Star Wars: Tales from the Galaxy’s Edge is a tiny game that feels huge

I’ve avoided many of 2020’s big games because they’re simply too big. Titles like Watch Dogs: Legion and Ghost of Tsushima, with their huge maps and endless quest lists, feel like part-time jobs. But while I appreciate my freed-up nights and weekends, I miss the specific cadence of open-world action games: that distinctive combination of pitched fights and methodical, low-stakes scavenging. And the new virtual reality game Star Wars: Tales from the Galaxy’s Edge comes surprisingly close to offering a compromise — or it would, if there were more of it.

Galaxy’s Edge was developed by Lucasfilm effects studio ILMxLAB, creator of the Oculus Quest launch title Vader Immortal. Where Vader Immortal was an interactive cinematic roller coaster...