New RPG hardcore game - Outward

[Mudran]

https://store.steampowered.com/app/794260/Outward/

 

what do you think about it?

 

I never liked hardcore realism features in games, I thought that is a plaque and Kingdom come deliverance just confirmed that for me, but this game made something unbelievable - I love it with all the small twists they made to it - I never thought it would make all the difference. also I don't know why RPG is always propagated as heavy storytelling, making it impossible to be more of it - because storytelling is the most expensive part of game development (I think), but this game proves to me that I don't need that - that RPG for me is about immersivity and being crafty in everything - not everything instant gained - they made spellcrafting possible, also you have 3+1 hidden faction to join, a lot of skills to discover, so I cannot help to think about Morrowind...

They managed to scratch all the possible old school RPG features and implemented it in a modern way, so I think that is really an achievement. I guess some players will still dislike it, but a lot of players have been waiting for this - so such games have their place I believe. Also I found pure survival/building games to be boring, but this RPG spice and absence of building is all the change I needed. It feels like fans of Skyrim mod Requiem making their own game.

 

EDIT:

I mean I still think about using mods like Sims settlement or games like Kenshi, only I don't need it for my RPG experience if that does make sense.

 

Summary is that for me this game is revolutionary in its category and it makes me feel sad that even if I would talk about it longer, not many players would realize why it feels like that. Unless I'm wrong and there are games which does the same and better, but I don't know about anything similar. That it makes me feel like it is really my journey and everything is supporting that feeling. So you don't care if you loose things, because you cannot loose anything important, so it feels like when Bilbo lost his backpack to spiders I think, then he had to retrieve it. Of course if it is not bugged, that suck always.

Edited March 31, 2019 by Mudran

[ChuckFlash]

Hey diddle diddle stop and fiddle, that's the name of the game.

With no Character Levels or End Goals, whats the point ?

 

Since game companies are devoid of thinking now days, they just add micro managed time sinks, loot crates, and nonsense.

Push with a Lot of PR BS, and see if it sticks, Cause it is about the MONEY not about the Game.

 

Now I am waiting for some genius to Add a Outhouse, which when you poop, your weight goes down and you can carry more.

 

Are Players getting Dumber Or Game Publishers getting better at Brainwashing ?

 

Guess I am getting Burned Out with all the Crap being Pushed these days.

[Mudran]

I guess I will try to write down what it does differently from realistic games.

 

1. generally it doesn't punish you, but the ultimate goal is having fun. so almost nothing is definitive, instead almost everything can be fixed and gained back.

2. if you have overweight you can drop the bag and continue playing, not being bothered all the time, crippled in fight.

3. if you die, you experience something new instead of just trying over and over to do something right.

4. every survival mechanic is integrated and balanced. it is not 0 and 1, it is a lot of steps in between. Like you can cook basic easily, so you have high chance to survive, but you need more to cook properly.

I forgot:

5. there are no quest arrows, and you don't see your character on map, but every zone have big landmarks you know easily where you are - exactly like in reality - I do use map this way, so it is more realistic than most of punishing realistic games where I had hard time to know where I am.

 

overal you don't feel like fighting with the game, but truly immersed thanks to their mechanism of realism.

 

Generally for me propagated realism in games is boring and tedious, so I don't admire it, but I see this more like it is in art - art is more about what is the substance of realism, which will give you certain feeling of immersion, that is connected to your personality all of that together is art. and if someone can create a game like that, that is something I admire more than simple realism (which in games quite often even at the bottom is not realistic at all)

 

realism is also quite often connected to slow start, trying to grow, but again it sounds the same like power fantasy, only with slower progress...well this game is not about it - it is about journey, truly about your own story thanks to scenarios, you have to be ready to loose to be able to find more and you feel rich by what you find on your journey.

 

But I can see how hard position this game has:

hardcore players will not see it as hard enough and casual players will be scared and they will not give it a chance.

 

Also the team is small, so the world is not that big. I think it will be fun for 2-3 playthrough and then it will start to feel empty and repetitive, because there is no real content, just a few quests, exploration, scenarios and survival. But still good enough for some time for me.

Another weak spot is that I'm not sure if there are mostly death scenarios, if the game would be more detailed - if you could meet someone on the road who would send you somewhere or more of dialogue kind of encounters in caves/fortress it would feel even more like a journey, so I can see the premise now, but I know the game is quite basic.

But still maybe this model could be what I was looking for in RPGs and what is most close to DnD with gamemaster - that it is about your journey and not those quests where you have to help someone you don't care about at all and quite often they are not even connected to the setting, so it will not give you more of immersion.

Edited April 16, 2019 by Mudran