The Outer Worlds - Navigate a dystopian corporate hellscape.

Part RPG, part cautionary tale.

Single-player navigating a dystopian landscape

The Outer Worlds is a dystopian, single-player RPG with FPS elements. It's available for PC and console, with plans to port it to Switch.

Play as the good or evil person

Take Fallout, sprinkle in some Bioshock, and throw it into space. That's this game.

You play as the standard RPG protagonist. You have remarkable skills, style, and wits to match.

The player chooses good or evil, bring your wits too!

Outer Worlds takes place in a solar system named Halcyon. Halcyon is overrun by commercial juggernauts; brands rule whole towns. A dystopian warning to the reach of corporations.

You would assume that the goal of the game is to unite the oppressed, overcoming centuries of tyranny and restoring Haclyon into a better, brighter place. However, as the story progresses, this isn't the case.

There is no set goal for the game. Outer Worlds places the plot at your feet. Choose what you will - and see how your actions ripple out.

Great graphics, audio that pulls you into game

The graphics are excellent. The maps are atmospheric and distinct, but all joined together with similar themes.

Some of the human models enter the "uncanny valley." They look lifelike, but when they speak, only their mouths and eyelids move. Coming off as robotic and deadpan, even when it's clearly not the intention. It takes some getting used too.

The audio is good, helping to pull the player into the story with each action and interaction supplemented by environmental sounds.

The voice-acting is of high quality, and the dialogue feels natural. However, some (emphasis: some) of the NPCs come across like caricatures. After only a few turns of dialogue, you can pretty quickly tell, "yeah, this guy's evil." Or "Oh, you're the spunky sidekick-turned-hero."

Brilliant writing

The game-play is highly immersive. Everyone has a reason behind what they do, which is hinted at from the very beginning. While some mustache-twirling villains can be spotted from a mile off, not everyone is so blatant. And, even said villain thinks he's doing the right thing.

...sweeps you off our feet and into the world of Haclyon.

The actual game-play is pretty standard for an RPG. The player wanders around, speaks to NPCs, shoots enemies, and completes quests. Genre-savvy players will be able to transition easily into game-play.

Conclusion

If you enjoy a dark RPG, The Outer Worlds won't disappoint. It's a solid game with beautiful graphics, a rich story, and dynamic game-play.