Crafting a video game, from image rendering to storytelling, requires an immense amount of creativity. When creating the main narrative and other side quests, the naming of characters and locations often aren’t done as a spur-of-the-moment decision. There’s thought and energy that goes into every name, and this is undoubtedly true with Obsidian Entertainment’s The Outer Worlds.
From planets that haven’t been unlocked yet to those that players already have access to, The Outer Worlds has shown that each planet probably has a specific reason it received the name it did. It’s intriguing to hypothesize what the locked planets may hold based upon their name, or uncover new connections to planets that may not have been thought about before. Monarch is one such planet where new connections can be made in surprising ways.
Unlike many other planets found in The Outer Worlds, Monarch doesn’t seem to have any ties to Greek mythology. However, this doesn’t mean that there aren’t any connections to be made to the naming of the planet. A monarch is “a person who reigns over a kingdom or empire” or “one that holds preeminent position or power.” Anyone who’s paid attention in history class would also recognize the similar word monarchy, which means “undivided rule or absolute sovereignty by a single person.”
Traditionally, these terms are reserved for governments maintained by royalty, such as kings and queens. To live under a monarchy is to be ruled by one governing person—not to be confused with an oligarchy, meaning “government by the few.” These terms are crucial to both the naming of The Outer Worlds’ planet Monarch and the overarching plotline and subtext of the game.
The Outer Worlds map describes Monarch as inhospitable and home to dangerous wildlife. Any player who’s spent more than five minutes outside the walls of Stellar Bay will know how the Monarch wilderness is teeming with wildlife like Mantisaurs and Raptidons, not to mention marauders. It’s also home to many different quest locations like Fallbrook, the C&P Boarst Factory, and the nearly abandoned town of Cascadia, owned by Rizzo’s.
Monarch is one of the main planets players have to explore in order to complete the main story line. Players even pick up companion Nyoka in the bar in Stellar Bay. What makes the factions who live on Monarch so interesting is that they live outside of the control of The Board. In fact, for players to even land on Monarch, they have to acquire a Nav Key for permission to land in the Board-deserted town.
It’s possible that Monarch was named such because of its distinct lack of overall leadership. Sure, Monarch Stellar Industries (MSI) is run by Sanjar, and the Iconoclasts are run by either Graham or Zora, depending on the choices made during Canid’s Cradle, but both factions function outside of the influence of The Board. It’s important to note, though, that The Board should be considered an oligarchy rather than a monarchy. The Board is led by Chairman Rockwell, but it also includes CEOs from the other capitalistic corporations, effectively making leadership a group decision of the few rather than placing all the power in one person’s hands.
Monarch may be named as such because of its lack of unified leadership (though that can change if the player so chooses) and distinct lack of support from The Board. It’s an interesting touch and addition to the remaining planets in the game.
The Outer Worlds is available now for PC, PS4, and Xbox One.
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