Ubisoft has been describing Star Wars Outlaws as the first-ever open world Star Wars game. Previous gameplay trailers and demos have showcased a sprawling galaxy rife with adventure and exploration.
But one of the biggest questions many have with open world games is just how long they take to complete. Naturally, fans are curious about Star Wars Outlaws, especially following that recent gameplay showcase, and creative director Julian Gerighty has given us some insight into the game's length.
"Very, very early on, we decided this is going to be a 25, 30 hours golden path adventure," Gerighty told Video Game Chronicle. The golden path in videos games is basically the most direct playthrough — the one that offers the player the best gameplay, story, and rewards. While it can include some side content, it mostly focuses on main story content.
For those who want to experience all that the game has to offer, Gerighty estimates that it could take upwards of 50 or 60 hours for completionists.
"And that is, for a guy with a family and a job, it's still a fair amount of time," he added. "That allows us to really focus on the detail, it allows us to focus, maybe with a smaller team, on executing something that is manageable."
The length of open world games varies from title to title. Some offer upwards of 100 hour of gameplay, while others, like Star Wars Outlaws, are aimed at about half that. It all depends on what the developer is trying to accomplish. Oftentimes, we see developers bloat a game's length by offering tons of repetitive side content that offer little in terms of narrative. This could be things like generic base or camp cleanings or just fetch quests with little meaningful reward.
Based on what we've seen from Star Wars Outlaws so far, it looks like its side content will be more story-driven and at least have some narrative focus. Everything you do in Star Wars Outlaws seems to have a purpose, even if it may not be related to the main story.
Set between the events of The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi, players will step into the boots of Kay Vess, a scoundrel seeking freedom and the means to start a new life. Players will experience what it's like to live the high-stakes lifestyle of an outlaw, exploring distinct locations and taking on daring missions with high rewards from the galaxy's crime syndicates.
Kay takes on high-risk, high-reward jobs to earn favor with the galaxy's most notorious crime syndicates, including the cutthroat Pyke Syndicate, the crafty and cunning Crimson Dawn, amongst others. More of the locations Kay will explore are shown in detail in the video above, including the jungle world of Akiva, the ancient city of Kijimi, and the savannah moon of Toshara. There are flashbacks to Kay's past growing up in Canto Bight, a memory of meeting Nix for the first time, and scenes of Kay hustling and thieving to survive.
Star Wars Outlaws is set to launch on August 30, 2024, for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC.