Ever since its reveal at E3 2019, Outriders has struggled to leave a mark, but more recent gameplay videos have at least shown promise. As such, the announcement of a playable demo had us excited to finally go hands-on with this new looter shooter, to see whether it could offer something a bit different. But as it happens, our hope for Outriders is now at an all-time low. Going by what we've played on PlayStation 5, the game's in for a rough launch.
Now, before we get stuck in, we need to make it clear that these impressions are based on the demo alone. We'd love to see Outriders release in a much better state come April, but we're not about to get our hopes up. Playable alpha and beta tests are one thing, but demos released just over a month from launch are usually a clear indicator of what to expect from the finished product.
Simply put, Outriders is really rough around the edges. The visuals, the animation, the technical performance — it all leaves a lot to be desired. Following on from some basic character creation, you're thrust onto the surface of an alien world as you and other survivors from a now doomed Earth take the first steps towards colonising a new home. The story moves quickly and does a surprisingly good job of subverting initial expectations, but it's undone by some extremely cliche character dialogue and shocking directorial decisions.
Indeed, the shaky cutscene camera in Outriders is horrific. The very first scene to feature two characters standing around talking to one another is shot like it's a gritty TV drama on speed. It's immediately jarring, and to make matters worse, cutscenes are capped at 30 frames-per-second on PS5, whereas general gameplay hits 60. This was honestly enough to give us noticeable, headache-inducing eye strain by the time we had finished with the demo.
So the storytelling is a mess, but the actual gameplay should be where Outriders shines — and it does... Kind of. There's definitely potential in how combat is handled. There's a cover system, but you're pretty much forced to be aggressive at all times. The twist here is that, depending on your class, dealing damage or killing enemies is how you regenerate lost health. Your foes are relentless — they'll hammer your position with bullets and grenades should you sit in cover for more than a couple of seconds — and so taking the fight to them is key.
There's an emphasis on using skills and abilities, much like you would in a full-on action RPG like Diablo. The Pyromancer class sets opponents ablaze with long-range powers, while the Devastator crushes enemies up close with earthen might. Destroying your foes is good fun, and together with some solid shooting, Outriders has a moment-to moment gameplay loop that's relatively unique and quite refreshing. We can see combat getting better over the course of the game, too, thanks to reasonably sized skill trees that are mostly left unused in the demo.
But even Outriders' promising combat finds itself hamstrung by the poor design that surrounds it. For an experience that emphasises action, the encounters that are found in the demo are over far too quickly. Environments are small and linear — and they're separated by baffling cutscenes. These things border on parody, as the screen fades to black, only to then show a three-second cinematic where your character jumps over a small gap, or opens a door. Particularly during the demo's side quests — where you're backtracking from one area to the next — these scenes are a disaster. What should be a quick excursion from quest-giver to objective and back again devolves into a near comedic parade of black screens. It's like something out of an early PS3 game.
There's a chance that beyond the opening chapter that's showcased by the demo, Outriders blossoms into a much better game — but we won't be convinced until we've actually played it. The looter shooter genre is already littered with titles that squandered early opportunities to impress and never recovered (ANTHEM immediately springs to mind), and Outriders has to try and avoid that same fate. The demo, however, does not inspire confidence.
Comments (91)
Outriders is a steam top seller based on pre-orders
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Different strokes, for different folks
Played the demo and agree there are issues with cut-scenes, dialogue missing and poor lip synch. The game aethtically looks like The Division but worse.
But the combat has lots of promise, enough promise to not make a judgement on it yet or let the roughness of the issues mentioned to influence my judgement.
I would gladly put up with non game affecting problems, or a stupid premise if the gameplay and combat is fun and engaging. Playing this on my own was pleasant enough, playing it with others really made it sing. The Mass Effect style synergy with your powers when other are present were interesting. And the promise of interesting builds in the skill trees gave me reason to hope.
I think what I really, really liked about it is that its not a GaaS but more like Borderlands so its already ahead in my book. People have to be careful not to compare it to games like that.
I'm amazed you've already come to the conclusion that the demo has killed your hopes for the game. It is rough, the hub space was dull because you expect to see other players milling around like in Destiny/The Division, the story is nonsense, but the gameplay was good enough to wait and see how the full release is received.
When you read about people who have had extra access to the game ita clear from their experience that the loot system is nothing like Anthem. It appears to be very well thought out and actually useful. Some of the armour sets look the part but more importantly have interesting status effects that add to the game. As do weapons. Its really more like Borderlands than anything else.
I enjoyed the demo, but it seems to have the same issue as Anthem where the combat is really fun but that's all it has going for it.
Technical issues aside, I'd even say Anthem showed a lot more promise.
This feels like one of those games that will be on sale for 50% off just a couple months after release.
I played the demo and I think it's okay but definitely has it's issues. I'll be waiting until it's on sale before I buy it.
The dialogue is beyond horrible, it sounds like it was written by a group of teenagers trying to be edgy.
Graphics are subpar, gameplay similar to Gears of War and the cover shooters of yore.
I was surprised at how bad this game is. I honestly think that even a game like Anthem is vastly superior to this one.
The combat was decent, but I couldn't take more than a few seconds of each cut scene, which the demo is BURSTING with, and kept skipping them. That caused my interest to drop pretty quickly.
Played this with a friend and we had a blast. I don't typically like looter shooters because it always feels like, to me, the entire genre is constantly tossing and ignoring common and uncommon weapons until something good comes along, and even then, it's not really worth crying home until you get to the top tier weapons later in the game. But the weapons in this game actually feels like something because of the perks.
Had a blast using the powers and can't wait to see more of the skills... But yeeeeah, the technical issues are pretty bad and the cutscenes are obnoxious. If I get it, I'm probably just going to plow through the story just to do the shooty/blasty bits.
I love the setting and story. The lore is great (intelligent and interesting). I read the journal entries like I'd read an awesome SF novel from Heinlein or idk.
Dialogue is on point. Yes it is. Hard disagree with people saying its bad. Perspective keeps changing in engaging cinematic way contrary to some rpg dialogue where the characters are just standing there with unrealistic voices.
Gameplay is fun but is not what hooks me. Single player story is very promising.
Edit
Yes there are technical issues but its only a demo. I don't think its as bad as CP77. .
Definitely to address but saying poor optimisation equal a poor story telling is just silly.
I tried to try out the demo but I was bored out of my mind by the intro, it felt like a PS3 title but oh well let's get to the real meat. The demo crashed, my progress wasn't saved. Sorry game, I'm not doing that again.
Yup. WAS looking forward to it. Hopefully Gotham Knights and Back4Blood deliver the coop experience we need.
demo was super generic i played maybe 15 mins and knew the game was not for me. story and cutscenes were laughable and everything else was bland as can be
I think the game will do well after its updates and full release and i agree to an extent with some of you as far as dialogues but remember its a DEMO..and this game is meant to be gritty and action packed with a little bit of GEARS and a little bit of DESTINY.... BUT 1 thing for sure i bet it'll be better than Anthem and CyberPunk2077 😏...Believe That..I'm rooting for you Outriders..PROVE THEM WROOOOOOOONG LOL
This game demo began to shine more once you leveled up and got to more skills. A quick run is just a basic cover shooter. It’s way more engaging when you begin to skill up and try out the skill tree. I am hopefully optimistic
Gave this a try, but it was pretty disappointing. Cutscenes and dialog are too cliche, level design is basically a straight invisible wall narrow tunel (which does seem like a PS3 thing as everybody is saying), graphics and performance definitely not what I would expect from PS5.
It's gonna be rough being part of this dev team come April..
Played the demo and i like it.word up son
Was not impressed by this one. Felt like a combination of Destiny and Division, and I would prefer to play either of those games instead.
The problem with these looter-shooters is that they hide the fun behind lots of redundant, grindy systems.
felt like a cross between anthem and the division to me, with all the issues described in the article and a shedload more.. it plays like a cover shooter but taking cover is pointless, as is moving if you play solo, as there literally a constant stream of bullets hitting you from all angles.. plus the loot looks like generic stat based guff lacking identity - the same problem as anthem and the division. based on the demo, it's one to skip for me..
Agreed with all this. No way, no way, devs get this fixed before release.
I enjoyed it. I played as a Devastator and had lots of fun getting up close and personal just to get health and survive. Cover is not meant to be a strong point of the game, I was struck by the poor cut-scene graphics but forgot about that when the game took off.
Combat is over quick once you get the hang of it and killing the boss second time round happened so fast it took me by surprise. I'm still on the fence about it and will wait to see what reviews of the full game are like.
I like it overall. I liked the character I created and his voice actor along with side characters. I liked the combat as well but I’ll only buy it after its proven to be is a stable/solid state overall. Right now it’s janky.
-Loaded game on PS4
-Created SE account
-Created character
-Watched approximately 5 opening cutscenes
-Gained control of character
-Booted to credits
-Uninstalled game
The looter ______ genre sucks. Even Destiny, the so-called pinnacle is just okay and couldn't keep me engaged past 10 hours.
I guess releasing bad demos is square enix's thing now!
I dont know, I kind of enjoyed the demo. Sure the maps are a bit small, and the fade between cut scene and gameplay seem a bit antiquated (not the first game to do that recently). But I have to say the gameplay was quite fun, and the story was entertaining in a pulpy camp sort of way. I could see myself buying this on a slight sale.
loved the demo here... this is outside my wheelhouse of games, but I've already pre-ordered this and yes at a discount
can't wait to dive into this further ... and no you don't need a PS plus account. this can be played solo.
the skill trees, weapons, spells and 30+ hours of story ... man i can't wait for this!
I thought it was decent, nothing groundbreaking or really exciting about it but wasn't terrible. Something I'd be will ing to drop 20 bucks on when its on sale at the end of the year to play with the kids.
Me and my pals enjoyed the demo enough. It feels like a cross between Gears of War and Diablo and that's my speed. Just hope the devs can fix some of the issues and that GARBAGE camera shake during cutscenes.
I’m so happy you’ve published this article.
I thought I was going mad with everyone else screaming “Destiny Killer” for this game.
It really is bang average based on the demo.
I played the demo twice with two different classes. I'm planning to do another two runs with the remaining two. I had a good time with the demo and playing it in co-op with friends makes the game much more enjoyable. I'll definitely be picking this up.
I didnt think it was too bad..quite enjoyed a fair bit more than i thought i would..i'll probably pick it up when it hits the £30 mark..
@Hyperluminal I was interested in the game, I am still interested but honestly I will come back to you for your thoughts and conclusions, because I like your way of thinking and your thought process.
Maybe it needs 6 more months in the oven or it will reach its full potential in 6 months with updates.
I played it solo to begin with, OK shooter and early loot progression is encouraging. What makes it shine is playing with others. Cross play PS5 to Series X worked well, no chat audio yet, WhatsApp had to fill in that missing feature 😬 I'm keeping an eye on it 😎
@playstation1995 Excellent. Wise up son.
I've played solo in PS5 and it really passed me the impression of an unfinished game.
The cut scenes are a mess, gameplay is far from good, power mechanics aren't fun to play, only weapon I enjoyed was the Sniper Rifle (and wasn't by choice, was just because head shots were good only with this weapon)
I was willing to buy the game.. after the Demo it just became a hard pass
Play Godfall.. so much better game than this.
@ILikeStake I want a looter stripper game. Call it Chippendale: Rescue Rangers.
@SilenceCZ godfall is very good but you cant compare it to this game only in that its loot based..i ignored the godfall review and i am glad i did because it was waaaaay off the mark..i am not expecting this to get a fair review as i think peoples minds are already made up..just a shame they didnt give the art direction a little more thought as it is hard not to see destiny 2...
This game will be a 7/10 I'm sure of it! Metacritic score I mean!
I bet this gets delayed from its April street date.
I couldn’t believe how much I enjoyed the demo. Looter Shooter is not a genre I generally get into. But a trailer I saw looked interesting and according to the developer’s FAQ, this isn’t a GaaS...it is a 25-30hr campaign that can be played solo. So I watched a few minutes of the demo on YouTube and decided to try it out. Definitely technical issues (demo crashed twice, audio synch issues, etc), but I found myself enjoying the gameplay...Technomancer! Finished the demo and tried to pre-order from the ‘credits’ page, but that was broken too. But I did pre-order from the PS store...the demo worked.
