2019-07-01_PC_Gamer

autosaves, which put me back at the
start of my journey to the hideout. I
don’t mind losing time from a defeat
in Outward, but losing real world
hours from getting stuck on some
world geometry was very frustrating.
Magic in Outward involves more
complexity than just keeping a mana
meter filled. The fireball spell, a
staple of fantasy games, is essentially
like throwing a lit match at someone.
It’s weak unless it’s cast while
standing in a magic circle, which is
another spell that requires physical
components that need to be collected
and sometimes even crafted. Once
the circle is cast, the fireball becomes
explosive and deadly, and the
preparation required to
unleash it at its fullest
turns it from just a
reflexive keypress into
a satisfying sequence.
Spells and skills can
also be used in
conjunction with one
another – I can cast a
Warm Boon spell that
allows me to cast a second spell
which infuses my weapon with
flames for extra damage, and then
use a Gong Strike ability to bash my
burning weapon against my metal
shield, letting loose a shockwave of
flames. Learning these skills and
combos and putting them to use
makes the magic feel almost like
science. Like something that has real
rules and procedures. Spells aren’t
all-powerful, but it still feels like
you’re doing something powerful
when you master them.
Like everything else in Outward,
magic has a cost. Gaining the ability
to cast your first wimpy fireball
requires first fighting your way to the
centre of a mountain, and then
permanently sacrificing a portion of
your physical health and stamina in

89

VERDICT

I’m readyto

makea new

characterand

play another

50 hours

THE JOYOF CAMPING

TipsforgettingsomeR&R

1

SLEEP LIKE A KING

Buy a tent so you’ll sleep like a king

even on the ground.

2

BUY WISELY

Tents provide different bonuses. Fur tents

keep you warm, mage tents boost your mana.

3

FIND A SAFE SPOT

If you pitch your tent near butterflies, it’s an

ambush-free zone.

5

TAKE TIME TO FIX YOUR GEAR

Allocate a few hours of rest for repairing

weapons and armour.

6

PLANT YOURSELF

The plant tent is a big seed that instantly

grows into a single-use tent.

7

DISASSEMBLE

Don’t forget to roll up your tent and take it

with you in the morning!

4

CHOW DOWN

Camping is a great time to cook any raw

meat or plants you’ve collected.

Outward

REVIEW

A few rough edges don’t

stop Outward from being

a gem. Its nature makes

even a tiny amount of

progress feel meaningful.

an arcane ritual. The more powerful

you want your magic to be, the

weaker you’ll be physically.

There’s not a massive open world

in Outward, but winding dungeons,

hidden caves, and the relatively slow

pace of travel across the four regions

makes it feel bigger than it is,

especially when you’re just starting

out. While cities are full of NPCs,

there are typically only a few to talk

to, pretty much just the quest-givers

and merchants.

There also aren’t a huge number

of different enemy types in the world,

and once killed they’ll remain dead

for days, so retracing your steps

across the four regions of Outward

can occasionally be

completely uneventful.

The main quest I

finished for one of the

three factions wasn’t

terribly long, though

combined with

side-quests, frequent

setbacks and my

hesitant exploration of

the world, it took me roughly 50

hours to complete.

I’m ready to make a new

character and play another 50 hours.

Unlike games such as Oblivion or

Skyrim, where a single character can

climb to the top of every guild or

completely unlock every skill tree

to become a living god, you’ll need

multiple characters in Outward to

explore every possibility available.

You’re restricted from advancing

through every skill tree (there are

eight in total, and you can unlock

the upper tiers of only three with

the same character). This is yet

another instance of your choices

being weighty ones – I spent hours

making multiple visits to several skill

trainers, hemming and hawing,

before finally deciding on which

trees to follow. It also opens the door

to future playthroughs where you’ll

experience the world in a different

way with a different set of abilities.

CO-OP TEAM UP

You don’t need to brave the harsh

world of Outward alone – co-op play

is available, either online or locally

with split-screen, and adventuring

with a friend is supremely fun (not to

mention rare for a singleplayer

fantasy RPG). There’s a big flaw in

co-op, in that only the person hosting

the game will gain quest progress,

but I still had a great time playing a

few hours in co-op as we explored,

fought, fled, divided up loot, camped

out under the stars, and occasionally

ran into our own failures.

Outward’s unusual design

provides a different experience than

I’ve found in most RPGs. It

completely breaks the common

habits of fast-travelling, gaining a

fortune in loot, becoming an

all-powerful god, and reloading saved

games when things don’t go as

planned or you make a choice you

regret. It makes minor setbacks feel

like major obstacles to overcome and

it makes small victories feel like utter

triumphs. Outward is harsh and

frustrating, but it does what so few

games do. It requires you to put

real thought into the choices you

make, and it makes those choices

feel like they really matter. Most

of all, it makes you approach each

and every encounter as if your

life depended on it – even

though you never die.