Every video game developer has its own set of trademark features and fallbacks that it knows it can rely on, and uses to immediately tell audiences who created the game. Naughty Dog has its realistic visuals, weighty character animations, and focus on narrative, whileActivision’sCall of Dutystudioshave perfected the run-and-gun FPS formula. While some studios' trademark features are more subtle, some aren’t, and Ubisoft definitely belongs in the latter camp, with even high-profile licensed games likeStar Wars Outlawsprobably not safe from the company’s now-infamous open-world formula.
Ubisoft has been in the video game industry for almost four decades now, and in that time, the publisher/developer has put out countless titles. But in more recent times, Ubisoft has become mostly known for its library of open-world action-adventure games, encompassingpopular franchises likeFar Cry,Assassin’s Creed, andGhost Recon. But while each of these franchises has its own unique set of features, they all share the same general open-world formula, with a heavy reliance on crafting materials, gear, and watchtowers that unlock part of the map, and fill it with a slew of icons. And though this formula has its merits,Star Wars Outlawsneeds to approach it very carefully.
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Star Wars Outlaws Needs to Approach Ubisoft’s Open-World Formula Carefully
The Ubisoft open-world formula has garnered a fairly divisive reception over the last decade. Though Ubisoft was adopting this same formula back in the late 2000s with titles likeAssassin’s Creed 2andBrotherhood, it reached its final form with2012’sFar Cry 3. And while this formula broke new ground back in 2012, it’s looking a little stale a decade later. Ubisoft has continued to use the same formula for almost all of its open-world action-adventure games since 2012, and with practically no significant innovations or additions to it in that time, many fans are sick of it.
Star Wars Outlawsis set to be the first truly expansive open-worldStar Warsgame, but with Ubisoft at the helm, things could easily get a little too formulaic. TheUbisoft open-world formulaisn’t necessarily a bad thing, but it should only act as a jumping-off point forStar Wars Outlaws, giving the game a basic structure to begin with, and allowing it to build its own unique identity from there.Star Wars Outlawscan use all of the usual Ubisoft open-world mechanics, but it needs to put its own spin on things to keep it all fresh.
A perfect example of this is the concept of watchtowers. Almost every open-world Ubisoft game of the last decade sees players climb some kind of tower, activate some kind of beacon at the top, and reveal a portion of the map, filling it with an onslaught of side activity icons at the same time. While this concept isn’t bad in premise, with it being a rewarding way to encourage players to search the whole open-world, it’s gotten very stale over the last 10 years, andStar Wars Outlawsneeds to mix things up a lot if it plans on using a similar system.
A great way to do this is by having each watchtower inStar Wars Outlawsoffer a unique gameplay experience, such as a stealth mission for one, a firefight for another, a space battle or speeder chase. These watchtowers can also be baked into the lore of theStar Wars Outlawsgalaxy, being Imperial outposts that need to be broken into and their comms hacked. This same practice can be applied to a whole slew of common features found in Ubisoft’s formula, such as crafting materials now being used for a range of genuinely worthwhileupgrades for Kay Vess' ship, gear, and weapons. AllStar Wars Outlawsneeds to do is take Ubisoft’s open-world formula, and put a few twists and enhancements on it.
Star Wars Outlawsis coming to PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X|S in 2024.
