Summary
Star Wars Outlawsis returning to the original trilogy’s timeline, with a story set between the events ofThe Empire Strikes BackandReturn of the Jediwhen the Outer Rim’s criminal underworld is thriving, as the Empire is preoccupied with the growing rebellion. Because of this, a huge part of Ubisoft and Massive Entertainment’s goal seems to be faithfully recreating this era ofStar Warswhile also expanding upon it with a new protagonist, Kay Vess, and new locations to explore across its massive open-world map.
In a series of interviews at Summer Game Fest 2024,Screen Rantspoke withStar Wars Outlaws' Creative Director, Julian Gerighty, and its Art Director, Marthe Jonkers. Both directors mentioned that one way they looked to recreate this 70s cinematic aesthetic was by recreating the camera lenses used to shoot the original trilogy within the game’s Snowdrop engine.
Julian Gerighty: I think the original trilogy is where we got the most inspiration, because fundamentally, that was our connection with the really strong emotions that we had linked to Star Wars. But apart from that, Rogue One takes the original trilogy and uses all of these packages of new technologies for its execution, and that was very important for us too. So what we did was take a lot of references and inspiration from the overall visual execution of a modern film, but with a 70s aesthetic, retro futurist aesthetic. The presentation is in Ultra widescreen. That’s on by default, and you can change it to the aspect ratio that you want, but there’s a lens project. There’s a lens that we’ve created within Snowdrop that allows us to replicate the lenses of the cameras of the 1970s so with the lens flare, the breathing, the vignetting, all of these technical things that kind of subconsciously place you in the middle of a cinematic 70s, futuristic, retro, futuristic Star Wars adventure that was very important.
Marthe Jonkers: This ultra-wide setup is super important for us to recreate this cinematic realism, and it goes through, of course, camera effects, special lengths, and we used all of these different details that allow us to be as authentic as possible to the original trilogy movies.
Star Wars Outlaws: Release Date, Preorder Bonuses, Setting, & Characters
Ubisoft announced the release date for its upcoming Star Wars Outlaws game with a new trailer that gave a better look at its setting and characters.
Star Wars Outlaws Is Telling A Different Kind Of Story In A Very Familiar Era
With Massive Entertainment Pulling From George Lucas' Original 60s And 70s Influences
Star Wars Outlawsmay take place in a familiar era, but it looks set to tell a very different kind of story away from the key conflicts of the Galactic Civil War, opting to focus on an up-and-coming scoundrel instead of Jedi Knights or Rebel forces. Despite this, the team atMassive Entertainment’s attention to detail is going a long way to ensure that it still feels likeStar Warsat its core, and the idea of recreating the exact same camera lenses that those earlier films were shot on in-game is a whole other level of detail that most players wouldn’t even acknowledge when playing, but subconsciously draws them back in time to make it all feel connected to the original trilogy in more than just its story.
The studio has previously discussed rebuilding iconic locations such as Mos Eisley and Jabba’s Palace and making it feel like players can explore the places they’ve seen on screen andfind details they never knew were there.Star Wars Outlaws' World Director, Cloé Hammoud, and Art Director, Marthe Jonkers did comment on the fact that while familiar planets like Tatooine had to be expanded, instead of just looking to create variants of the buildings that fans have seen on screen,they turned to George Lucas' original inspirations from the 60s and 70s, citing Western movies as a major one to further add to the game’s authenticity.
This attention to detail should certainly makeStar Wars Outlawsa rich and enjoyable experience forfans of the original trilogy, as they can truly feel like they’ve gone back in time to this classic era.Star Wars Outlawslaunches on August 31 on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, and PC via Ubisoft Connect and Epic Games Store, and pre-orders for the title are available now.
Star Wars Outlaws
Set between the events of The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi, Star Wars Outlaws is an open-world action-adventure game where players hop into the scoundrel boots of Kay Vess, a woman who travels the galaxy Looking for a better life. Together with her furry partner Nix and new allies she meets along the way, Kay will navigate the various landscapes, towns, and planets across the galaxy while outsmarting both Crime Syndicates and the Empire.
