People Can Fly did a great job with Outriders and its story arc, but some of its best parts are not only in its main quests, as side quests like those of the Wanderer end up being incredible pieces of narrative. Players encounter the Wanderer in the forest for the first time, after their discovery of the existence of mysterious aliens inhabiting Enoch, who Tiago says are called Pax when he first introduces August to the group. The Wanderer seems like a lost soul in the toxic environment of the forest, and his robes and gas mask seem to allude to the possibility that he was not administered the treatment for the fungus discovered by Doctor Scurlock.
The Wanderer is an enigmatic character in Outriders, and he tends to speak in riddles whenever players have interactions with him. Regardless, when players first meet him, he talks about how he needs help dealing with beasts because his powers are starting to fail him. Accepting the Wanderer's request begins a quest revolving around the monoliths found in the woods and ancient ruins. The Wanderer doesn't reveal his name, his identity, his powers, nor the purpose of the mission he bestows on the players, and nothing of this is discovered up until the end of the quest chain.
Outriders' Wanderer Missions, and the Quest For Absolution
When players complete the first quest for the Wanderer, he reaches one of the monoliths he seems to be obsessed with, and Outriders reveals that the man is Altered, but he is oblivious to this word as he seemingly hasn't lived in human society for a long time. The Wanderer is able to read the language of the Pax, and his interaction with the obelisk found in the forest seems to reassure him of something, with the character now seemingly determined to do something. He speaks to the Outrider, telling them that feeding their powers will lead them to madness and darkness, instead.
This is not the last time players interact with the Wanderer during Outriders' story, and they meet him again later, in the Canyon of the Grand Obelisk, where the Wanderer is again looking for one of the monoliths that interest him for reasons still not known. When players finally help him once more, the Wanderer interacts with the monolith and, through his powers, he unleashes a small shockwave that produces what looks like an Anomaly-infused shard, or even a dagger. The quest ends on another cliffhanger, with the Wanderer following his own path and disappearing.
Lastly, Outriders gamers find traces of incredible energy coming from bodies of Ferals, who players have learned to be what the Pax transform into when they stab themselves with Anomaly-infused daggers. The main character is concerned with who may be doing this to the Ferals and why, so the final mission begins, and players discover that it was of course the Wanderer all along. The man at this point discloses his identity, being the second in command to Monroy, back in the desert when humans exterminated the Pax, forcing them to turn into Ferals out of desperation and survival instinct.
The Wanderer, likely Nikolai Galyatkin, was at some point ridden with regrets, doubts, and self-hatred to the point that he attempted suicide by walking into an Anomaly storm, but instead was granted the powers of the Altered that to him are a curse. Players help the Wanderer one last time, and he charges up the Anomaly-infused dagger to stab a living Feral hoping that the process will be reversed, and the creature will become a Pax (the so-called 'Children of Enoch') once again. The Wanderer is obsessed with absolution from his sins, and he wants above all to redeem himself for all the atrocities he committed while following the commands of a paranoid man.
Ultimately, what makes this whole questline extremely well written, is that absolution never comes, and the Wanderer's plan is in vain. There is no turning back from what he did, and, as the Outrider tells him, he either lives with it or he doesn't. Yet, the story of the Wanderer seems to be one that will be continued.
Outriders is available on PC, PS4, PS5, Stadia, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
