Review: The Outer Worlds

The Outer Worlds was one of the most anticipated RPGs of the past month. It’s a great achievement for a new IP but not a surprise when you know that Obsidian is behind the product. Marketed as the next big game from the makers of ‘the good Fallout games’, this one had big shoes to fill. Was it worth the hype? Time to find out!

Homo Oeconomicus

The Outer Worlds is an action-RPG set in the futuristic Halcyon-system. Where the Fallout franchise demonstrated what could go wrong for humankind in a post-apocalyptic environment, The Outer Worlds demonstrates what could go wrong for the Homo Oeconomicus, the human who is constantly trying to achieve economic greatness. Although it’s a positive concept on paper, working for a strong economy isn’t always the best idea. In The Outer Worlds, the brands took over the world. Humans aren’t chasing the economy, the economy is chasing them, placing them in certain classes, never judging them by their true potential. If you’re not working for one of the top cooperations, you’re useless. Your wealth isn’t measured in personal belongings, it’s measured by your loyalty to a certain brand. If you play your cards right, you might end up becoming one of those rich CEOs but you’ll have to sacrifice your humanity for if. The Outer World masterfully creates a dystopian world where money is everything and where there’s no room for new ideas. The market is saturated and it’s up to you to join them or start a small resistance with a small chance to survive the fight.

It’s your choice

Now, saying all cooperations are evil and all who follow them are evil is a bit bold. The Outer Worlds operates in a grey area, it’s never as simple as you would think at first sight and it’s this that makes your quest so interesting. You always have the freedom to choose your own path, actions, and rules but if you take some time to get to know the other characters, you’re in for a real treat. The strength of this game isn’t the story, it’s the people who live in it. Getting to know certain characters and their perspectives can really change the way you’re playing a mission. What seems like an easy fetch quest at first, gets a lot harder when you actually meet the people you were trying to cross. It’s an interesting mechanic and I rarely played games where this was worked out into this level of detail. At first glance, this is just Fallout in space but at second glance, you’ll learn it’s so much more than just this. Obsidian really created a world where your choices affect the lives of others, it’s up to you to decide if you can live with the consequences of your actions.

This level of freedom goes rather far too. It starts with the character customization but continues in battles, dialogues and literally every small aspect of the game. It’s something a lot of games like to brag with but in The Outer Worlds, it’s considered as something natural and it really elevates the general experience. You can lie your way to freedom or you can take down your enemies in extremely bloody ways, it’s really up to you. You’re the sculptor of your own story and therefore your own future.

A solid action-RPG

As far as the story and freedom go, The Outer Worlds really shines as bright as possible but what about the actual gameplay? Well, it’s rather deep, perhaps a bit too deep for some. Judging on the screenshots you could easily mistake this game for another first-person shooter, the reality is that it’s so much more than that. You’ll have to upgrade your characters and skills, always questioning what kind of skill matches your style most and what skill isn’t important for your character. The game really asks a lot of preparation and thinking before you can jump into the action. Also note that you’ll need the help of partners in combat so you’ll need to keep a close eye out for some helpful support too. In the beginning, it’s really a lot to take in and you’ll spend a lot of your time in menus during the first hours, but once you understand all mechanics, you’re in for an incredibly fun game.

The Outer Worlds combines fun first-person action with the depth that’s expected in RPGs. Combat is extremely satisfying and just fun but it’s thanks to the setting that it even gets better. Exploring new planets with new lifeforms and new dangers is the true beating heart of the game and this exploration really is nicely done. It’s a bit of a shame that there aren’t as many planets as hoped and some of those are rather small but then again, it’s an impressive achievement for a smaller studio. This isn’t a powerhouse like Bethesda that made this, it’s the way smaller team over at Obsidian who managed to create this marvel of a game. If you take that into consideration, it’s close to impossible they actually managed to create such a diverse and beautiful world.

Conclusion:

The Outer Worlds ended up to be so much more than Fallout in space, it’s really an entirely new game filled with intriguing narratives, fun combat, and deep RPG elements. It’s not perfect but once you immerse yourself in this dystopian world set in the stars, you’ll forgive these small frustrations in no time. It’s definitely one of the better games currently on the market and worth trying out for sure!

8.5/10

Tested on Xbox One X