3 Star Wars mini-game spinoffs I want to see made today

The many characters within the Star Wars galaxy often find themselves on crazy adventures that take them to different planets. But in the middle of those crazy times, you might find them taking a break to engage with some of the local entertainment, which might involve some form of game and hard-earned credits on the line. These kinds of things are often included in different Star Wars games as mini-games for players to check out and enjoy, even though they're not as important as the main story or quest line. In the movies and other media outside of games, there are even more side games that characters will reference or engage with that draw out our curiosity about them.

Wouldn't it be fun if those same games that we see our favorite characters playing were something that we could actually play ourselves? Some of the mini-games in the Star Wars galaxy would make for great releases as their own games. I might not be a smuggler or one of the galaxy's toughest bounty hunters, but I can definitely feel like one playing some of the games those characters play in a galaxy far, far away. Here are three Star Wars mini-games that I want to see turned into full game releases for us to play.

3 Dejarik

A type of holochess

Chess is a complex and layered game that most people will know of, even if they don't know how to play it. Luckily, something similar resides in a galaxy far, far away that has even the hardest bounty hunters practicing. Dejarik is a type of holographic chess, or holochess for short, that has players controlling multiple creatures on a board. In the Star Wars universe, the game is played by all sorts of people across the galaxy. It was a part of daily life in most systems long before the rise of the Empire, or the beginning of the Clone Wars. It may even have some origins in the Old Republic.

While Dejarik has been a major part of the Star Wars franchise since the beginning, there has not been an official video game released to play it. Other Star Wars virtual reality projects, like Star Wars: Jedi Challenges on iOS from 2017, include a section where you can interact with an abridged version of Dejarik. But to date, the game has never been successfully adapted into any official project released by Lucasfilm, and very few official Star Wars games have included it as a mini-game. A similar holo game was included within Star Wars Jedi: Survivor, but it doesn't have the same rules, layout, or pieces that Dejarik uses.

Various fan-made projects have attempted to create a version of Dejarik that matches up with what is in the official Star Wars canon, with varying degrees of success, which are still unofficial. Having a full game that allows us to play Dejarik, with an official rule set and strategies, could be something very interesting, which has the potential to be a sci-fi version of online multiplayer chess. Just remember to always let the wookie win, otherwise you might have a bad time.

2 Sabacc

Bring all your credits you have

Like most western stories, there's always a form of gambling that involves cards, even in a sci-fi setting like Star Wars. Sabacc is the equivalent of what a game of poker would be for a western saloon. While the rules and the cards used to play are different, it has the same level of tension that comes with laying down a ton of credits. In the Star Wars canon, Han Solo was able to win his ship, the Millennium Falcon, from Lando Calrissian through a high-stakes game of Sabacc. Within the universe, you don't go into a game of Sabacc without having a few tricks up your sleeve, or knowing that the others playing with you don't already have one themselves.

Sabacc has been part of Star Wars games before, including most recently with Star Wars Outlaws. In the game, Kay Vess can travel to different locations and participate in Sabacc games, where she can bet credits and win big. Part of the progression of Kay Vess' abilities even involves encountering Lando Calrissian while playing Sabacc, which ties into the game's theme of getting deeper into the underworld. There are even house rules for the games you play while traveling to different locations where Sabacc players lurk around. Depending on how well you do, and how well you can take advantage of opportunities, one can earn a lot of credits through playing Sabacc.

Instead of having just side quests with Sabacc as a mini-game, it would be far more interesting to have a full game that lets you play it in different ways. Much like how Star Wars Outlaws includes house rules for the mini-game, a game focused completely on Sabacc could do something similar. A prime example of this would be the deck sets and options found in something like Balatro, an indie card game that puts a fun twist on card games like poker. For a while, Star Wars fans have been able to play different versions of Sabacc using real cards and dice, which could be inspiration for a digital version of the game.

1 Swoop Racing

A need for galactic speed

Racing is something that could get even the most far-away galactic residents together for a good time. The most familiar form of racing in the Star Wars franchise is pod racing, which was first introduced in Star Wars Episode 1: The Phantom Menace. But there have been other variations on racing included in other parts of the Star Wars franchise, one of which comes from Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic. But unlike what is seen in the prequel film, this kind of racing has a very different approach.

The first time players encounter this comes from a visit to the planet Taris, which is tied to the search for Bastila Shan at the beginning of the game. Unlike pod racing, swoop racing doesn't involve having multiple racers on a track at the same time when competing. Instead, each racer does a run on a track and aims to complete it with the fastest time. Tracks are filled with hazards and obstacles meant to slow a competitor down and impact their time. However, the swoops themselves are equipped with a deflector system to prevent the rider from crashing, so it's deemed to be a lot safer than pod racing. But it's no less a way to satisfy anyone's need for speed in a galactic setting.

Swoop Racing has only ever appeared in the Knights of the Old Republic series, in both the first game and its sequel. Since then, no other Star Wars video games have ever adapted this form of racing. Other pieces of Star Wars media have referenced it at times, but opt to show pod racing more often instead. But that doesn't mean pod racing is automatically better than swoop racing, as the two are closely related. What could be very interesting is if a Star Wars racing game was developed that featured both, much in the same way as the Gran Turismo or Formula 1 racing franchises give players options to partake in different kinds of races. A full-on racing experience that lets players put together a pod racer and swoop racer and travel to different planets as part of a Grand Prix or Swoop Circuit.

One end of the galaxy to the other

There is a lot of potential for new games to be inspired by the games from within the Star Wars universe. Fans love exploring different aspects of a galaxy far, far away that offer more ways to become immersed within it. As much as we love fighting the dark side and making the jump to light speed across systems, sometimes we just want to have a different kind of Star Wars experience instead. And what better way than to have games that offer that by taking some of the mini-games that characters play in the universe and giving fans the chance to play? Just remember, once again, don't forget to let the wookie win.