A server crash scuppered my space ranger
A GRENADE lands at your feet. Without squandering a second, you leap from its sphere of destructive influence. While still in the air, you make one, two, three trigger pulls. That’s three enemies gone. Then it’s time for special power and . . . sorry, black screen.
Welcome to Outriders. This, like many games, demands an online connection so you can experience its war-racked world with others. Except, since its launch a couple of weeks ago, Outriders has been having server problems.
I’ve been yanked unexpectedly out of its missions several times. Yet I kept refixing my gun belt and going back in.
Outriders is also similar to many other games by being a ‘looter-shooter’ — the idea is that you defeat the latest set of enemies, claim better equipment, then repeat. It’s a gameplay loop that’s meant to pull you in. In this case, it does.
Very little of what it offers is new: a daft sci-fi plot set on a distant planet; the usual running, crouching and shooting; superpowers to turn the battle in your favour. But it’s all done to make the experience, bloody as it is, quite endearing.
Besides, Outriders does great upgrades. Whether it’s picking up new guns or choosing between unearthly specialisms, you can make your character precisely as you want. Which makes Outriders worth sticking with, particularly as the server issues are being fixed and you can finally use that special power.
GOSH, how to describe Disco Elysium? It’s a swirly-whirly game in which you, a drunk detective, contend with your psyche as much as with corruption on the streets.
It’s adult, funny and detailed, and was one of the best games ever made when it was released in 2019. And now it’s even better: the new ‘Final Cut’ adds hours’ worth of characterful voice acting, as well as extra things to do.