The original Outcast from 1999 was a technical marvel for its time for being one of the first examples of a fully 3D open-world action game. As Cutter Slade, players were set loose into a surreal alien world where the possibilities seemed endless. The technology used to realise it was achieved through voxels, before 3D accelerators became the standard, which led to its signature visual style. While it enjoyed a cult status, a sequel struggled to materialise. Fans were able to curb their hunger with Outcast: Second Contact, a remake of the first instalment, but there wouldn’t be a continuation of Slade’s adventures until now. Has the wait been worth it?
Outcast: A New Beginning has a confusing introduction. It is a sequel that tries to make itself accessible to newcomers, which demands that the protagonist, Cutter Slade, becomes an amnesiac. This is supposed to make it so other characters explain things to him so that everyone who never played the original can follow along. This doesn’t come off as organic since Slade doesn’t get the necessary characterisation needed to make him feel like a person.
The plot is on the generic side and does not do a great job at giving something to emotionally latch onto. There is a lot of telling instead of showing, and this was likely done as a means to keep the story moving. The storytelling is often sloppy and concepts are introduced suddenly and conveniently. Slade doesn’t feel like he is on an alien planet so much as he is somewhere in another time in the history of the world. The aliens are very weirdly human-like despite their appearance, and their culture is derivative of pulpy sci-fi, but with less imagination. There are some aspects from the movie Stargate (1997) and the Avatar films that stand out as the story unfolds.
The best moments of Outcast: A New Beginning are when players are left to their own devices. The narrative is hopelessly dull and the protagonist is the most boring, generic and bog-standard action hero guy, but without the necessary charm. Slade also looks really old for some reason – more like a dad instead of the big man hero he is supposed to be. Even when exploring and ignoring the main plot, he looks ridiculous, and is hard to take seriously when doing the things he can do, which is admittedly very fun.
Just like its predecessor, this offers a massive alien open world where Slade goes toe-to-toe with dangerous flora and fauna, as well as getting into shootouts with robots. The battles are functional, but the real fun is Slade’s absurd mobility. His gear allows him to jump really high, rocket boost through jungles, glide long distances, and his range of motion only seems to increase the deeper the adventure goes on.
Slade feels like he can do almost anything with his abilities and makes up for the straight-forward yet efficient third-person action. Being able to be launched and become a human jet justifies the enormous alien world of Adelpha. The controls feel very fluid and responsive and there are many side missions that take full advantage of Slade’s abilities. He can even use these abilities while swimming underwater. Activities like racing or wrestling with the physics of a massive hover ball are stimulating yet light platforming challenges that manage to stay engrossing.
The visuals are impressive and resemble something out of a Roger Dean illustration. Adelpha is a very lurid and colourful world full of weird creatures, lush plant-life, and fascinating architecture. For all of A New Beginning‘s faults at telling a compelling story, its world-building comes off as genuine and thoughtful. Villages are festooned with objects to interact with and attention to detail to make them feel lived in. Areas wind and spiral upwards, and bodies of water are deep with points of interest below the surface. There always feels like something to see no matter where you go.
The technology used to make this is nothing special since it relies on Unreal Engine 4, like most games made in the 2020s. It lacks the uniqueness of the original that relied on creative methods to make its 3D world possible. Despite being like most titles on the market today, it does feel a bit rough around the edges. There are many instances of foes getting caught in level geometry, and the frame rate can be a little unstable in some of the more dense areas when battles heat up.
The absolute worst technical pitfall in this game is the near constant and intense screen tearing. It is unknown how Outcast: A New Beginning fares on other platforms, but on PlayStation 5, the aggressive tearing is so bad that it can trigger the early signs of an epileptic attack. Vulnerable players should tread with caution until a patch addresses the technical hang-ups.
