Star Wars Outlaws is not out for a few more months, but as the release date slowly approaches, the game's ESRB rating summary revealed that a popular and nearly-forgotten card game is set to return as a playable mini-game.
Spotted by GamesRadar, the ESRB summary description for Star Wars Outlaws reveals that "players can wager in-game currency on Sabacc, a blackjack-like card game with detailed rules." The card game, which first debuted in the L. Neil Smith novel Lando Calrissian and the Mindharp of Sharu, has rules and concepts similar to those of blackjack and poker.
The rules of Sabacc were first published in 1989 with the release of the Crisis on Cloud City supplement for the Star Wars: The Roleplaying Game, which Games International described in an issue published in 1990 as "a sort of Blackjack variant."
Despite its known existence over the last several decades, its appearance in Star Wars media has been slim. Sabacc is never directly shown but rather mentioned in Star Wars media, such as in the Star Wars: Squadrons short story, The Light You Bring, or when it appeared in a scene in Solo: A Star Wars Story. And Disney began selling an official Sabacc deck at its Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge attraction in 2019. Yet, no Star Wars game has ever made Sabacc playable in any capacity, thus making its inclusion in Star Wars Outlaws all the more noteworthy.
This news is positive for Ubisoft's upcoming open-world game, as the publisher is under scrutiny for locking a mission behind the Star Wars Outlaws season pass. While Ubisoft clarified that the mission is "optional," the publisher has yet to elaborate on its scope, leaving players confused about whether or not purchasing the season pass to access it is worth it.
Star Wars Outlaws is out on August 27 for PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S. Pre-orders are now available at the starting price of $69.99 for the Standard Edition, while the Gold and Ultimate Edition costs $109.99 and $129.99, respectively. The latter two not only include the controversial season pass, but players will also get access to the base game three days early.
Taylor is a Reporter at IGN. You can follow her on Twitter @TayNixster.