@Northern_munkey I know it can’t be compared. Just a feeble shoutout to show how good Godfall now can look in comparison in art, tech and direction aspects at the very least. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed Godfall.
Outriders is so clunky in terms of tech aspects but the combat was quite well!
I hope the game can redeem itself. After receiving all this new feedback, they should delay it.
QUESTION: Is that camera shaking in cutscenes as bad as in God of War? (It ruined all my experience of GoW and made me almost vomit)
@djlard wayyyyyyyyyyyy worse
@SilenceCZ 🤘
Yeah the demo is very rough and most of the criticism in the article is true, but I’m still going to play it day one.
Simply because it’s fun and the story caught my interest. Also I had quite some laughs with the dark humor the game got.
People act as if a game is not allowed to be non-AAA.
I recommend watching SkillUps review. It pretty much sums up my feelings about it as well.
@djlard definitely worse
Yup, this seems worse than Anthem
I enjoyed the gameplay a lot (kinda reminded me of gears of war mixed with destiny). They story could have promise as the idea behind it seems pretty good. But the audio was way off for me. Like seconds off. And I agree the cut scenes were weird where it would have the long pause of a black screen. Overall the demo increased my interest in the game and I will consider buying it where as before it wasn’t even on my radar.
I liked it, glad they had a demo so I don't need to refer to some so called reviewer to get informed
Yeah, played the demo and wasn't impressed. I quite liked The Division at first but it flaws soon stopped me playing, The Division 2 was better but didn't last long. I liked Destiny 2 more than the first but that too didn't last long for me. Never touched Anthem, thank god, apart from the beta. But all of these felt better to play than Outriders and looked better too. This is why most developers don't release demos anymore.
the demo and gameplay at first i wasn't sure, seemed like another ***** cover shooter (started with pyro) but once i tested trickster and
Devastator the game becomes amazing as they play fast and hard a lot of fun.. since levelling all 4 char to 7 and world 5 i have pre-ordered the game and cant wait for more
Based on the demo, this game needs to be delayed although im not sure thats even possible at this stage, perhaps there will be a chonky day 1 patch that irons some things out.
But I liked it and I didn't like it. Way way too many cut scenes and mentioned already, the strict linear levels and cut scenes to do things like open doors is, baffling. The loot / armour / mod system is really good tbf and probably its shining light as well as the abilities and classes. The actual shooty shooty combat is janky. Its essentially Anthem without the flying meets Division 2 gameplay.
Yeah played through a bit after the prologue and then deleted it. Better games to play.
There’s just too many combat scenarios where you enter an empty room/open space with a bunch of neatly placed barricades in plain sight and you think “well that’s obviously another combat arena” & when you walk closer “surprise” it’s an ambush by some enemies. Rinse & repeat
Things got really stale by the end of the prologue for me. Especially when there’s other games like Destiny 2, Division, Borderlands etc. that do what this game is trying better.
This is such a weird game. I acknowledge every fault it has, and yet I had fun with it. It does a lot of things looter shooters are too chickenshit to do, and it’s refreshing, but at the same time is so goddamn janky and has some bizarre design decisions. I think I will buy and finish it at some point (way way into the sale future), even though I know it’s a bit of a mess. It’s making me question my own critical acumen as I hated Anthem and most other run of the mill looters, yet I like this game despite it being messier than the others
Damn I must have really low expectations because I'm really enjoying the demo so far. It is a little linear but you almost forget that during the immersive action. I'm only about an hour and a half in so maybe that's why I'm not experiencing the same issues that other people are. Find myself wanting more already. No issues or hiccups on my end.I honestly can't wait to get my hands on the full version. I'm getting annoyed with the culture of cancelling games before they even come out.
@Dr-M 👍if I can I will certainly tell you what I think of it 😊
@3MonthBeef agreed. But this isn't a GaaS. All the content will be in the game. Theres no roadmap, no DLC planned. There shouldn't be the issue like with Anthem where the content is anaemic, there's quickly nothing to do and you're waiting months for new content.
The combat gameplay was quite fun but the game's story, characters and narrative, and the way they are presented really hurts it. I probably would end up having the same experience that I had with The Division, having fun at the beginning but getting bored very soon. But if the game remains relevant when it's in a good sale I might consider buying it.
