When I reviewed the original The Outer Worlds, I have to admit I loved it. I loved the whole Fallout in Space vibe, as well as the way that the game didn’t take itself too seriously.
Well, as always in the world of video games, success spawns sequels, and so now the next iteration of my new favourite franchise is upon us. Going by the completely unexpected name of The Outer Worlds 2, and from Obsidian Entertainment and Xbox Game Studios, the question here is can lightning strike twice? Can the difficult second album be as good as the first?
Whatever your choice of lazy games journalistic metaphor, all I want to know is whether this new game is as much outright fun as the first game.
Story and Setting
We play as an Earth Directorate agent, tasked with discovering why rifts are appearing. These rifts threaten the entirety of humanity, so it’s not a little job! We end up in Arcadia, the home of the skip drive technology used to propel spaceships to vast distances. The future of Arcadia, and indeed the entire galaxy, rests upon our shoulders, the choices we make and the in-game factions we align with. No pressure then!
The Outer Worlds was a lovely looking thing, and here with The Outer Worlds 2 the news is equally good, if not better. With the added horsepower of the Xbox Series consoles under the bonnet, the graphics of this new colony look great: from massive open vistas as we roam around, through to claustrophobic corridors as we attempt to sneak into an enemy base. The world is a colourful place, full of interesting things to meet, only some of which don’t want to bring your mission to an early conclusion.
Companion Quirks and Graphical Glitches
The creatures we fight, from Raptidons to Crabbles are large and well designed, but it is in the human inhabitants of the world where the work has clearly gone in. Each person we can interact with is individually modelled, and while the cannon fodder enemies may have a certain “cookie cutter” appearance to them, the rest of the NPc’s are much better. Our companions, both those we start with and the ones available for recruiting are a vastly different bunch, and each NPC has their own voice acting which is done to the usual high standards we’ve come to expect from Obsidian.
The rest of the sound is also great, with the weapons and the roars of the enemies all faithfully recreated. The music in-game largely comes from radio stations, and these are endlessly amusing, depending on which radio you tune to. All in all, the presentation of The Outer Worlds 2 is pretty top notch, and while glitches creep in (seeing an inhabitant flip horizontally into the air, then walk off through a wall, still sideways, is a particular highlight) I almost feel like these are to be expected. What would we do if Obsidian made a flawless game? I’m pretty sure it is one of the signs of the End of Days!
Player Agency
It is however in the gameplay where the game comes alive. You can play The Outer Worlds 2 any way you like, building out your character to be anything you so wish. It’s here, in the creation process, where we get the opportunity to put points into certain skills, and these choices, along with our background, make up the character we are. Do you want to be a charismatic ninja, slipping through the shadows and able to talk your way out of trouble? Are you a “shoot first, ask questions never” kind of player? Well, whatever you imagine, you can be, and with a new slew of flaws to be uncovered and worked through, no two playthroughs need to be the same.
In a nice touch, this time around flaws can either be accepted or dismissed: just be careful which ones you accept is my advice. The game will warn you if a flaw is going to fundamentally alter your playthrough – I just wish I’d listened!
The Exploration and Progression Loop
The Outer Worlds 2 revolves around a series of core story related missions, but if you are anything like me, the many and varied side missions you can stumble upon will keep you super busy. It’s here where the game will open up like a flower after rain. I adore games where I have the agency to do what I want, when I want, and is the epitome of that. Want to blaze through the story? You can. Stopping to smell the flowers does make things a lot more interesting, however, and will ultimately make you stronger.
The usual kind of RPG progression is in effect, with every action you take, from using a lockpick to killing an enemy rewarding you with EXP. And as we well know, EXP makes levels, and levels bring perks. In this one, each level gained gives two skill points to invest in whichever tree we fancy, and every second level gives us a perk point to invest in a special ability. The choice of perks is governed by the skills chosen, by and large, and so specialisation can have interesting effects. That’s all I’m going to say on the matter!
A Near-Perfect, Fun-Filled RPG Sequel
In conclusion then, The Outer Worlds 2 is as good as the original game, and dare I say even a little bit better. The sheer amount of things to do, the story that drags us through proceedings and the attention to detail, are all top notch. Managing team mates becomes a full time job as we recruit more and more people, and keeping them from each other’s throats is an entertaining balancing act. Add to this the massive amount of missions to find and complete, and even taking into account the trademark graphical glitches (flourishes?), and The Outer Worlds 2 gets pretty near perfect.
The bottom line? Play The Outer Worlds 2.
Important Links
Ready for a New Frontier? The Outer Worlds 2 is a New, Massive RPG, OUT NOW! – https://www.thexboxhub.com/ready-for-a-new-frontier-the-outer-worlds-2-is-a-new-massive-rpg-out-now/
Download The Outer Worlds 2 (via Game Pass if you wish) – https://www.xbox.com/en-GB/games/store/the-outer-worlds-2/9P8RMKXRML7D/0010
Enjoy a Premium Edition – https://www.xbox.com/en-GB/games/store/the-outer-worlds-2-premium-edition/9PJK9C50MB67/0010
Haha Paul with his now famous 4.5/5 🤣
I’ve not completed it yet. I picked it up in early access and easily put in 35hrs so far, but as with all open world games I like to look in every nook and crany. its easily my GOTY.