Outland (video game)
Encyclopedia
Outland is a platform
video game developed by Housemarque
and published by Ubisoft
. The game was first demonstrated at Penny Arcade Expo
2010. It combines two-dimensional platforming with a polarity system similar to Ikaruga
. Outland was released in April 27, 2011 for Xbox Live Arcade
. The PlayStation 3
version was delayed because of the PlayStation Network outage
then later released on June 14, 2011.
- one who controls Light from the Sun, and one who controls Darkness from the Moon. The Sisters were imprisoned after the battle, but the hero had perished in the process. The shaman informed the man that he was the hero's reincarnation
, and that the Sisters of Chaos have apparently escaped their imprisonment. This man was now the only one who could stop them, and so he went forth on the journey.
First, the man runs into the Crossroads of the World, which connects to multiple areas. When he arrives, however, he experiences yet another, and the last, vision of the past in the middle of a large shrine
. This is perhaps the most vivid of the visions, because even the player gets a chance to control the hero from 30,000 years ago as he makes his way through the destruction of the world to defeat the Sisters. However, the fight itself is not shown, as the vision is terminated at the very moment the fight began, while the narrator
tells the result.
Back in the present day, the man makes his way throughout four areas: the Jungle, the Underworld, the City, and the Sky. There are four protectors in the world, one per area, but they have been corrupted by Chaos and are now her minions. Due to this, the man must defeat these protectors as well. There are also many different species of creatures throughout the world, born from Light, Dark, or neutral energies, attempting to block the man's path, assisting the protectors and Chaos.
After the defeat of one protector, a rune, depicting the defeated protector, is activated in the large shrine in the Crossroads of the World, which triggers a short speech from the narrator about that protector and their corruption, as well as the opening of the next area of the world (e.g. defeating the Jungle protector will open the Underworld for exploration). When all four protectors are defeated and four of the five runes activated, the shrine teleports the man to the Temple of Eternity
.
The Temple of Eternity is where the Sisters were imprisoned in the battle 30,000 years ago, waiting all this time for their chance to escape and "uncreate" the world. The man must travel throughout the Temple of Eternity, finally ending his journey at one section named the Trail of Tears. Just past the Trail of Tears is a giant ladder, identical to the one the ancient hero had used to fight the Sisters. So the man climbs up the ladder and fights the Sisters in one last battle to save the world.
After winning the battle, the man is ready to deal the final blow and end the Sisters' lives, when suddenly, the Temple of Eternity collapses. The Sisters have never actually seen the world, only that they wanted to destroy it and make it their own. But now, after they see the beauty and tranquility that both time and mankind had created, the Sisters humbly surrendered to the man and retreated back to where they belonged; one Sister to the Sun, one to the Moon. The spirit of the ancient hero from all those years ago then escaped from the man's body, as both the spirit's and the man's work were complete.
.
Along the way, players learn special powers from large shrines, from simple melee attacks to the harnessing of Light and Dark energy. Players can also collect hidden objects called "Masks of the Gods" in order to unlock extras such as concept art or enhanced in-game abilities.
Players also have an option to experience the entire storyline online with a friend in co-operative mode. There are also co-op challenges scattered throughout the world that can be unlocked and played when in co-op mode.
In addition to the main storyline, there is an Arcade Mode that puts the player to the test by putting a set time for the player to traverse throughout an entire region and defeat its protector. For example, in the Jungle's Arcade Mode, the player has 15 minutes to travel throughout the entire Jungle and defeat the Golem in the end. The highest scores are posted online on a leaderboard. Flipping a switch, pausing the game, and dying halt the timer. Arcade scores increase with multipliers that drop from enemies, and a bonus is given depending on how much time is left after the protector is defeated. An Arcade chapter for one area is unlocked as soon as the area itself is unlocked.
awarded the game a 9.0/10 and called it an "expertly crafted platformer." The reviewer praised the game's visual style, music, and co-op." IGN
also awarded the game a 9.0 and called it "a hell of a game, and you should play it posthaste." Review aggregator Metacritic
currently gives Outland an 83/100 rating for the PS3 and an 84/100 rating for the Xbox 360.
