Outriders is the upcoming third-person RPG shooter from People Can Fly. The game is set for release on February 2, 2021, which could give it a significant advantage among the other sci-fi games with RPG elements coming out on the next-gen consoles.
This generational transition has left open a particularly big window for sci-fi RPGs and studios that want to take advantage. Two major developers, Bethesda and BioWare, are also releasing sci-fi RPGs on the next-generation consoles, but there are a few reasons Outriders may be able to lead the pack.
Bethesda Game Studios confirmed in 2018 that it is working on a new IP called Starfield, which will release on the next-gen consoles before The Elder Scrolls 6. Starfield is the first new IP Bethesda has worked on in 25 years, which means a few things are likely which have implications for Outriders.
First, Bethesda has taken a few hits recently, particularly with Fallout 76 and increasing fan frustration at the lack of TES 6 news since the trailer dropped in 2018. Starfield is the studio’s opportunity to regain some good faith, but until it releases, Bethesda is in a strange position. Despite being considered a giant of the RPG industry, it is currently in a slump, and Outriders has the opportunity to establish its own IP on the PS5 and Xbox Series X before Bethesda makes it stake yet again.
Outriders may also mark a change among sci-fi RPGs, which, similar to Destiny 2, may now be moving more towards a multiplayer model where the outcome of certain RPG elements like dialog trees matter less. The popularity of this type of game can be seen from the other end of the spectrum too, with shooters like Halo Infinite also resembling Destiny more and more.
This could see single player open-world RPGs like Starfield struggle to stay above water in a way that Bethesda’s more established IPs might not. The studio is certainly taking a big risk with Starfield, and whether or not it pays off, Bethesda is leaving its share of the market vulnerable to games like Outriders at the start of this console generation.
Mass Effect 5, like Starfield, has a lot of heavy lifting to do on the part of its studio. Outside an acknowledgement of its existence, nothing else has been mentioned likely due to how early in development it is. Previously, BioWare has demonstrated the risks big developers like Bethesda are taking with new IPs, with BioWare’s being Anthem a commercial and critical disappointment. Not only that, but Mass Effect is no longer the reliable IP it once was. Mass Effect: Andromeda faced a disappointing release marred by animation bugs and behind-the-scenes stories of the devs’ difficulties during the development process, which was done by BioWares’ Montreal crew rather than the main Edmonton team.
While a new Mass Effect game might once have been able to sustain excitement for a few years into the next-gen consoles, the release of Andromeda has now put the Mass Effect series and BioWare on the back foot. It is possible the studio will regain some good faith and help rebuild the IP with the release of a Mass Effect Remastered Trilogy, rumored to be set for announcement on N7 Day 2020.
Even still, both Bethesda and BioWare are in vulnerable positions until they establish themselves on the next-gen. Outriders isn’t only a highly anticipated game, but its release near the start of the new console generation could see the IP establish itself more strongly on the next-gen, taking up more of the sci-fi RPG market.
Outriders, however, is unlikely to provide the same experiences as a single-player Bethesda or BioWare RPG, with a far greater focus on the shooter side, like Destiny. If each studio produces a game which reminds fans of their strengths–Bethesda’s open worlds and BioWare’s PC and companion-driven stories–then there’s plenty of room for each of these games to succeed. Of course, that remains to be seen and depends on the games themselves, but with Outriders leading the pack, Sci-Fi RPGs are looking up next-gen.
Outriders launches on February 2, 2021 PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X, with a Stadia version in development for 2021.
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