I think I figured out why I enjoy the Outer Worlds. The writing isn’t great, the systems are not balanced and it’s easy to make over (or under) powered characters, but it is a ROLE playing game.
There is tons of reactivity and there are many ways to solve problems with different character builds. Those two things together offer many role-playing opportunities.
Let me give an example of reactivity. When meeting various conditions you can opt to take flaws in order to get an extra perk point. Early on I chose to take robophobia after almost being killed by a robot (-1 stats when near automechanicals). Later, I met a robot, SAM, who could be a companion and now (1) I have the option to say “AHHHHHHH” whenever he talks to me and (2) if I choose to use him, I get -1 to all stats all the time... unless I set him to stand as far away from me as possible (the max range seems to be just outside of robophobia distance).
Picture it. SAM is a very strong companion. He has high armor, does lots of damage, and his ability is to fly into the air and slam down on people in an explosion. My main character is terrified of him, but wants him around as muscle. It’s funny from a role-playing perspective and it affects how I play, because I will want to utilize SAM while maintaining a proper distance so I don’t have -1 to all my stats (which is a very big malus).
The other companion I’m using is Max, a vicar of the Path, who is trying to solve the universal equation. He is portrayed as very scholarly. My character is very dumb. In pretty much every dialogue, I have the option to misinterpret or misunderstand the things Max says, to which he has unique dialogue where he comments on my character’s dullness or explains the concept like he’s talking to a 5 year old.
Think about that: because of choices I have made as a player, the experience I get from these two companions is entirely different than if I had made other choices. This part of the game is very well done.
One other example: I walked around with a concussion for so long that I had the option of taking a permanent concussion (-1 INT and PER) for a perk. Very not worth it, very unbalanced, but I could if I wanted to. It isn’t Sawyer-sanitized trying to perfectly balance out every option. It’s just trying to give the player fun and interesting options.
The lack of balance, the reactivity: it feels like a 90s PC game. As someone who grew up playing games during that time it feels very comfortable to play. By the way, a lot of the complexity is “hidden” a layer down. eg weapons have more stats (crit chance, crit modifier, noise values, equip speeds, etc), but you need to examine the item to see them. Maybe trying not to overwhelm some parts of the audience (console/casual gamers).
TL;DR I understand why people who prioritize story don’t like Outer Worlds. I understand why people who prioritize complex and robust character building don’t like it. But I think the people who do like it probably enjoy reactivity and multiple gameplay paths based on player choice.
