Today, during the PC Gaming Show - Tokyo Direct livestream, Canadian indie developer Nine Dots Studio shared new details and a new trailer for Outward 2. First and foremost, the release window for the action RPG sequel is now officially set for Summer 2026; wishlisting is now available on Steam.
Guillaume Boucher-Vidal, CEO and Creative Director at Nine Dots Studio (whom we previously interviewed at GDC 2024), shared a statement to outline what fans can expect from the sequel to the 2019 game that recently surpassed three million units sold to date:
With Outward 2, we finally have the means to deliver the vision we had for the game — a believable and grounded adventurer experience. We kept the same ingredients, stayed true to our vision, and improved on what was not up to what we wanted - our combat system, immersion, and character creator. When we started working on Outward in 2015 with our Kickstarter, we wanted to create the ultimate simulation of an adventurer's life. With a small team of 11 dedicated people, we surpassed expectations and delivered something greater studios could not have achieved. With Outward 1 we learned a lot from our players, we improved from their feedback and gave them what they wanted with our DLCs. We stayed true to our vision that they loved while elevating the experience of living a true adventurer's life. Much better graphics, better immersion, and better combat.
In Outward 2, players will once again be just an average adventurer instead of a legendary hero. They'll however get to shape their modest and meager beginnings through three distinct starting scenarios and eleven backgrounds, including devout worshipper of Elatt trying to strike it rich as a miner or a vagrant deadbeat in Simeon's Bastion, to name a couple. When knocked out, the player's journey continues and they must live with the consequences. They could be robbed and left to rot, saved by a kind passerby, wake up in town badly injured, or worse.
According to the developers, the game also features a full-year seasonal cycle that will transform the world of Aurai during a playthrough. Merchants and other NPCs relocate, frozen rivers become traversable in winter, and more. The four distinct regions will feature their own biomes, seasons, and specific gameplay.
The new Exercise system reinforces the player's tactical choices, such as the weight and material of armor and weapons used. Passive skills will spark and grow based on how they play. Players should seek out special trainers scattered around Aurai who can teach them survival techniques for a fee.
As hinted earlier, Outward 2 features challenging combat, where every weapon has its own distinct moveset. It is further enhanced with a larger variety of tools, weapon combinations, and animations that provide players with more fluidity and control. Magic is also going to be pretty involved, as it requires players to cast spells through rituals; for example, one could send a fire stone into the air to create a ring that empowers skills with deadly flames.
Inventory management will be critical, as some discoveries won't be worth the precious space. Moreover, during a fight in Outward 2, players may even need to drop their backpack to attack and evade more effectively. However, the sequel adds a mule that can help carry goods.
To get through the harsh journey, asking a friend to help in two-player local split-screen or online co-op action is always a good idea, especially if planning to cover each other's weaknesses.
About the author: With over two decades of experience in gaming journalism, Alessio Palumbo has led the gaming vertical at Wccftech since August 2015. He started working at a young age for Italian websites like Everyeye.it, Gamestar.it, Nextgame.it, and Multiplayer.it before kickstarting the indie English-language publication Worlds Factory as its founder and Editor in Chief. In the last decade, he has coordinated the overall output of Wccftech's gaming section, managed PR relations, assigned reviews, produced daily news coverage, edited gaming content as needed, and delivered game reviews. Arguably, his trademark content is the long series of exclusive developer interviews that have been cited by Wikipedia and by the biggest news media and gaming publications. His passion for technology also makes him knowledgeable when it comes to gaming hardware and tech. His favorite genres include RPGs, MMORPGs, and action/adventure games.
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