Humor was a memorable portion of the original The Outer Worlds, from the environmental storytelling to references, parts of the plot, and everything in-between. With as high as the first game set the bar, The Outer Worlds 2 needs to at least match the level of humor of the first game, if not surpass it.
The Outer Worlds is quite the love letter to the sci-fi genre as a whole, with plenty of references that show the many different inspirations for The Outer World’s Halcyon Solar System. The original game is packed with blatant references to Firefly, Futurama, Rick and Morty, Star Wars, the Fallout games franchise, and plenty of other more discreet influences. Aside from building upon the original humor in The Outer Worlds, the sequel has plenty more room for references in the name of once again having an outstanding style of humor.
The Outer Worlds 2 Should Continue the Trend of Sci-Fi References and Parodies
After the highly praised style of humor in The Outer Worlds, the sequel would be wise to double down on sci-fi references in The Outer Worlds. Since the first game came out, plenty of new things have happened in the world of sci-fi, that The Outer Worlds 2 could end up interpreting or adapting. Otherwise, anything that The Outer Worlds 2 doesn’t take a comedic jest at could ultimately be its competition. At any rate, The Outer Worlds 2 has a lot of new impressionable material for Obsidian to put its signature spin on, and anything sci-fi is a likely contender.
The “dumb playthrough” may not be inherently sci-fi, but it has a great home in RPGs, especially The Outer Worlds. The premise of the dumb playthrough arguably comes from the early games in the Fallout franchise, yet again showing some of the inspiration that helped to create The Outer Worlds’ universe. As the name implies, players could purposefully keep some of their skills below a certain threshold and gain access to a unique set of dialogue options throughout the game’s main story and other special encounters.
While having a low set of skills may be detrimental for most players, those who have tried out the dumb playthrough generally consider it a worthwhile effort for the comedic rewards. The Outer Worlds 2’s humor would be missing a golden opportunity to pass on a dumb playthrough.
The Outer Worlds 2 Would be Wise to Revisit Fan-Favorites from the Original The Outer Worlds
New locations in The Outer Worlds 2 bode well for the sequel in terms of the potential for new vessels of humor. New characters, factions of weirdos, and environmental storytelling are all fair to be expected from the sequel’s change of scenery. At the same time, the community is still holding out for certain favorite characters in The Outer Worlds to reprise their roles.
The setting for The Outer Worlds can be a very depressing place, if not for some of the character-driven humor that shines through the corporate tyranny of the Halcyon System. Whether the original characters and factions return in the sequel or not, the pressure is on for more praiseworthy comedic performances from characters in The Outer Worlds 2.
The science weapons in the original The Outer Worlds deserve the same treatment again for the sequel, if not an upgrade. Unlike some of the easily missable humor like references in specific missions and dialogue lines, the science weapons in The Outer Worlds are a lot more timeless to casually encounter while playing the game.
Science weapons may not be the strongest weapons in The Outer Worlds, but they make up for their lack of strength with how enjoyable and ridiculous their effects can be. In essence, science weapons are the weapon equivalent to the dumb playthrough skill build, which makes the case for both of these features to live on in the sequel.
The Outer Worlds 2 is in development.