When Star Wars Outlaws was released last year, I didn’t hear much about the game. That’s usually not a great sign when a big video game developer releases the game and then there isn’t much discussion online. It indicates the game either didn’t sell well or was not well-made. This didn’t stop me from buying a copy of the game for myself as I wanted to see if the game was good. Star Wars Outlaws is not a perfect game, but I’m enjoying it a lot! I played for nine hours straight last weekend which is not something I do often. I’m saving most of my thoughts on this game for the review I intend to write. For this post, I wanted to scour the internet and read critiques of Star Wars Outlaws. From there, I wanted to share if I agree or disagree with them. This isn’t an all-encompassing list, but these critiques were said by multiple reviewers.

Too Much Stealth or The Stealth in Star Wars Outlaws Sucks

It’s funny, I hate being stealthy in video games. I would much rather go in guns blazing than hiding. Star Wars Outlaws is a stealth-heavy game, so you would think that I would hate this part of the game. I don’t mind the stealth in this game. For the most part, Kay can sneak her way through bases without getting caught. Have I gotten caught before? Sure, but then I either hide and the guards go back to what they were doing or Kay dies and I figure out a better way to sneak around. It does make completing missions longer, but I don’t mind it as much as others who have played the game.

I can’t speak to the critique of whether the stealth in Star Wars Outlaws sucks. I don’t play a lot of stealth video games as I tend to avoid them. This critique can be broken down into Kay not being able to fully hide behind the cover or Kay not having a lot of armor, so when she is caught, it’s going to hurt. My thoughts on this is comparing Kay Vess to Han Solo. Would Han Solo be able to take on waves and waves of Hutt enforcers or Stormtroopers? I’m sure he could, but eventually, he would be overwhelmed. The last thing I would add to this; I think for those who want more of a Star Wars gun-blazing type of game, I’d recommend Star Wars Battlefront II. Iden Versio is equipped to run out and kill everybody and Kay Vess simply is not built for that type of gameplay.

Lockpicking is Tedious

I absolutely agree with this. The lockpicking mini-game in Star Wars Outlaws is one of my least favorite parts of the game. I’m going to save most of this for my full review of the game because there is so much I want to say about this.

How Can Kay Punch Stormtroopers helmets and not break her hand after?

This critique is hilarious to me. When Kay sneaks up behind enemies or specifically Stormtroopers in this case, she punches them in the face and then drags their bodies behind cover. How can Kay not break her hand over and over again doing this? I would have liked to see more takedown options for Kay. Stealthy takedowns are crucial for Kay and for Kay to succeed in her missions, but punching Stormtroopers in the helmet over and over again? That must get tiring.

It’s misleading to call Star Wars Outlaws an Open World Game

I think this critique is valid even though it doesn’t play into my opinions about the game. Star Wars Outlaws specifically on Wikipedia lists the game as being “Open World”. I don’t have an exact definition of Open World when it comes to video games, but if I’m describing a game as Open World, it would be a game where I could explore the entire galaxy and do what I want when I want. There is a point in the game where Kay has the chance to explore three planets in any order the player chooses. That’s not Open World. Open World would be giving Kay access to the entire Outer Rim. I don’t want to reveal which planets Kay gets to explore, but I like the planets that were chosen for the game. I don’t mind that the game isn’t Open World, I mean Jedi: Fallen Order and Jedi: Survivor wasn’t Open World and I didn’t mind them. I think fans are yearning for an Open World game and when Star Wars Outlaws was described as Oepn World and it isn’t, fans were left to be disappointed.

As I was reading reviews, some gamers described this game as trash or rotten. I think that’s harsh. Star Wars Outlaws isn’t perfect, but it’s fun. I wasn’t expecting to love this game as much as I have. There needs to be Nix merch soon because I would buy it in a heartbeat. Once I complete the game, I’m going to write my in-depth review where I will dive into everything I love and everything I didn’t about Star Wars Outlaws.