When you navigate the galaxy in Star Wars Outlaws, you do so as Kay Vess, a pickpocket who gets in over his head and wraps it up with grace. In early discussions, Lucasfilm Games and developer Massive Entertainment agreed that a misogynist story was the way to go. Through these discussions, Massive decided that he wanted to portray a “resourceful underdog” for his protagonist rather than the trained soldiers who work in the Division.
A rogue experience
In various meetings with Lucasfilm Games, Massive Entertainment looked at the different archetypes available to players in Star Wars tabletop RPGs, including Jedi, spy, operative, and more. Massive wanted to make a game with a unique perspective within that universe. Many games put you in the shoes of a lightsaber-wielding Jedi or an Empire-fighting rebel, but very few let you play as the archetype stuck until Massive: the scoundrel.
In the Star Wars galaxy, the villain is portrayed by Han Solo, but even though the story takes place during the original trilogy, Han Solo didn’t want to recreate that ground by making a large-scale game. “It didn’t come up once,” says creative director Julian Garrity. “We also wanted to tell different stories with different lead actors.”
“We realized that one of the areas of Star Wars that hasn’t been explored as much, especially recently, is the rogue character,” says associate narrative director John Bjerling. “A relatable character, a rookie type who takes his first steps into the galaxy, explores the world, and really connects with the people and factions that make up the fabric of the galaxy. Follow: Get this personal story. To do and really bring the galaxy to life.”
Once the masses set their sights on a roguelike experience set between the events of the beloved original trilogy. The Empire Strikes Back And Return of the Jedi., he needs to create the right character for the adventure. “A dysfunctional underdog will use every trick in the book to get out of a difficult situation,” Garrity says. “Sometimes, a rogue should avoid engaging in combat, so stealth became incredibly important to us as well.”
Key Weiss
To that end, Key Weiss started out as a mere pickpocket growing up in the working-class district of Kanto Bay, a planet best known for its casino scene. The Last Jedi, but after graduating from full-on theft to falling in with the wrong crowd and placing a bounty on his head, he must pull off the ultimate heist to gain freedom. Because of her resourcefulness, cunning, and bravado, she can approach situations both stealthily and at gunpoint. The choice is often up to the player.
His rough and tumble upbringing equips him well for his adventures, and the team reflects this background in its visual design. “We put a lot of thought into her design and what she’s wearing and how she looks to tell her story,” says associate art director Marth Jonkers. “There are a lot of elements in her design that tell a little bit of her story. For example, she has a broken nose. She’s been through a lot; you can see that she has scars and things. . Also love this element because she uses it to lock the door, and you can use it to steal something from the start.”
The team clicked particularly well with Kay because she is neither a Jedi with superhuman reflexes nor one of the greatest fighters or pilots in the galaxy. “I think it’s very relatable as a human being on the planet that this character has more magical powers than his courage, his skills, his tools, and his friend Nix,” says game director Mathias Carlson. or features not.” “The character type is also perfect for going on a swashbuckling adventure. I think that’s something that I really resonated with thinking about the character to build games and gameplay around. In the matter.”
“I think he’s a more modern protagonist than what we usually see in games,” Garrity says. “She’s someone who’s very much a street thief who gets thrown into things that are out of her control, and she has to figure her way out of it, and it’s a little bit more of a relationship with someone who Dar makes it so believable. And comes off as sarcastic and just someone who’s not believable, so it was very important for us to relate to him that way.”
Nix
But she’s not the only protagonist in Star Wars Outlaws. Widely sees Kay and Nix as dual protagonists. As such, players are always in control of Nix, as Kay has the ability to send him to perform tasks such as pressing buttons, retrieving items, and distracting enemies. “The nix comes from a real gameplay need, to give the rogue character a little more access, to sneak around and fight through environments,” Garrity says. . “We really thought of them as a rogue/thief duo. And Nix is ​​absolutely adorable, but also very tough and protective, so there are two sides to his personality, and we’re very proud of what we’ve created. Is.”
Nix is ​​a Mercal, a new breed created by Massive in collaboration with Lucasfilm Games. Nix comes from an unknown rain planet, but at a certain point, Ki and Nix meet and become partners. When designing Nix, Massive looked at the various pets that team members have in their households. “Basically, he has some of all our pet peeves,” Jonkers says. “Everybody had a little bit of an influence on it, I would say. But also real-world animals, for example. We really wanted him to be very helpful to Kay, so he could pick things up so we could have lemurs or Looked at monkeys. But on the other hand we wanted him to have a bit of a tough side, so he has some skills, and he’s more reptile-inspired.”
Another important part of Nix’s design are his ears, which help him express his emotions and mood. “When Key is sneaking around, you’ll see him put them on his body and make a little slit,” Jonkers says. “When he’s alert, he’ll deliver to them, and I think that’s also a unique element to Knox that really gives him a lot of personality.”
When I ask if the relationship between Key and Nix is ​​similar to that of Han Solo and Chewbacca, Jonkers quips, “I always say, ‘Key is not a solo, Key is a pair.’
“We have Kay as the main character, but it’s actually Kay and Nix,” Jonkers continues. “They’re the main characters. We really wanted to bring that unique duo into the Star Wars galaxy as the main characters. They do a lot together, and Nix helps you, but he’s really her friend. […] This relationship and pairing makes Kay a very unique character, like a unique villain. He is not on his own. She is not doing it all herself. He actually has his partner in crime. It brings a unique twist to the rogue archetype.”
To learn more about how the gameplay between Kay and Nix works, be sure to check out our hands-on preview here. Star Wars Outlaws arrives on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, and PC on August 30. For more, be sure to check out our exclusive coverage hub via the banner below!