Outriders: PS5 Review

Developed by People Can Fly

Published by Square Enix

Platform: PS5

Plagued by server issues at the start, Outriders has overcome its rocky start to make a looter shooter for the next generation.

When Earth is deemed inhabitable after one too many wars and natural disasters, the human race decides to find a new home on a planet called Enoch. 

But it all goes to hell in a handcart, when a series fo catastrophic events take place.

Gifted supernatural powers (a player choice of different classes with different abilities) and 30 years on, it's a battle for survival on the planet of Enoch... 

Outriders does have a lot going for it.

Chunky combat, a mix of Destiny’s looter shooter vibe, and a touch of the Outer Worlds style exploration make the game feel familiar yet also fresh - and relatively simple in its execution.

Fight sequences are taut, and appear to involve swathes of others to remove. It’s a little easier in a party to take the masses out (when the servers work) and certainly single player presents more than enough challenges for those who prefer to run and gun.

The cover mechanic works well and the UI is easy to follow - though there’s no sign of adaptive triggers in play on the PS5, which is to be frank a disappointment. The mix of supernatural powers to take down the enemy is easily executed, and the benefits of doing so are great, given how quick the cooldown period is.

The areas of Enoch are reasonable enough; though, the trench war vibe that pervades some of the earlier parts are fairly common throughout - and while the shooting is well-handled, it does feel like at times, this is the best Outriders has to offer.

The story is a bit wobbly too, mixing occasional tropes of the genre, with some OTT voice acting gives the narrative a bit of an inconsistent feel throughout.

Missions appear to be the usual fare - go here, secure that / free this person - they’re all much of a muchness in the FPS genre and Outriders doesn’t appear to shake that up much, no matter how well executed they are.

The game looks beautiful though - an early electrical storm swirls with ethereal deadliness and light hangs in the air throughout this section. The colours pop with overworldly edges and certainly stand out in 4K HD screens, leaving the game to truly soar when it has to.

While Outriders plays well, there are a few head scratchers such as the excessive amount of  cut scenes. 

Setting the tone is fine, but when it comes at the detriment of the game and causes play to continually halt, its a bit of a worry. It’s more noticeable in latter sections where you wait for a scene to load, walk through an area and then have to endure another scene or a loading screen.The stop start nature of it all is unnerving to be frank, and even with a next gen console, it’s jarring- and a bit slow.

Ultimately, Outriders proves to be playable enough - and works well with a group of people. It may not revolutionise the genre, but it does prove there's still life in a world where many similar properties choose to co-exist.