It’s a big day for Star Wars Outlaws! Not only is the game set to get its Wild Card story DLC today, it’s also now available on Steam, and it’s getting a major overhaul in the launch of the Title Update 1.4.
The Wild Card DLC will see Kay Vess infiltrating a high-stakes Sabacc tournament after being contracted to investigate it by officers of the Empire. As it turns out, one of the competitors is Star Wars icon Lando Calrissian, who Vess previously worked with in a lower-key capacity (he’s one of the experts you’ll learn skills from in the game).
While Vess will clearly spend some time playing Sabacc during this mission, there’ll also be plenty of action sequences, with Lando joining Vess for some running-and-gunning through hostile territory. In one segment of the launch trailer, we even see Lando aboard the Trailblazer, suggesting he’ll be on board (and on board) as the mission advances.
Everything new in the Star Wars Outlaws Title Update 1.4
Beyond this new story content, Star Wars Outlaws will also be getting plenty new with its Title Update 1.4. The biggest change introduced in this update is that forced stealth will be removed from “most” missions in the game. If you jumped into Star Wars Outlaws and immediately bounced off its insta-fail quests, that’s great news.
Read: Star Wars Outlaws review: Lots of fun no matter how you slice it
Most objectives can now be completed as you choose, whether that means running in “all guns blazing” or still taking a cautious, stealthy approach.
“If you’re caught while sneaking, the objective won’t fail and reset you to the last checkpoint,” the Star Wars Outlaws team revealed in a blog post. “Instead, you’ll seamlessly transition into combat. We know many of you enjoy the stealth approach, so it was important to us to preserve that playstyle while also giving you the freedom to decide how to tackle each mission.”
The stealthy approach will also be aided by new enemy detection systems, which provide a visual indication of how hidden you are.
Another major change being introduced in this update is the ability to fight within syndicate districts. Rather than sneaking in, you can now run in and fight as you please, causing all sorts of drama.
Combat itself has also been overhauled, with new options for targeting specific enemy body parts or weak points, and the addition of “positioning and timing tactics” to make engagements more “dynamic.” Enemies will also now make more clever choices, with improvements to AI making combat more realistic.
“Our goal is to let you play the way you want to play,” the team said.
Beyond gameplay, Title Update 1.4 should also give Star Wars Outlaws a visual overhaul. As described by the development team, the “aperture” of the game’s camera has been adjusted to improve its focus, so the action should now be much crisper and cleaner on-screen. Players can also toggle the cinematic lens off, to create a cleaner, brighter picture that doesn’t evoke the often-murky aesthetics of the film series. Many NPCs have also been visually improved, with a greater sheen of detail and more emotive body language.
The Star Wars Outlaws team has also confirmed a range of other improvements in Title Update 1.4, including: re-tuned blaster modules, manual shoulder swapping, new contracts, new death animations, improved terrain wetness, improved FPS on Xbox Series X/S, updated dry grass scatter, vendor animations, improved speeder AI, bug fixes, and more.
With the release of this update, the Wild Card story DLC, and the game’s launch on Steam, now might be the time to pop back into Star Wars Outlaws, to see just how much it’s improved. With plenty of player feedback addressed in this upcoming update, this could be Outlaws‘ Cyberpunk 2077 redemption moment.
