Star Wars Outlaws is another chapter in the vast Star Wars franchise that spans a massive timeframe over thousands of years. The franchise constantly jumps around in time (within the narrative frame of “a long, long time ago,” of course), so you may be unsure exactly when Star Wars Outlaws takes place.
Knowing when this game takes place is crucial for understanding what the galaxy looks like at this point and what iconic characters you may meet in your journey.
Here’s what you need to know about when Star Wars Outlaws takes place.
Where does Star Wars Outlaws fall in the Star Wars timeline?
The Star Wars Outlaws story takes place between Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back and Star Wars: Return of the Jedi. At this time, the Galactic Empire is still trying to stamp out a growing Rebel Alliance. Scoundrels like Kay Vess and the underworld are thriving as the government’s attention is focused elsewhere.
There’s a one-year gap between The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi, and Kay Vess’ story slots into the gap between these two films to highlight what the state of the galaxy looked like for everyone at this time.
This framing is perfect for the Star Wars Outlaws story since the focus won’t be on the Empire and the Alliance; it will be on the golden age the underworld is enjoying.
While the films don’t cover this period, Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back ended with Luke Skywalker and Leia Organa reuniting after that bombshell and Lando Calrissian and Chewbacca departing to rescue a frozen Han Solo from Jabba’s clutches.
Han is one of the few characters we know is featured in Star Wars Outlaws since he made an appearance in the story trailer. Lando also directly appeared in a game teaser, so we at least know two key characters will appear during Kay Vess’ journey. Kay seems to meet Lando for a game of Sabacc, which means she likely runs into him while he’s hard at work trying to rescue Han from the carbonite he’s frozen in at Jabba the Hutt’s palace.
The focus is most certainly going to stick to the underworld and our scoundrel’s lifestyle, but Kay Vess’ journey is still sure to feature many iconic characters and locations most Star Wars fans are very familiar with. Her story takes place at a perfect time when no other content does, so the possibilities are pretty open.
We’ll be able to explore everything when Outlaws hits shelves on Aug. 30.