@80sGamer Any shooter with loot is Destinys competition, Division, Borderlands, hell even Warframe. And quite honestly Destiny has a pretty weak story and repetitive missions too.
@SpicyTacos101 Why does everyone want games to be exactly the same as other games?. Those other games you mentioned have the exact same Rinse & repeat missions. All of them.
Nothing will ever be good enough for todays entitled gamers, its pretty sad. It use to be so much better when there was no console demo's, no videos, no youtubers influencing, and no "game journalists" bashing everything. Just a few magazines with 1 or two screenshots, not knowing when a game releases.
@Brydontk same here. I love this game for now. I loved Division; Destiny; Bulletstorm and this is the perfect mixture of the features I like. Already preordered and cannot wait for the 1. April. Yesterday I gotgot my first legendary weapon and it blasts. The best thing is that everything is carried over to the fullversion and I can upgrade my legendary to the levels which will come then. Playing the technomancer btw.
@GamingVeteran these are true words and I think and feel the exact same way. I got over these previews/reviews and youtube blabla guys and when a game has a demo like this one I check my feelings when playing and between gaming sessions. When I feel that I want to play more and not got bored at all even got that special mixed feeling of satisfaction, anticipation convinced me to preorder the game and not giving a ***** of what other people say.
I agree with all the points given in this article and this game does need improvement but I thoroughly enjoyed it. I have a lot of games to play in my back catalogue so I won't be buying this at launch but will do in a couple of months, hopefully by then some of the rough edges would have been smoothed out .
I played it for 20mins then deleted it thinking im never going to buy this!
@arsmolinarc Which is exactly what this game doesn't do, thankfully.
It's rough around the edges for sure but the gameplay loop is super fun. Props to the developers for releasing such a substantial free demo. Running through all the characters to max demo level & hunting for legendaries has been hours upon hours of fun so far.
I actually think they've been quite clever about it because people are getting sucked in to the loop early on because everything carries over. I've seen lots of players farming the higher end stuff for hours on end because it matters for the full game. I hope this title does well.
That's your problem , PS5 , try the game on PC. Been playing with a bunch of ppl everynight for hours. The demo isn't a finished product, lol, the build they have for release has alot more polish then what any company ever releases for a demo, being console plebs I wouldn't expect you to know that , but would figure the moron writing the article would have some basic knowledge of this. Guess not...
The cut scenes are locked at 30 , they said day one that this is not how it is in the final build and not to worry, but yet ppl can't read and assume that the audio is off but it's not , it's synced for 60fps not 30 , so when the video cuts down to 30fps the voice sync come off because the audio is not putting down with the video. Again all mentioned by the developer on day of demo release.
The graphics on pc are amazing so if it looks like trash blame the crap your running it on.
Ppl might want to understand what a demo is , doom demo came out a few weeks before the game , when the game came out 2 weeks later half the 40 min in the demo was either cut or changed in the final build , it was a vastly different game then what was released. Demos showcase the game and some of its gameplay , it doesn't reflect current state of game or final build even when released days before the games release....
@LiQuiDM3tH I agree. They should stop playing games on PS4/5 and just play everything on PC, here on a PlayStation-centric website...
@LiQuiDM3tH We will see how much more polish. If the Day one patch size is insane we will know whats the case.
@80sGamer You say "generic rubbish such as outriders" ok we get it, you don't like the game and that's fine. But the game you first mention, Destiny, is one of the most generic. Just remember, Borderlands did everything and more then Destiny did 5 years earlier.
Games need variation period. Whether it has sloppy controls, uncompelling story, ugly visuals you name it. I'm starting to really doubt your username, most older gamers understand that concept.
I have to admit I was pretty quick to bash this after an hour or so of the demo, but the more I play the more I enjoy it and I’ve found myself going back daily levelling all four characters. I stand by my original thoughts in that I wouldn’t pay £60 for this and that I find everything bar the actual combat/loot system pretty bad, however, I think the points I enjoy will actually result in a purchase, albeit a discounted one later down the line. Initially I didn’t really get the diablo reference when comparing this to other games such as Destiny, The Division, Gears etc but the scope for ability focused builds coupled with quick cool downs is really what’s piqued my interest.
