The Outlast Trials, the next entry in the survival horror Outlast series, will bring co-op to the franchise for the first time. Developer Red Barrels first hinted at a new Outlast game on October 31, sharing a cryptic image of two hands and the tagline “Where freedom ends” on Twitter.
With only two titles out so far, the Outlast series is already considered one of the best horror franchises ever in games. The first two Outlast games are frequently cited among the scariest games of all time. Not for the faint of heart, both games are extraordinarily violent and gory as well as being frightening, and it looks like Red Barrels will be continuing that trend in The Outlast Trials.
Red Barrels announced The Outlast Trials with a post on the franchise’s Facebook page. According to that announcement, The Outlast Trials is set during the Cold War. While it takes place in the Outlast universe, the timing puts it before the events of the previous Outlast games. The new game also appears to still be early in the development process, as the announcement doesn’t include a release date or any actual images of the game in action. All that’s been confirmed at this point is that The Outlast Trials will feature optional co-op, but that it will be playable solo as well. In the image shared along with the announcement, three test subjects are shown wearing night vision goggles that could be construed as VR headsets, but Red Barrels confirmed in a later comment that The Outlast Trials will not be a VR game.
The Outlast series has some of the best singleplayer horror around, but it will face a lot of competition from big names in the move to multiplayer. Dead by Daylight still has a solid player base and gets regular updates, including film and TV crossovers, three years after its release. The recently announced Project Resistance is a multiplayer spinoff of Resident Evil that’s likely to get a lot of attention just from its connection with Capcom’s famed horror franchise. However, both of those, and plenty of other popular multiplayer horror games, feature asymmetric multiplayer, meaning one player takes on the role of the villain. At least from what’s been revealed so far, it looks like The Outlast Trials will place all of its players on the same side against whatever obstacles the developer throws at them.
Adding a co-op mode is a bold move for Red Barrels. Part of what makes the Outlast series so scary is the sense of isolation it creates, so it will be interesting to see how the developer keeps things tense when players have backup. Judging by the first two terrifying games in the franchise, Red Barrels likely won’t have much trouble giving players nightmare for a third time.
The Outlast Trials is being developed now, with no official release date or indication of platforms at this time.
Source: Red Barrels/Facebook