Star Wars Outlaws release date: Early Access, launch times, countdown, and when it's coming out

One of the most highly anticipated game releases of 2024 is Star Wars Outlaws, a huge new single player experience set in the galaxy far, far away. Ever since it was fully revealed in 2023, Star Wars fans have been looking forward to the project, as it promises to thoroughly explore the shady criminal underworld that's often overshadowed by the franchise's larger factions and conflicts. Along with Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order and Star Wars Jedi: Survivor, it will also stand out as one of the only modern story-driven Star Wars games when it launches.

The game's scheduled release is fast approaching, and as a result, many are wondering when they'll be able to get their hands on it and dive in. To help you figure that out, I've put together an extensive guide below that goes over Star Wars Outlaws' release date, launch times, when its Early Access period starts (and how to get in on it), when you can preload it, and more.

What is Star Wars Outlaws?

Star Wars Outlaws: Official Launch Trailer - YouTube

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Our Star Wars Outlaws FAQ goes into everything you need to know about the game in great detail, but I'll give a quick-and-dirty rundown here. Published by Ubisoft and created by its development studio Massive Entertainment, it's an open world action/adventure title that blends free roam exploration, intense ground combat, stealth gameplay, questing, and spaceship dogfighting into one experience. First announced in 2021, its name and concept wasn't revealed to fans until 2023 at Microsoft's Xbox Games Showcase.

Set between the events of The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi, Star Wars Outlaws puts you in the shoes of scoundrel Kay Vess as she navigates the galaxy's criminal underworld during the height of the Empire's reign of tyranny. Though her adventure with her animal companion Nix begins in the city of Canto Bight on the planet Cantonica (you may recognize this location from The Last Jedi film), it quickly takes you all over the galaxy as Kay sets out to conduct a daring heist in the hope of securing herself a better future. Throughout the game, you'll meet and coordinate with a wide variety of characters, all while exploring several different worlds, making use of Kay and Nix's numerous skills, and doing everything you can to keep the Empire off your back.

Reviews for Star Wars Outlaws are live, with the game getting a "Generally Favorable" average score of 77/100 on the review aggregate site Metacritic. One such review is the one written for Windows Central by my colleague Rebecca Spear, who scored the game 4/5 stars and said that "it's not perfect, but overall, I've enjoyed my time with Kay, Nix, and ND-5. I'd even go so far as to say that this open-world adventure scratches an itch that the Star Wars Jedi games didn't satisfy. Massive Entertainment managed to beautifully recreate familiar locations while providing engaging activities to keep players entertained. From playing simple arcade games to breaking into mansions and racing around on a speeder bike, Outlaws delivers exciting action."

Star Wars Outlaws is coming to Xbox Series X|S, Windows PC, and PlayStation 5, with the Standard Edition of the game costing $69.99. Other editions are more expensive, but also include some desirable benefits like access to cosmetic extras and a season pass that will unlock new DLC expansions for you when they're released.

Star Wars Outlaws - Standard Edition ($69.99 MSRP)

After a job goes wrong, scoundrel Kay Vess finds herself fleeing from one of the most powerful men in the galaxy. Taking part in a heist will give her the credits she needs to start a new life and leave her pursuers behind. But to do that, she'll first need to take on odd jobs with various criminal syndicates.

Buy for Xbox at: Walmart | Amazon | Best Buy | CDKeys
Buy for PC at: Ubisoft store | CDKeys

Star Wars Outlaws: Release date and launch times

Those looking forward to playing the game won't have to wait long now, as Massive Entertainment's open world project is now just a few days away from its global launch. Star Wars Outlaws has a scheduled release date of August 30, 2024, at which point you'll finally be able to begin Kay Vess' adventure in the galaxy far, far away.

Something important to note, though, is that if you're a PC player, you may be able to jump into Star Wars Outlaws late on the evening of August 29. This is because in some regions around the world, the game is releasing on PC late that night instead of very early in the morning on August 30. Console players will have to wait until midnight in their local time zone on August 30 to play, as this is when Xbox and PlayStation users will get access.

