Summary

• Star Wars Outlaws' new story trailer dives more into Kay Vess' story, motivations, and enemies.
• The story trailer hints at a "Golden Age" for the criminal underworld, set between The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi.
• The trailer marks the return of the Crimson Dawn, one of the franchise's more recent crime syndicates, while also bringing back classic elements like Jabba's Palace and the Sarlaac pit.

A new story trailer for Star Wars Outlaws has been revealed, showing more of scoundrel Kay Vess' story and the threats she'll be facing across the Outer Rim. Massive Entertainment's open-world Star Wars title was originally revealed at the June 2023 Xbox Showcase and Ubisoft Forward events. The reveal showed Kay on the run, using her speeder and starship, Trailblazer, to evade her foes on both land and in space.

The new story trailer - which can be found on Ubisoft's YouTube channel - explains more of her motives, revealing that she is still relatively new to the criminal underworld and previously only did what she had to as a means of ensuring her survival, along with that of her loyal Axolotl companion, Nix. As the game's story goes on, however, her reputation seems to grow as she agrees to a "death wish" of a job to steal a fortune from the same crime boss she once angered, calling it her "one shot at freedom".

Star Wars Outlaws Story Trailer Shows A Return To An Important Era In Star Wars Games

A "Golden Age" For The Criminal Underworld

Star Wars Outlaws' story trailer opens with the meeting of several of the Outer Rim's main crime syndicates, the Hutts and the Pykes - who had previously been confirmed to appear - and Crimson Dawn, one of the franchise's more recent crime syndicates that was introduced in Solo: A Star Wars Story as an offshoot to Darth Maul's Shadow Collective. As pointed out during this meeting by a new, ruthless crime boss, the underworld has the opportunity to "make millions" as the Empire is distracted by the growing rebellion, calling it a "golden age".

Star Wars: Shadows of the Empire was a 1996 multimedia event that spanned games, novels, and comics, with a wealth of merchandise produced.

It's very quickly established that the story takes place around the same time as a very important era of Star Wars from almost 30 years ago, Shadows of the Empire, even if that game's story has since been deemed non-canon. Star Wars Outlaws is set between the events of The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi, which is evident by the appearance of Han Solo's Carbonite, something Kay can be seen looking at in Jabba the Hutt's Palace on Tatooine before meeting the infamous crime lord. The iconic Sarlaac from Return of the Jedi - which seems to be based on its original design before the Special Editions - also makes an appearance during the trailer, with Kay seen sliding down toward its gaping mouth at one point.

There are also several nods to the era of the Clone Wars with shots of Separatist-era droids still being used in combat later in the trailer's montage sequence, firing at a target off-screen. Combined with Kay's trenchcoat-wearing droid ally, ND-5, who was also repurposed from this time, this gives the Clone Wars a hint of a legacy still while taking place within the Original Trilogy era.

For fans who were keen to return to this era of the franchise, with a story that seems different from others seen in recent Star Wars games, but also clearly has nods to many of the characters and creatures fans already know, Star Wars Outlaws certainly looks promising. Fortunately, with an August release date now confirmed, they won't have to wait too long to find out what Kay Vess' journey has in store.

Source: Ubisoft/YouTube