Star Wars Outlaws: A Scoundrel's Guide to the Galaxy's Messy Underworld
Star Wars Outlaws' story trailer plunges Kay Vess into a cutthroat criminal underworld where ruthless syndicates hunt her over an impossible heist.
In 2026, Star Wars Outlaws has already traded its launch day nerves for a reputation as one of the most chaotic open-world Star Wars games ever made. Still, the story trailer that first introduced Kay Vess remains a perfect instruction manual. It drops players into a galaxy where the real power players do not wear capes—they wear ugly hats, run spice routes, and keep frozen smugglers as wall decor.
The game may not care about Jedi or the Rebel Alliance, but it absolutely cares about the criminal underworld. Kay Vess is a smuggler, a thief, and an all-around scoundrel who has to pull off an impossible heist just to buy her freedom. The trailer wastes no time explaining why that will be miserable.
The Galaxy’s Most Dysfunctional Networking Event 🤝
Kay’s journey forces her to deal with almost every criminal organization that has ever ruined someone’s Tuesday. The cast reads like a convention of bad bosses:
| Syndicate | Signature Move | Why Kay Should Sweat |
|---|---|---|
| Hutt Cartel | Turning enemies into frozen souvenirs | Jabba is gigantic, petty, and very powerful |
| Pyke Syndicate | Running the spice trade | Fish-headed spice lords do not forgive late deliveries |
| Crimson Dawn | Secretly plotting Sith payback | Qi’ra is smarter than everyone in the room |
| Zerek Besh | Starting a syndicate war | Sliro put a bounty on Kay’s head |
That last faction is the real problem. Zerek Besh, ruled by a smug opportunist named Sliro, is not one of the classic Five Crime Syndicates. It is a hungry newcomer trying to unite—or exploit—the others. The trailer shows Sliro making his pitch on Canto Bight, the casino world where The Last Jedi taught everyone that war profiteers are the galaxy’s true winners. Sliro clearly took notes.
And who better to illustrate that lesson than Han Solo? The game is set between The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi, when Han is less a scoundrel and more a very expensive wall hanging. Kay spends the whole game one wrong move away from matching that decor. Is there a more terrifying office art than a frozen smuggler? Probably not.
Qi’ra, Jabba, and a Very Tense Dinner Party 🍸
Unsurprisingly, Jabba the Hutt shows up, and Kay must meet him face-to-face. The Pykes also slither into the story, reminding everyone that spice is not just a cooking ingredient. The Crimson Dawn connection may be the most interesting: Maul is dead, and Qi’ra now leads the organization. According to later reporting, Qi’ra does appear in the game. Her goal in the comics is to burn down the Sith’s secret empire, which means Kay could be working for—or against—someone playing a much longer game.
A Crew That Should Not Work Together—But Does 🛠️
Kay is not alone. Her crew includes ND-5, a reprogrammed commando droid who looks like he wandered out of a noir holofilm and can shove bounty hunters aside. There is also a Rodian tech expert, a suspiciously familiar protocol droid, and the real MVP: Nix, a furry merqaal companion. Nix can sneak into Imperial bases, steal blasters, distract guards, and activate faraway buttons. Who needs a lightsaber when a tiny chaos creature can do all that?
The Empire Is Still Watching 👀
Even without Jedi, the Empire is everywhere. Kay sneaks past stormtroopers, steals rifles with Nix’s help, and occasionally has to fight Death Troopers, AT-STs, and TIE Fighters. The trailer makes one thing clear: loud players will attract the wrong kind of Imperial attention.
Tatooine Is Still a Death Trap 💀
Tatooine remains the galaxy’s most iconic sandbox, and Star Wars Outlaws does not soften it. Kay’s meeting with Jabba apparently goes so well that she ends up plunging toward the Sarlacc, the galaxy’s slowest digestive system. She probably escapes—otherwise the game would be very short—but the scene is a lovely reminder that Jabba’s hospitality has a 1,000-year return policy.
Beyond the Sarlacc, Kay also dodges a massive krayt dragon, which is basically Tatooine’s way of saying, welcome, but also no.
Who Else Might Show Up? 🎲
Could familiar bounty hunters like Boba Fett, Dengar, 4-LOM, or IG-88 appear? It would be a shock if nobody chased that bounty besides the new female hunter Sliro hires. Fan-favorite rogue archaeologist Doctor Chelli Aphra would also fit perfectly in this seedy corner of the galaxy. If a droid named Triple Zero walks into a room, players should probably run.
By 2026, Star Wars Outlaws has already proven that the best Star Wars stories do not need a lightsaber. They just need a scoundrel, a furry chaos gremlin, and a galaxy full of bad decisions.