"Grand Theft Star Wars" is one heck of an elevator pitch. But Star Wars Outlaws has been plagued since launch, so much that its failure is part of the reason Ubisoft needed a bailout from Tencent. Ubisoft hoped to make some of that money back with a Switch 2 version, but it sounds like that won't be happening.
Star Wars Outlaws' Switch 2 port is on the floor at PAX West. Let me correct that. According to YouTube channel GVG, it's near the floor. Outlaws is only playable behind closed doors, as apparently the frame rate dips well below 30 fps even before exploring any of the game's open world.
Ubisoft wouldn't allow the channel to share any direct capture footage, an obvious bad omen. The game didn't have much of a presence at a Nintendo Direct earlier this summer.
It looks as if Star Wars Outlaws will go down as one of the many might-have-beens in the franchise's lengthy but at times spotty gaming history. At a recent investor meeting, Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot blamed the Star Wars brand's "choppy waters" the game's underperformance. Uh-huh. That was never the real reason, and Ubisoft taking potshots at anybody else's brand right now is laughable. Hopefully, behind closed doors, they have a little more brand awareness, but I doubt it.
Insider Gaming has reported a potential sequel to Outlaws has already been scrapped after the game's lackluster sales. If anybody was hoping a resurgence on the bestselling Switch 2 would change those prospects, well, those hopes have been suddenly extinguished.