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Today, Nine Dots proudly revealed new Outward 2 details about the game’s development and features to come, influenced by learnings from its predecessor, during the New Game Plus Showcase: a creator-led, highly curated digital showcase that aims to highlight some of the most anticipated games coming soon. Outward 2, the upcoming sequel to Outward—which launched in 2019 and recently surpassed 3 million players—is an open-world fantasy RPG that continues to defy typical expectations of the genre and promises to deliver the definitive adventure simulator. Outward 2 will launch in early access for Windows PC later this summer.

In the feature video, Nine Dots CEO, Founder, and Creative Director Guillaume Boucher-Vidal explains that the player will once again embody a regular adventurer stepping into the unforgiving lands of Aurai. The adventure will require patience, tactical thinking, practice, and tenacity. Several learnings from Outward’s development factored into the new directions for the sequel, including (but not limited to) shifts in seasons affecting resources and wildlife, roaming NPCs, dual wielding, and more. Mimicking some of real life’s challenges, it’s when you get complacent that “life snaps back at you,” Guillaume warns. Players will have many more tools to face these challenges, such as control over their starting location and a plethora of player customization options like appearance, abilities, and skill tree progression, which evolves based on specific playstyles.

Outward 2 Key Features

• An Average Joe On A Remarkable Journey — You’re not a hero of legend. Shape your modest and meager beginnings through three distinct starting scenarios and eleven backgrounds, which will determine where to start in this brutal world. Whether you’re a devout worshipper of Elatt trying to strike it rich as a miner or a vagrant deadbeat in Simeon’s Bastion, the world of Aurai will not be kind… not even in defeat. If you’re knocked out, your journey continues, and you must live with the consequences. You could be robbed and left to rot, be saved by a kind passerby, wake up in town badly injured, or… worse.
• A Living, Evolving World — A full-year seasonal cycle transforms the world of Aurai. Merchants and other NPCs relocate, frozen rivers become traversable in winter, and more. Comprising of four distinct areas, regions will feature their own biomes, seasons, and specific gameplay. From the blizzards of the Gilded Mountains to the acid rains in the Gathes of Catharsis, players will find a renewed challenge every time they travel.
• Growth Through Mastery — Every factor in Outward 2 molds your playstyle. Your tactical choices as a player, from the weight and material of your armor to particular weapons you use, are reinforced by the new Exercise system, where passive skills will spark and grow based on how you play. Seek out special trainers scattered around Aurai, who will teach you how to survive the most brutal encounters for a fee.
• Ritual Spellcasting & Tactical Combat — Wielding magic in Outward 2 is no mere button press. Cast spells through rituals, like sending a fire stone into the air to create a ring around you that allows you to empower your skills with deadly flames. Challenging combat, where every weapon has its own distinct moveset, is further enhanced in the sequel with a larger variety of tools and weapon combinations, along with animations that bring more fluidity and control to players. Major combat improvements were cultivated based on extensive player feedback from the original.
• Intentional Inventory Management — Your backpack is your lifeline, and every space within is worth its weight in gold. Pack provisions, potions, weapons, and camping gear for an expedition, but manage it carefully as you gather more along the way. Some discoveries won’t be worth the precious space. In a fight, you may want to drop your backpack to attack and evade more deftly. The sequel adds a mule you may earn to carry your wares throughout your journey, but its vulnerability may influence your path as well. Weigh each decision carefully.
• Two-Player Split Screen & Online Co-op — Aurai is a grueling place, but you mustn’t go alone. Plan and prepare alongside a friend, covering each other’s weaknesses and marrying your strengths. Teamwork expands the opportunities and options for tackling the many challenges you will face in Outward 2.