Developer Red Barrels has released some new information about the next Outlast title, The Outlast Trials. Announced last year at the PC Gaming Show, the game is going to be slightly different from the past entries in the series, mostly in that it’s going to be a series of trials and have the option for co-op.
THE DETAILS
Philippe Morin, co-founder of Red Barrels, answered some questions about some new information about The Outlast Trials on the PlayStation Blog. Along with this information unfortunately comes an announcement of a delay to 2022, as well. When asked for the quick rundown, he had this to say about the game itself.
In The Outlast Trials, you’ve been abducted by the Murkoff Corporation to go through unethical experiments that will modify your psyche and behavior. Whether you go through the trials by yourself or in teams, if you survive long enough, Murkoff will happily let you return into society… but will you be the same?
According to the blog post, Red Barrels has been striving to keep the series fresh and different, which is why The Outlast Trials is going in this unexpected new direction. This new game will be structured like a TV show, and can be played either solo, or with friends.
Anyone else getting slight Outlast 1 vibes from this image?
The player must move through different ‘trials’ in order to escape, giving the narrative a bit of a SAW vibe to it and a structure similar to Portal, moving from test to test. The game will still have the same art direction and feel to the previous games, so the gameplay itself will still have that Outlast style of fighting for your life in an extremely hostile and gory environment.
The Outlast Trials will feature more characters and enemies than ever before, likely both human and horrific monster. Whichever they are, they are either working for, or are victims of, the Murkoff Corporation. This is the group that reopened the asylum and committed the Walrider experiments of the first game. We may see some familiar events relating to this. It seems these sort of experiments aren’t new to Murkoff.
SOME SPECULATION
Iconic nemeses are part of the Outlast DNA, and this time we have more variety than ever. Players will get to know many weird, dangerous, and violent characters. Although they’re also victims of Murkoff, most of them are definitely more than happy to prevent you from completing the program.
The phrase “Although they’re also victims of Murkoff, most of them are definitely more than happy to prevent you from completing the program”, seems to imply that there will be some human enemies in the game. This is another similarity to SAW. These people may also be kidnapped victims like yourself, and may be willing to sacrifice you if it means that they live. The player may also be forced to do this, possibly creating some moral choices here and there.
Looks like pretty much any environment is possible in the trials
It also sounds like there may be some kind of shop system between trials. This would also be a new concept to the Outlast series. This could be useful to grab important items before the trial starts. Health items or batteries could also be present, if the series staple of using a camera for night vision is retained in this entry.
Are you excited for The Outlast Trials, despite the new direction? What is your favourite moment from the Outlast games? I’d love to know in the comments below!
