players, and each of the main factions is to have a separate indicator..
If it reaches a given level, it will trigger certain sequences in the game, such as becoming a target of the Empire.
"All completed missions and decisions we make will affect this. This will enable you to build different relationships with factions, such as the Hutts or Pyke. Will you go too far in one direction with a particular faction? Your reputation will affect opportunities, accessibility and plot perspective."
Interestingly, some situations can be resolved without resorting to violence.
"We've spent a lot of time to give players a sense of agency in conversations, since the rogue must also use his tongue to get out of certain situations."
GTA-like chases
Star Wars Outlaws is also expected to offer "wanted" mechanics like in Grand Theft Auto. The moment we commit a bigger crime in front of witnesses, the Empire, which is supposed to act as galactic "cops," will be looking for us.
As in other such systems, we will have to hide and wait for the situation to settle down. Sometimes a jump into hyperspace will be needed, while other times it will be enough to deal with the "officers" on the spot.
Reliable Blaster and Nix
Gerighty also revealed a bit about combat in the upcoming Star Wars game. At the outset, he stressed that the combat system was designed with the idea that players will take on the role of an outlaw, rather than a trained soldier or even a Jedi.
Therefore Key's main weapons will be a handy blaster and... Nix, who will assist his friend in battle.
Of course, there will also be skills at the players' disposal, such as The Trick Shot enabling precision shooting, as well as gun modules that will enable the gun to operate in different modes (like the firearm in Control).
All the things mentioned in the text sound extremely promising, however, we will have to wait a bit longer to verify them - at least until 2024, when Star Wars Outlaws is scheduled to debut.
Recall that the game is headed for PC, PS5 and Xbox Series S/X.
