The Outer Worlds 2, from RPG makers Obsidian, will be the first first-party Xbox game to cost $80 (£70). Given that Nintendo Switch 2 games are already priced at least that high, and Sony’s own PlayStation 5 games have been pushing towards it for a while, you might not expect this development to ignite a pricing debate among gamers – but it did. The increased cost of video games is a hotly contested topic, given the unsustainably ballooning budgets that most blockbuster games are working with these days. But I can say that The Outer Worlds 2 is a much larger, more in-depth game than the 2019 comedy sci-fi original. If we’re going to talk about value, it can certainly be argued that its higher price point is justified.
I loved The Outer Worlds, which was jam-packed with the kind of wry, sardonic humour you’d expect from an Obsidian RPG (this is the studio behind Fallout: New Vegas, after all). Its super-saturated space world, populated by colourful flora, bumbling corporations and strange zealots, was a joy to live in for 20 or so hours, though its combat left much to be desired.
According to game director Brandon Adler, Obsidian knew The Outer Worlds’ gunplay needed improvement even before the game launched, and especially if they developed a sequel. “We did a full breakdown on Destiny, because we love how that felt,” he says during an interview held after an Outer Worlds 2 demo in Los Angeles. “We also talked to the Halo folks … They gave us a huge list of stuff and said, ‘You guys should target this … you should add that to your weapon configurations.’”
Obsidian’s research has paid off: not only are there more weapons to play with in The Outer Worlds 2, but they all feel good to fire, and offer a variety of combat options depending upon the encounter (and that’s if you want to fight, as a solid stealth approach will let you creep through rooms of foes without a trace). In the original game, I’d simply avoid large-scale combat, or preemptively sigh before getting into a firefight because the gunplay just wasn’t enjoyable. That has changed in the sequel – I relished each encounter, giggling manically as I hucked grenades and dropped down from above to take out a target.
“We didn’t want small changes. Every weapon feels very different; every weapon has a cool, unique purpose,” Adler says. “You can even take those weapons and add mods on to them to do all kinds of crazy things.”
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And with an updated game engine (Unreal Engine 5) and the capabilities of current-gen hardware (The Outer Worlds released on the Xbox One), expect The Outer Worlds 2 to feel bigger than before. Entering buildings no longer requires a loading screen that can take players out of the fantasy, for instance. “Little things like that give a big, immense feel,” Adler says. “Exploration is probably the thing that’s most important to me. I want the players as they’re going through this big world to feel like they should go to every nook and cranny and open every door and go behind every little thing, because it’s always gonna be a cool, fun thing for them to find.”
The Outer Worlds 2 offers a larger world, improved combat and even more customisation options that deepen its role-playing features (such as more perks and flaws for your character, which can drastically change how you play). Though Adler declines to comment on the $80 price tag, it’s clear that this sequel justifies itself.
