More Thoughts From Me #262: Welcome Outriders

Yesterday I checked out the Outriders demo for the Playstation 4. I heard the game described as “Mass Effect meets Gears of War” online somewhere. I have some thoughts on that and what I played of the demo so far.

Outriders is an action game set on a far off planet where some humans have found a lot more than they bargained for thanks to a strange anomaly. The game is sort of like Mass Effect but its mostly like Gears of War.

The characters in Outriders are not as big as the Gears of War ones but they are pretty close. They do wear similar military outfits. The vehicles at the start of the game remind me of Mass Effect. But its the gameplay that especially reminds me of Gears of War.

Outriders is a run and gun game. You will have to seek lots of cover as you shoot at the enemy. Players can also get up close and use melee attacks. And as you get into the game, you’ll find your character with some special powers!

I won’t spoil how you get the powers but I will say that they are pretty neat. Outriders is a tough game though. You have to be really good at these sort of games. Remember to take cover and also remember to dodge whenever you see a hand grenade coming your way. The enemies in this game love those!

The gameplay seems good, though I did find it a bit intense. The bullets are flying very fast. Also this game is not for kids at all. There is a ton of blood and the language is r-rated.

Outriders does seem to have an interesting story though. There is a bit of mystery as to what is going on and hopefully we’ll get answers as the game progresses.

The only thing I didn’t care for in the demo was how many load times there were. They were not quick either. Of course I’m playing the demo on the PS4. Perhaps on the PS5 the load times are not an issue at all.

I have not finished the demo yet. I want to play the game more but I will have to get use to how intense the game is and adjust my strategy a bit. I admit I’m not great at taking cover…

The Outriders demo is available right now on PSN. If you like action games like Gears of War, you should check it out!

More Thoughts From Me is an opinion column. The thoughts expressed here are mine and mine alone. Square Enix strikes again!