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Outriders (PS5) Review
Developer: People Can Fly
Publisher: Square Enix
Genre: Third-Person Shooter / Action RPG / Looter Shooter
Release: 2021
Outriders combines fast-paced third-person shooting with RPG progression, supernatural abilities and loot-driven character development. Set on the hostile planet of Enoch, the game puts players in control of an Altered soldier who gains extraordinary powers after being exposed to a mysterious energy storm.
The result is an aggressive and satisfying shooter that encourages players to constantly push forward rather than hide behind cover. Its excellent class abilities and entertaining combat are its biggest strengths, although repetitive missions, inconsistent storytelling and some technical issues prevent it from reaching its full potential.
Gameplay & Mechanics
The biggest strength of Outriders is its combat.
Rather than relying entirely on traditional cover-based shooting, the game encourages aggressive play. Each of the four classes has abilities designed around killing enemies and recovering health, meaning that staying in the fight is often safer than remaining behind cover.
The four classes are:
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Devastator a heavily armoured close-range class focused on earth-based powers.
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Pyromancer controls fire and can ignite enemies from medium range.
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Technomancer specialises in long-range attacks, gadgets and freezing enemies.
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Trickster focuses on close-range combat, teleportation and manipulating time.
Each class feels sufficiently different to encourage multiple playthroughs.
The ability system is particularly enjoyable. Players can equip three powers at once and combine them with weapons, armour and mods to create specialised builds. Combining abilities with weapon effects can produce some spectacular results.
Gunplay is solid as well. Assault rifles, shotguns, sniper rifles, SMGs and other weapons provide plenty of options, while enemy armour and resistances encourage players to experiment with their equipment.
Strengths:
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Fast and aggressive combat
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Four distinctive classes
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Excellent supernatural abilities
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Weapon and armour mods provide build variety
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Satisfying loot system
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Great combination of shooting and RPG mechanics
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Enemies encourage movement and experimentation
Weaknesses:
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Shooting can occasionally feel less polished than dedicated shooters
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Enemy AI can be predictable
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Some encounters rely heavily on enemy numbers
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Build experimentation can become overwhelming
Exploration & World Design
Enoch provides a visually varied science-fiction setting.
The game moves through deserts, forests, industrial facilities, settlements, ruins and alien environments. The world successfully communicates the idea of a planet that was supposed to be humanity's new home but has instead become extremely dangerous.
However, Outriders isn't a traditional open-world game.
Its areas are relatively linear, with optional paths containing chests, resources and side objectives. There is some freedom to explore, but the world is primarily structured around combat encounters and mission progression.
The environments are attractive, but many areas can feel like carefully constructed arenas rather than living locations. Exploration is therefore functional rather than particularly immersive.
Story & Themes
The story begins with humanity abandoning a dying Earth and travelling to Enoch in search of a new home.
The expedition quickly goes wrong when the settlers encounter the Anomaly, a mysterious energy storm that transforms the planet and grants some survivors extraordinary powers.
The player becomes an Altered and eventually becomes involved in the conflict between different human factions attempting to survive on Enoch.
The premise is interesting and provides plenty of opportunities for science-fiction storytelling. The game also explores themes involving humanity's destructive tendencies, colonialism, survival and the consequences of exploiting an unfamiliar world.
The problem is that the writing can be inconsistent. Some characters are memorable and there are genuinely interesting moments, but the dialogue occasionally becomes overly dramatic or predictable.
The story also moves between serious science fiction and a much more irreverent tone, which doesn't always work smoothly.
Mission Design & Progression
The main campaign provides a substantial amount of content, with numerous story missions and side quests.
Side missions are particularly useful because they often provide additional equipment, resources and character interactions. Some of them also contain surprisingly memorable stories.
Unfortunately, the fundamental mission structure becomes repetitive.
Many objectives eventually boil down to:
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Travel to an area.
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Fight several waves of enemies.
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Defeat an elite enemy.
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Continue forward.
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Fight another group.
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Collect the objective.
The excellent combat makes these encounters enjoyable for quite some time, but repetition becomes noticeable during longer sessions.
Final Verdict
Outriders is an enjoyable action RPG that succeeds primarily because its combat is fast, aggressive and highly customisable. Unlike many cover-based shooters, it actively encourages players to use their abilities and move into danger. Each of the four classes provides a genuinely different way to approach combat, while the combination of weapons, armour and mods creates plenty of opportunities for experimentation.
The game's biggest problems are repetition and inconsistency. The mission structure relies heavily on repeated combat arenas, while the story alternates between genuinely interesting science-fiction concepts and weaker character writing. Exploration also feels more functional than adventurous.
Nevertheless, Outriders works particularly well as a cooperative experience. Combining different classes with friends and experimenting with increasingly powerful builds can be extremely satisfying.
For players looking for a single-player or co-op shooter with substantial RPG mechanics, Outriders offers a lot of entertainment. It doesn't completely redefine the looter-shooter genre, but its aggressive combat and class system give it a personality of its own.
Score: 8/10
