Star Wars

Star Wars Outlaws’ Kay Vess gets caught in Horizon's 'ugly' drama

The same toxic conversations that gripped the Horizon games are now overclouding Star Wars Outlaws, as the usual critics complain Kay Vess is too 'ugly' to lead the game.

Tom Chapman

Tom Chapman

11th Apr 2024 15:44

Images via Lucasfilm | Massive Entertainment

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"These are not the gamers you're looking for." Just when we think we've turned a corner in terms of combatting toxic communities, we go and combine two of the most toxic there are. If there are two groups that know exactly what they want, it's gamers and Star Wars fans.

Massive Entertainment is releasing Star Wars Outlaws on August 30, and while we've seen Respawn's Jedi games earn critical and commercial success, Outlaws is in danger of being held back by a pretty ludicrous complaint. Yes, some are turning away from the sci-fi stealth game because the protagonist is too 'ugly.'

Star Wars Outlaws critics slam 'ugly' Kay Vess

Back when Outlaws was first revealed at 2023's Xbox Games Showcase, there were some uncomfortable rumbles in the Force. Despite having Cal Kestis, Starkiller, and Kyle Katarn leading Star Wars games for decades, it suddenly became too much that a woman was taking the reins.

We don't remember this kind of backlash when Iden Versio was the lead of Battlefront II, but in a post-Horizon era, it seems gamers have more issues than ever with female protagonists. Following the reveal of the Star Wars Outlaws story trailer, things have gotten even dicier for Kay Vess.

As the complaints that Vess doesn't fit your stereotypical views on attractiveness (what even is that these days?), accounts have started sharing their support for the character. This even caught the attention of voice actor Humberly González, who is playing Kay in Outlaws.

Still, it's hard to avoid the barrage of insults that Outlaws is currently facing. One account grumbled, "She's been made ugly on purpose," and when asked why, they added, "Because attractive women aren't politically correct anymore."

All the usual accounts have started making videos on 'woke' Disney and 'woke' Ubisoft ruining Star Wars. The worst have been sharing pictures of González and objectifying her while complaining that Vess doesn't look like her. Sigh, just another day in gaming. 

Aloy, Fable, Lara Croft

Supporters have compared her to the no-nonsense Ellen Ripley from the Alien movies, suggesting that Kay Vess has been based on Sigourney Weaver. Someone cheered, "Kay Vess unironically looks like an 80s/90s era action movie star. She looks great. Anyone who says she's ugly is a moron."

Sadly, we're seeing these kinds of debates too often. While there have always been issues like this, they really came to the forefront with allegations that Horizon's Aloy is 'ugly' and has a hairy face. It's since rumbled over into complaining that the protagonist of the new Fable trailer was ugly, or that Lara Croft is now too manly. 

No matter what you think of Star Wars Outlaws, we'd be more worried about being overcharged by 'ugly' Ubisoft pre-orders than the physical appearance of a fictional character that probably wouldn't look at most of these critics twice. Nice try bros, but most of us aren't obsessed with the way a woman looks. 

Tom Chapman

About The Author

Tom Chapman

Tom is Trending News Editor at GGRecon, with an NCTJ qualification in Broadcast Journalism and over seven years of experience writing about film, gaming, and television. With bylines at IGN, Digital Spy, Den of Geek, and more, Tom’s love of horror means he's well-versed in all things Resident Evil, with aspirations to be the next Chris Redfield.

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