Outward

 PlayStation 4
Metascore
62

Mixed or average reviews - based on 17 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 1 out of 17
  2. Mixed: 16 out of 17
  3. Negative: 0 out of 17
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  1. PlayStation Universe
    Apr 5, 2019
    80
    A resolutely no-nonsense open-world, survival RPG that forfeits the hand-holding and unearned grand destinies of other genre titles, Outward instead replaces such comforts with a thoroughly player driven affair where satisfaction and reward come in the completion of the smallest of tasks and everything must be earned.
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  1. RPGamer
    May 14, 2019
    Fans of games such as older Elder Scrolls titles and even Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild will likely find this an enjoyable experience. While Outward lacks the polish of those titles, it shares the vision of making a harsh, open-world experience into something memorable. It makes every victory feel like an accomplishment, and it allows the player to write their own story in a new and unforgiving land. And, for some, that is all they need from their RPGs to feel happily satisfied.

Awards & Rankings

62
#62 Most Discussed PS4 Game of 2019
48
#48 Most Shared PS4 Game of 2019

User Reviews

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User Score
6.9

Mixed or average reviews- based on 100 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 62 out of 100
  2. Mixed: 13 out of 100
  3. Negative: 25 out of 100
  1. Mbuckets
    Apr 6, 2019
    0
    I was into this game for awhile, I accepted it's jank and it's GLARING flaws and was actually having fun with it. The combat is just ok, butI was into this game for awhile, I accepted it's jank and it's GLARING flaws and was actually having fun with it. The combat is just ok, but the survival and RPG elements are good enough that it was fun. And then I encountered a game ruining bug, which ruined my file and forfeit my stash in the town. Literally all of my time wasted. This should've been free to play, or had an early access. I never review games here, but came here solely to give it a zero and warn you away from it.… Full Review »
  2. ZXSth
    Apr 2, 2019
    7
    Having written this review a few times now, I keep coming to realize that despite my initial attitudes toward this game, I have come to seeHaving written this review a few times now, I keep coming to realize that despite my initial attitudes toward this game, I have come to see that I've kept playing it for hours upon hours (at least 30 now), and that this game, while not perfect, has more redeeming qualities than I initially thought.

    Outward's combat is passable (and mostly enjoyable), and the gear you acquire - which affects your stamina consumption and, therefore, how many actions you can take in combat - allows you to choose whether you want to fight at range, take hit after hit, or use lighter armour and rely on your skill at dodging to keep you alive. Having said that, since bigger backpacks (your means of collecting and holding onto items) often negatively affect your roll, the game seems to push you toward wearing heavy armour rather than having a lighter backpack and being able to dodge. I'd consider this an interesting design choice that ends up being slightly more detrimental and frustrating than engaging.

    The graphics and textures are certainly outdated - In my opinion, better graphics have existed in games from nearly a decade past. Furthermore, the loading screens are frequent, and are rather long despite their high frequency. In addition, I have not yet found a way to adjust the screen size/ratio, meaning that I have spent 30 hours playing a game that hides about a third of my health bar. As well, the game has crashed on my numerous times. While each of these issues on their own would not prevent me from potentially seeing a game as excellent, when they exist in tandem, they make for a game that feels sloppy. I think seeing the way enemies simply 'flop' when they die (á là the Havok physics engine seen in many games in the 2000s and beyond) was the final nail in the coffin that made me see this game as outdated, slipshod and akin to something you might see in Steam's Early Access catalogue.

    On the note of the game feeling slipshod, this game's character creator is outright abysmal. You have a limited choice of pre-made faces for your character with no way to modify them or your body type. As well, the dialogue is mostly fairly campy, and the voice acting, while not atrocious, does leave something to be desired. The music, on the other hand, is fairly interesting, and I will often find myself humming along to the songs that play in both the Hallowed Marsh and Enmerkar Forest.

    Unfortunately, exploration feels like more of a chore than something you might find engaging. The only thing that might pull you into venturing into some of the dungeons is the potential for some interesting new piece of gear - while you do eventually feel more powerful after acquiring better gear, the opportunity for your character to grow is limited, as there aren't exactly a wide variety of skills in-game. Furthermore, the game asks you to venture across a variety of vast landscapes with no opportunity at all to fast-travel. Rather than making the game more challenging and interesting, this forced walking feels like a chore, especially when your ability to run is limited, due to the fact that running costs stamina.

    Despite this game's flaws, I have been playing it for many hours, though I have trouble explaining exactly why. It has moments when it is highly engaging, but to see those moments, you are forced to push through eyesore-level graphics (by today's standards), lacklustre voice acting, and a dedication to a realistic adventuring experience that often feels more like blind adherence than a design choice that makes the game more interesting.

    If you could put up with Two Worlds and its multiple faults, this game will feel similar in many ways (but with a tad more polish and less endearingly bad qualities). Otherwise, I'd say you should steer clear of this game until its price drops to something under $40 (Canadian) at the very least. To its credit, however, this is a good way to scratch that itch for an open-world fantasy RPG until something more polished and engaging comes out.    … Full Review »
  3. shjo0703
    Mar 27, 2019
    2
    ***This review is specific to the PS4 version of the game***

    It appears as if there is a STEEP graphical down-scaling on the PS4 version of    ***This review is specific to the PS4 version of the game***

    It appears as if there is a STEEP graphical down-scaling on the PS4 version of this game, the most prominent offender being the particle effects and enemy textures. An example is the Pistol Shrimp that populate the beaches of the starting region, they have muddled pixelated appearance and the particle effects of their electric attack are stretched out 32x32 sprites that look like original DOOM explosions. Besides this the text is very small and difficult to read as it doesnt scale proportionately with the rest of the visuals on larger TVs, sitting farther then 3ft from a 40"+ TV is a no-go for reading the frequent Text.

    Overall I found the gameplay both challenging and enjoyable, but visually it is a miss-match of resolutions that ended up giving me sore eyes frequently in my first 4 hours of play. I would say avoid picking this up on PS4, I expect given some streams and PR video that PC copies have better graphics and resolution options, so you'd be better off there.    … Full Review »
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