Ahead of Star Wars Outlaws' arrival, Ubisoft has revealed when specifically the title will unlock on each platform in each time zone. These launch times have been detailed in the table below.

Star Wars Outlaws Early Access start time

If you buy a Star Wars Outlaws preorder and get the Gold or Ultimate Edition, you'll get Early Access to the game exactly three days before it's scheduled to become available in your region on August 29 or 30. Alternatively, you can also choose to subscribe to Ubisoft+ Premium if you're a PC player, as this gives you ownership of the Ultimate Edition as long as you remain a Premium member. For the unaware, Ubisoft+ is an Xbox Game Pass-style service that provides subscribers with access to nearly all of the publisher's various games.

• Star Wars Outlaws Standard Edition (Xbox): $69.99 at CDKeys
• Star Wars Outlaws Gold Edition (Xbox) was $109.99 now $105.59 at CDKeys
• Star Wars Outlaws Ultimate Edition (Xbox) $129.99 at Xbox Star Wars Outlaws Standard Edition (PC) $69.99 at Ubisoft
• Star Wars Outlaws Gold Edition (PC) was $109.99 now $54.09 at CDKeys
• Star Wars Outlaws Ultimate Edition (PC) $129.99 at Ubisoft

This means you could start playing Star Wars Outlaws as early as late on August 26 or early on August 27. Therefore, if Early Access is something you want, you should preorder one of the editions listed above or sign up for Ubisoft+ Premium as soon as possible. The start dates and times for Early Access have been listed in the table below.

Star Wars Outlaws - Gold Edition ($109.99 MSRP)

Getting the Gold Edition of Star Wars Outlaws gives you three days early access to the base game and the Season Pass, allowing you to play extra DLC narrative expansions. 

Buy for Xbox at: Walmart | Amazon | Best Buy | CDKeys
Buy for PC at: CDKeys | Ubisoft store

Star Wars Outlaws - Ultimate Edition ($129.99 MSRP)

This edition gives you three-day early access to the base game, DLC found in the Season Pass, a cosmetic pack, an exclusive launch mission involving Jabba the Hutt, and a digital art book. 

Buy for Xbox at: CDKeys | Xbox
Buy for PC at: Ubisoft store | CDKeys

Star Wars Outlaws: Launch countdown

The below countdown clocks display the remaining times before Star Wars Outlaws' full release and its Early Access launch on consoles in Pacific Daylight Time (PDT). Note that these are not global release timings, or start times for PC players; refer to the above section for those details.

Star Wars Outlaws: Preload date and time

As games have gotten bigger and bigger over the years, a nifty feature that many developers and publishers have made available is preloading. With preloading, players can download and install games several days ahead of their release, allowing them to start playing as soon as they unlock. It's useful for everyone, but it's especially valuable for anyone who happens to have a lackluster internet connection.

Preloading Star Wars Outlaws on Xbox Series X|S, Windows PC, or PS5 is possible now if you have Early Access, but preloads aren't yet available for everyone else. However, we do know when they will be. You'll find those details in the following bullet points.

• Xbox Series X|S: August 19, 2:00 p.m. UTC
• Windows PC: August 26, 10:00 a.m. UTC
• PlayStation 5: August 28, 12:00 a.m. local time

Star Wars Outlaws: Storage requirements

Massive AAA open world games like Star Wars Outlaws tend to be quite large these days, and it's not uncommon to see these titles get close to or even above the 100GB mark. Outlaws, though, has a surprisingly tame file size of just 50-65GB depending on which platform you're playing on. That should make it a relatively easy game to squeeze onto your hard drive, though you may still need to free up some space for it if you don't have much storage available.

If you are in need of some extra headroom, you can always uninstall games you're not currently playing. Alternatively, you can also upgrade your PC or console with one of the best SSDs on the market.

Star Wars Outlaws is headed to Xbox Series X|S, Windows PC, and PS5 later this week on August 30, and will surely be one of the best Xbox games and best PC games you can play in 2024 if you're a huge Star Wars fan. Prices for editions of the game start at $69.99, though you also have the option of checking it out through Ubisoft+ Premium if you're a PC player.