Summary
Ubisoft’s open-world model has managed to leave a sour taste in the mouths of gamers for quite some time now, to the point that the words “open world” and “Ubisoft” being used in the same sentence tends to drive some away even before a game is released. WhileStar Wars Outlawswas developed by Massive Entertainment, it still has Ubisoft attached to it as its publisher, which has led to some fans completely disowning the game months ahead of its launch. However, althoughStar Wars Outlawsis indeed an open-world gamepublished by Ubisoft, it has managed to leave the developer’s exhausted open-world model behind it in favor of a refreshing take on the formula that may surprise even the most committed skeptics.
Star Wars Outlawseffectively takes Ubisoft’s familiar open-world model and rehashes it into an experience that has the potential to cause a unified sigh of relief among players who have become weary of the same bloated, bogged-down open-world maps over the last decade. It does so by taking the elements of what still works in Ubisoft’s formula and mixing it with the compulsion of curiosity and a bit of player feedback for something worth being enveloped in rather than preemptively rejecting.
Star Wars Outlaws' Refreshing Take on Ubisoft’s Open-World Formula
For All Its Content, Star Wars Outlaws' Map Lacks an Overwhelming Number of Icons
One of the key characteristics of a bloated open-world map is clutter, as it means players are being spoon-fed far too many tasks and collectibles via icons that indicate their locations. While this makes things easy for completionists, it transforms what could have beenenjoyable curiosity-driven discoveriesinto a list of chores that can haunt even the most patient of players. It ultimately robs players of the reward of exploration, which arguably goes beyond the material or gameplay rewards gained from completing the activity or collecting the item.
Thankfully,Star Wars Outlawsavoids this problem by leaving its map free of clutter.
Star Wars Outlaws' open-world mapdoes have plenty of icons to keep players abreast of each major location, fast-travel points, and key NPCs. However, even these icons are few and far between, resulting in plenty of negative space to make viewing the map a more pleasant experience. There are map indicators that show how many pieces of valuable “treasure” there are to find in an area, but they never reveal the exact location of these valuables, requiring players to search each area until they’ve exhausted their findings.
Players also won’t find most ofStar Wars Outlaws' side questsindicated on the map, as they are largely triggered by talking to the right NPC, finding a quest-related datapad, or listening in on a nearby conversation. This is a far cry from Ubisoft’s open-world formula, which typically shows the location of every single quest in the game on the map.
Star Wars Outlaws' Open World Makes Optional Locations Entirely Optional
Ubisoft’s open-world formulahas been known to treat optional locations as anything but optional by indicating them on the map and making them another seemingly necessary task for players to complete.Star Wars Outlaws, on the other hand, doesn’t reveal the vast majority of its optional locations until players actually discover them. As players approach these locations, they’ll see a question mark appear on their compass as a way to lure them over to it. However, if they choose to bypass the location altogether, it won’t appear on their map, and they’ll need to return to it later and discover it to have it marked on the map.
Star Wars Outlaws' renewed take on Ubisoft’s open-world formulais bound to be good news to fans who expected it to be anything but. With its general lack of map icons and curiosity-driven exploration, the hope is that this is a sign of things to come for the veteran developer in its future games.
