Summary

• Star Wars Outlaws may receive an M rating, a first in the franchise's history, based on Korea's 19+ rating due to adult themes.
• The game's focus on the criminal underworld may involve in-game betting and other mature content, pushing boundaries within the Star Wars universe.
• Despite the potential for darker themes, Disney's censorship history makes it unlikely for Star Wars Outlaws to actually be rated M in the US.

With shady dealings with syndicates rather than the conflict between the Galactic Empire and the Rebel Alliance that is often covered around this point in the franchise's timeline.

As spotted by Redditor Ajxtt, Korea's Game Rating and istration Committee rated the PlayStation 5 version of Star Wars Outlaws as 19+. The reasons mentioned are "Realistic simulation of speculative behavior", and "a mini-game with content of in-game betting and dividends." Further icons shown in the "Content Information" section display references to drug use, and language, although it's more likely that this language could be considered mild in the US, and the "drugs" would be a fictional sci-fi chemical, which wouldn't be considered such an issue with US ratings.

Could Star Wars Outlaws Be The Franchise's First M-Rated Game?

It Would Be The First Star Wars Game To Receive Such A Rating In Over 40 Years

If Star Wars Outlaws is rated 19+ in Korea, it does raise the question of what age rating it will get in other countries. Recent Star Wars titles such as Star Wars Jedi: Survivor and the Star Wars: Battlefront series were rated 12+ and 15+ in Korea, respectively. Both received T-for-Teen (13+) age ratings in the US. With this in mind, it's possible that a 19+ rating could equate to a M-for-Mature (17+) rating in America, which would be a first in the franchise's decades-long history.

The Reddit thread speculated that the mini-game with in-game betting is the Sabbac card game shown in Star Wars Outlaws' first trailer. It's worth noting that US game ratings aren't usually as strict with depictions of gambling within games, and tend to give M ratings to titles that contain more violence, drug use, sexual content, or strong language.

Star Wars Outlaws Would Be A Great Place To Explore The Galaxy's More Mature Themes

The Outer-Rim's Criminal Underworld Should Be Darker And More Ruthless

With language and drug use shown in the content icons for Korea's Game Rating and istration Committee rating, it's possible that Ubisoft and Massive Entertainment could be showing a much darker side to the Star Wars universe. An exploration into the criminal underworld would certainly be the perfect opportunity to experiment with making Star Wars Outlaws an M-rated title, as its syndicates would be ruthless in their endeavors.

It's worth noting that one of the first times Star Wars introduced Tatooine's Mos Eisley Cantina, which was described as a "wretched hive of scum and villainy", it certainly lived up to its name. Within minutes, Han Solo shot Greedo and killed him over a disagreement - or acted in self-defense after Greedo shot first, depending on the version being watched - and Obi-Wan had to cut off the arm of a different violent, drunk character who confronted him, with the camera lingering on the severed limb on the floor for a moment after.

With Star Wars Outlaws confirmed to be visiting such locations, violence like this should be rife throughout Kay Vess' journey, with the potential for dangerous confrontations lurking at every turn. The game avoids the main conflict of the Galactic Civil War to focus purely on the criminal dealings taking advantage of the Empire being distracted by the growing Rebel forces, which makes this a prime opportunity to tell a different kind of Star Wars story to those of the movies set during this period, and a more mature age rating would certainly be another way to set it apart.

Will Disney Ever Allow M-Rated Star Wars Content?

The Studio Has Censored More Recent Attempts

Of course, there's still the matter of whether Disney, who owns LucasArts and the Star Wars IP, would ever allow content to get this mature in the series. Whereas the movies and TV shows have all been around the PG or PG-13 mark to appeal to larger audiences, video games are often known as a medium with more mature content, with some of the best-selling titles in the format, such as Grand Theft Auto, which Star Wars Outlaws seems to borrow its "Wanted" rating mechanic from, are rated M.

Recently, other Star Wars media tried to push boundaries, with the intent of including the franchise's first intended F-bomb in the series Andor, which itself was considered to be more of a grounded, mature take on the conflict between the Empire and the Rebels, exploring how the thief-turned-rebel spy Cassian Andor became radicalized against the Galactic Empire in the years before Rogue One. Despite its already more mature tone, Disney shut the decision to include strong language down, making the line in question "fight the Empire" instead and maintaining its TV-14 rating.

With this in mind, it's possible that the Korean Game Rating and istration Committee is just being stricter than other boards with its 19+ rating, and that when the ESRB rates Star Wars Outlaws for America, its content aligns more with the other T-for-Teen titles on the market such as Star Wars Jedi: Survivor. With the title due to be released later this year, players should expect to see more official looks at the game's content and find out if this is the case over the coming months.

Source: Ajxtt/Reddit, Game Rating and istration Committee