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Does Star Wars Need to Go Open-World?

Does Star Wars Need to Go Open-World?

We have seen all sorts of Star Wars games over the years. There are shooters. We have adventures that take us into space. There are action games, RPGs, and MMORPGs. We even have mobile games that let us take the adventures everywhere. But the one thing we don’t have and could really use is an open-world game that does the series justice. When really, that is the one thing we could probably use the most.

The biggest reason a Star Wars game would work very well as an open-world title is due to the freedom it would allow the story. The series’ universe is huge. A proper epic would offer a lot of meandering. Even if, by some miracle, it was limited to a single planet, there would be a lot of space to cover! But, if whoever was capable (and lucky) enough to take on this task had the option to go bigger, it would mean an opportunity for a richer and more accurate story. I am imagining something that would be a cross between Mass Effect: Andromeda and The Elder Scrolls: Morrowind. The actual planet space would not have to be obnoxiously big, but maybe have two or three worlds full of places to explore that are packed with allies, enemies, loot, and lore. And, depending on the era, there would always be plenty of content to draw from when setting up the main campaign.

Having a Star Wars open-world game would give us an opportunity to take advantage of picking an alignment. Think of it from the Fable approach. Those classic RPGs would let us choose our morality, going with good, evil, or perhaps inhabiting a morally gray space. With a Star Wars open-world game, we could have the opportunity to perform good or evil actions, with our physical appearances, abilities, reputations and alliances shifting in response. It could be like Skyrim , where wronging someone in a Rebel Alliance base could get us effectively banned from it, hurt our chances of joining, and might make the Galactic Empire look more favorably upon us. It could also provide an opportunity to perhaps side with different factions, like Clan Fett.

This sort of approach would also help provide a greater sense of purpose in a Star Wars universe. There could be varying degrees of quests scattered throughout an open-world game inspired by the series. Some could be tied to factions, with perhaps opportunities to become a Jedi Master or Sith Lord if you continued down the “right” path. There would be opportunities to explore other groups. Maybe the Nightbrothers and Nightsisters could be a faction people could gain allegiance to. Maybe the Mandalorian Resistance could appear, depending on the time period during which this possible game could be set.

Does Star Wars Need to Go Open-World?

Most importantly, a Star Wars open-world game would give fans a chance to do exactly what they would want. When people love a series, they may wonder what they would do if they had an opportunity to live that kind of life. If a game in this genre was created, it could take cues from The Elder Scrolls, Fable and The Witcher series to allow people to have the opportunity to follow along with a major story quest, get side-tracked by side quests that would have them joining other factions, and maybe even enjoy day-to-day life like finding a home, interacting with people in towns, and enjoying life as a typical person or merchant.

Star Wars is a series rife with opportunities. With all the adventures and time periods possible, it would be easy for a company to hop in and start making a seriously impressive open-world game. It would allow a more true to life experience, one where morality and alliances could come into play. Plus, it would still allow people the freedom to occasionally pursue a more mundane life when the campaign would get to be too much.

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