When does Star Wars Outlaws take place?

When do the events of the upcoming Star Wars Outlaws and Kay Vess' story take place in the lengthy and complex timeline of the Star Wars franchise?

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By Mokshit Batra
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Star Wars Outlaws story

Star Wars Outlaws (Image via Ubisoft)

Ubisoft's newest project, Star Wars Outlaws, has a lot of conversation surrounding it in the gaming space. Star Wars Outlaws is set to be the first open-world Star Wars video game, coming out on August 30th, 2024. Ubisoft recently released the official story trailer for Star Wars Outlaws. The developers have clearly put a lot of effort into the game's story aspect, with Kay Vess, the game's protagonist, at the helm. 

The trailer has sparked a lot of questions about the game's narrative, especially about the timeline of the events taking place during the game. The Star Wars timeline is quite complex and lengthy. The Skywalker Saga takes place over 67 years, with Lucasfilm wanting to further extend this timeline in the future. Thus, it is important to locate the time frame of the events taking place in Star Wars Outlaws to get an overarching idea of the game's environment. 

Star Wars Outlaws Timeline confirmed

Ubisoft has confirmed that Star Wars Outlaws takes place between the events of The Empire Strikes Back and the Return of the Jedi, set in the original trilogy of Star Wars. Many subtle hints in the story confirm this. After the events of Empire Strikes Back, the law and government were severely affected. 

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Star Wars Outlaws Kay Vess (Image via Ubisoft)

During this time, "the underworld" was thriving, which can clearly be seen by the high magnitude of bounty hunters. Additionally, the Empire is in control, and the Rebellion seems to be on the verge of retaliating. There is even a shot of Han Solo frozen in carbonite. As the beloved character does not return from this metal shell until Return of the Jedi, the story definitely takes place before that movie's events. 

Most characters featured in the game will be ones who are not previously seen in movies, previous video games or other Star Wars media. Kay's story takes place in a world full of bounty hunters. The thief's actions seem to have attracted the Empire's attention, making her a target. 

The game will also tell the story of normal people in the Star Wars franchise and how their lives are affected by this intergalactic conflict rather than focusing on the overarching threat taking place. The developers have also mentioned that Kay Vess will allow players to experience the Star Wars franchise from the eyes of someone unassociated with the Rebellion, the Empire, Jedi or the Sith. 

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