Disappointed based on my initial expectations but a sense of quiet optimism brewing now...
@LiQuiDM3tH look everyone a Pc MaStEr RaCe person, lets all bow down to his superiority and praise his offensive and patronising comments.. Praise Be the almighty PC.. Can I get an Amen up in here?
I enjoyed it. Some rough edges definitely, loading issues, audio sync issues but compared to Anthem? Thats pretty laughable. Managing 10minutes without a crash in Anthem at launch deserved a trophy. I enjoyed the gameplay loop solo, thought it would be worth playing through maybe. Then I jumped in with a friend and it became something else, its fun! Its not Destiny, those comparisons are stupid. Destiny is still the ONLY looter shooter service game worth playing. This is more Borderlands x Diablo x Gears. Is it going to keep you for 2.5k hours like D2. Nope. WIll it get me through the campaign and the endgame, possibly 50 - 100hrs, i think so.
want to show you this if you didn´t watch it already
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZHMXIh0nKc4&feature=emb_title
I think some of you should not judge the game because of a demo with an old build behind it.
@LiQuiDM3tH Some good points here thanks
I really liked the game, but will need to see some endgame content before I dive in. But, between the skills you have, the mods in the weapons and those large skill trees, it is scratching a certain itch that I had.
Story seems alright, but that's the same for the other looter games except maybe for Destiny when they actually focus on telling a story (which is rarely).
Played the game on the PC, looked nice, nothing groundbreaking but wasn't expecting Naughty Dog lvls of looks anyway.
@Katsuhono
Yeah, I had to repeat the prologue 3 times because it kept crashing and not saving progress. That's a major reason I'm not a fan of online only games.
There is zero reason I've seen for this game to require an online connection. We have other games like Gears of War and Borderlands that are similar and superior in gameplay, world, and design, that can be played offline.
The online requirement was enough to change my mind on purchasing this game. The fact that it looks and feels like a game from the late 360/PS3 era certainly doesn't help my desire to play it either. Not that feeling like a 360/PS3 game is inherently bad or anything, it just doesn't do enough to differentiate itself from the competition. From my time with the demo, what it does do isn't even as good as the competition.
@Steel76 Bulletstorm is EA property
@Flaming_Kaiser Im not sure if this demo is the same as the specs for the full game are like 75gb and this demo is only 22gb
@pharos_haven Lets make one thing first i never like it when a game has failed its always a pity. But with these games and the new way of making them it has made me sceptic. But lets hope its a really early build and its great. I have a thing against games that are released and they have a day one patch that is more then 20GB for me that is a sign that the game was not ready to begin with.
@Flaming_Kaiser Im not sure what your getting pissy about I was just stating that I though it was weird because I don't know if it is the same build or a different download all together.
@pharos_haven Im not pissy i think i just said it wrong maybe but im not certain it will be great and why release a terrible build of a demo? Sounds counter productive you want people too buy your not turned away when playing the demo.
@Hyperluminal Thank you man, you are awesome.
@Dr-M I hope it reviews well 🤞
@Logonogo So something like The Office tv series camera...?
@Hyperluminal 🤞🏼
I was super looking forward to this game, but not anymore. Hard pass for me. Hopefully enough people enjoy it to give it a good community and support.
One thing that did bother me was the vibration or "Haptic Feedback" on the dualsense. It was literally making my hands numb until I turned it off.
@Hyperluminal My thoughts exactly. The camera was a bit rough during cutscenes and jumping around too much. I didn't go into the demo expecting a full fledged experience in the hub or missions. It would have been nice if it had more features or a bit longer, but let's be realistic here. Judging a demo for what's not in it doesn't make too much sense. I hope they do work on the multiplayer connections. That has probably been my biggest issue with the lag with it periodically.
The cutscenes are completely booked, but other than that this game is shaping up to be pretty awesome.
I tried this very briefly. It seemed to be rather bland, seen-it-all before sci-fi fare. Then everything takes a bit of a turn and it becomes slightly darker, but nonetheless bland. These types of live service/live event games just aren’t for me.
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