Introduction

Star Wars Outlaws is the latest open-world action-adventure published by Ubisoft and developed by Massive Entertainment, known to the mainstream gaming public for titles such as Tom Clancy’s The Division series and Avatar Frontiers of Pandora. To me though, Massive Entertainment will always be synonymous with the legendary World in Conflict.

Star Wars Outlaws is set right after The Empire Strikes Back. The first Death Star is no more, the Galactic Empire is in crisis, and the Outer Rim crime lords are fighting for dominance. Our protagonist, Kay, is ready to make big bucks from taking on all sorts of illegal jobs.

Star Wars Outlaws takes place across many different planets, each featuring a massive map to explore, dozens of quests, and a metric ton of side activities to partake in. One of the main gameplay elements is a dynamic world that reacts to player actions and choices, with Kay always trying to balance her relationships with the biggest crime syndicates.

The game is filled with fast-paced action but also stealthy gameplay. You’ve got a bunch of upgrades to unlock by traveling through the Galaxy and meeting new experts who will then pass their knowledge to you, and you’ve also got a ton of area to cover on your speeder. Star Wars Outlaws is a proper Star Wars game, at least when it comes to the visuals and the overall atmosphere. Gameplay-wise, the game looks like yet another Ubisoft open-world adventure, only with a Star Wars theme.

Star Wars Outlaws is built using the Snowdrop Engine, which supports DirectX 12 and ray tracing with advanced effects. Players can also take advantage of the latest upscaling technologies, including NVIDIA DLSS and AMD FSR, and NVIDIA and AMD Frame Generation. Additionally, there’s support for NVIDIA DLSS 3.5 Ray Reconstruction and NVIDIA RTXDI Direct Illumination.

This handheld performance review will evaluate Star Wars Outlaws’ performance on Steam Deck LCD and ASUS ROG Ally, and discuss the out-of-the-box experience on SteamOS and Windows.