Game Preview: Outlast 2

The most horrifying game of the year, "Outlast 2," is an upcoming first-person survival horror video game that's currently in development by Red Barrels Games. The game is set to be released in fall of 2016 for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC.

Official Trailer (Full Version)

Outlast 2 is the sequel to the acclaimed survival horror game Outlast. Set in the same universe as the first game, but with different characters and a different setting, Outlast 2 is a twisted new journey into the depths of the human mind and its dark secrets. “ No conflict is ever black and white. But once the dust has settled, the victors get to decide who was right and who was wrong. Who is good and who is evil. Human nature pushes us to extremes of violence and depravity, which we then justify by divine inspiration and a promise of paradise to come. Horror rises from desperation and blind faith. OUTLAST 2 will test your faith, pushing players to a place where going mad is the only sane thing to do” – game description.

The announcement of the game came courtesy of an interview with Bloody Disgusting, where Red Barrels revealed that following the release of the “Whistleblower” for the original Outlast, they've already started work on Outlast. Red Barrels co-founder Philippe Morin mentioned in the interview:

“So, yes, we are working on Outlast 2. “The game will be a survival horror experience and it will take place in the same universe as Outlast, but it will have different characters and a different setting. We might go back to Mount Massive Asylum one day, but for now we have new ideas and themes we’d like to explore and we think we’re cooking up something special. “We’re still a small indie studio (12 people), so we’ll need a little bit of time to ship our next game, but hopefully it will be worth it.”

The work on the sequel began immediately after the team shipped the latest bit of DLC for platforms where Outlast was made available. The team still had an itch to create something truly horrifying and unique and they felt that the time was right to dive back into the Outlast universe.

According to Morin:

“We really want to keep on improving our craft, but ultimately we’ll approach things the same way we did with the first game, which was to make a game we’re scared to play ourselves and trust our instinct.”

Now that's an interesting approach: Make the game you want to play.

That's one of the biggest differences between independent studios and AAA studios. The smaller guys and gals can work on what they would buy and play themselves, where-as the AAA studios are all about making whatever will keep shareholders happy. I've also found it interesting that Outlast contained a lot of mature subject matter and some pretty disturbing themes, but it was rarely ever lambasted in the media for its depiction of sexual violence against men. I wonder if the asylum had featured female patients, or would it have received the same kinds of glowing treatment from reviewers? Interesting how that works.

Gameplay Demo

In the gameplay demo, it's every bit as terrifying as the first game, if not more. I couldn’t even look at the whole gameplay video because you don’t know if any of those spooky monsters attack you from behind and as the player, you have to always watch your back. Now, when they do attack you, you have to either attack them back or push them to run away. I don’t know why the camera hero didn’t had his gun ready to shoot that monster, and instead, he pushed him and ran away.

Red Barrels proved, with Outlast in 2013, that it did not need bullets and canon fires to up the excitement of online gaming. A growing feeling of dread heightened by dark and sinister environment visuals works just fine.

The camera is clearly the hero of this gameplay, managing to foster a fear that you thought you'd managed to bury in your childhood. There's a button to glance back over your shoulder, to see who or what is chasing you, which only heightens the anxiety levels.

The first look of Outlast 2 had done nothing to plant the impending sense of doom, as done so cleverly by the 4-minute video that showcases all the points of highlight – from a haunted village, a corpse-littered cellar, a house of a psychopath with a maniacal laugh to the final scene of the chase through the cornfield, which ends abruptly without revealing the outcome.

Spook lovers, you'll certainly revel in the dark and sinister visuals, and pretenders, don't say you haven't been warned.

1st Video Credits: Indie Game HQ

2nd Video Credits: IZUNIY

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