Welcome to our latest IGN First, featuring a month of exclusive coverage in April dedicated to The Outer Worlds 2. This is your first real-time glimpse into its gameplay, showcasing a quest where you infiltrate the N-Ray Facility. This quest highlights several new features and mechanics, and demonstrates a reimagined approach to level design. What stands out most is the enhanced depth of the RPG experience, with developer Obsidian drawing on their rich history and taking inspiration from immersive sims like Deus Ex and Dishonored.
Compared to its predecessor, The Outer Worlds 2 boasts more sophisticated systems, including a true stealth system and enhanced tools to support this playstyle. This includes effective melee weapons and skills for silent takedowns. A new feature is the purple-colored health bar above enemy heads, which indicates the potential damage from a stealth attack, helping players decide whether to attempt a one-hit kill or avoid engagement altogether. Enemies can detect corpses and alert guards, but players with the right skills can disintegrate bodies to avoid detection.
The Outer Worlds 2 Gameplay - Screenshots
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Later in the quest, players acquire the N-Ray Scanner, which allows visibility through walls to locate objects, NPCs, and enemies. This tool is essential for solving complex environmental puzzles and is crucial in both stealth and combat scenarios. Cloaked enemies in the N-Ray Facility can only be detected with the scanner, emphasizing its importance in gameplay.
The game features several interlocking systems that enhance the RPG elements, allowing for diverse character builds. Stealth and immersive sim mechanics are just part of the broader gameplay expansion. Obsidian has also focused on improving gunplay, taking inspiration from Destiny to enhance the feel of firearms. While The Outer Worlds 2 isn't solely a shooter, it delivers a more refined first-person shooting experience.
During an action-packed approach to the N-Ray Facility, enhanced movement mechanics complement the improved gunplay, allowing for dynamic actions like sprint-sliding while aiming down sights. The return of Tactical Time Dilation (TTD) further enriches combat, enabling players to manipulate time for strategic advantages. The inclusion of throwables adds another layer to combat strategy, such as tossing a grenade and using TTD to shoot it midair for devastating effects.
While details about the story and the N-Ray Facility quest context remain sparse, the gameplay video reveals tweaks to conversational mechanics. In one scene, players encounter Exemplar Foxworth, who has survived a cultist takeover. Depending on your character's Medical, Guns, or Melee stats, you can choose to help or respond differently. This also introduces a new companion, Aza, a former cultist eager to rectify past actions.
While The Outer Worlds laid the groundwork for Obsidian's vision, The Outer Worlds 2 aims to fully realize that vision, drawing on the studio's RPG heritage and modernizing the first-person RPG genre akin to Fallout. The developers frequently referenced Fallout: New Vegas as a benchmark, fueling high expectations for this sequel.
This is just a glimpse of what's to come in The Outer Worlds 2 and what we're covering in this month's IGN First. Throughout April, I'll delve into character builds, the new flaws system, an array of unique weapons, and the expansive scope of the sequel. Stay tuned for interviews with key figures like original Fallout developer and creative director Leonard Boyarsky, game director Brandon Adler, and design director Matt Singh. Keep checking back at IGN all April for more exciting updates!