Platform game
A platform game is a video game characterized by requiring the player to jump to and from suspended platforms or over obstacles . It must be possible to control these jumps and to fall from platforms or miss jumps...
video game developed by Housemarque
Housemarque
Housemarque is a Finnish video game company founded in 1995. With Remedy Entertainment, it is the oldest game company still operating in Finland. They were a fusion of two smaller companies, Terramarque and Bloodhouse. The rise of the PC game market prompted these two companies with a background in...
and published by Ubisoft
Ubisoft
Ubisoft Entertainment S.A. is a major French video game publisher and developer, with headquarters in Montreuil, France. The company has a worldwide presence with 25 studios in 17 countries and subsidiaries in 26 countries....
. The game was first demonstrated at Penny Arcade Expo
Penny Arcade Expo
The Penny Arcade Expo is a semi-annual gamer festival held in Seattle and Boston. PAX was created by Jerry Holkins and Mike Krahulik, the authors of the Penny Arcade webcomic, because they wanted to attend a show that gave equal attention to console gamers, computer gamers, and tabletop...
2010. It combines two-dimensional platforming with a polarity system similar to Ikaruga
Ikaruga
is a shoot 'em up video game developed by Treasure. It was released in the arcades in 2001 on the Sega NAOMI, subsequently released on Dreamcast in Japan and then worldwide on the Nintendo GameCube, and was released on Xbox Live Arcade on April 9, 2008...
. Outland was released in April 27, 2011 for Xbox Live Arcade
Xbox Live Arcade
Xbox Live Arcade is a type of video game download distribution available primarily in a section of the Xbox Live Marketplace, Microsoft's digital distribution network for the Xbox 360, that focuses on smaller downloadable games from both major publishers and independent game developers...
. The PlayStation 3
PlayStation 3
The is the third home video game console produced by Sony Computer Entertainment and the successor to the PlayStation 2 as part of the PlayStation series. The PlayStation 3 competes with Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles...
version was delayed because of the PlayStation Network outage
PlayStation Network outage
The PlayStation Network outage was the result of an "external intrusion" on Sony's PlayStation Network and Qriocity services, in which personal details from approximately 77 million accounts were stolen and prevented users of PlayStation 3 and PlayStation Portable consoles from playing online...
then later released on June 14, 2011.
Plot
In the present day, one man had started to experience dreams and visions of the past. He attempted to take medicine to stop it, thinking that this was a medical problem, but the medicine was ineffective; something larger was at play here. The man decided to find a shaman to find out what the problem was, what these dreams and visions meant, and to cure him of them. However, the shaman told the man of the ancient stories of a battle 30,000 years ago between a great hero and the two Sisters of ChaosChaos (cosmogony)
Chaos refers to the formless or void state preceding the creation of the universe or cosmos in the Greek creation myths, more specifically the initial "gap" created by the original separation of heaven and earth....
- one who controls Light from the Sun, and one who controls Darkness from the Moon. The Sisters were imprisoned after the battle, but the hero had perished in the process. The shaman informed the man that he was the hero's reincarnation
Reincarnation
Reincarnation best describes the concept where the soul or spirit, after the death of the body, is believed to return to live in a new human body, or, in some traditions, either as a human being, animal or plant...
, and that the Sisters of Chaos have apparently escaped their imprisonment. This man was now the only one who could stop them, and so he went forth on the journey.
First, the man runs into the Crossroads of the World, which connects to multiple areas. When he arrives, however, he experiences yet another, and the last, vision of the past in the middle of a large shrine
Shrine
A shrine is a holy or sacred place, which is dedicated to a specific deity, ancestor, hero, martyr, saint, daemon or similar figure of awe and respect, at which they are venerated or worshipped. Shrines often contain idols, relics, or other such objects associated with the figure being venerated....
. This is perhaps the most vivid of the visions, because even the player gets a chance to control the hero from 30,000 years ago as he makes his way through the destruction of the world to defeat the Sisters. However, the fight itself is not shown, as the vision is terminated at the very moment the fight began, while the narrator
Narrator
A narrator is, within any story , the fictional or non-fictional, personal or impersonal entity who tells the story to the audience. When the narrator is also a character within the story, he or she is sometimes known as the viewpoint character. The narrator is one of three entities responsible for...
tells the result.
Back in the present day, the man makes his way throughout four areas: the Jungle, the Underworld, the City, and the Sky. There are four protectors in the world, one per area, but they have been corrupted by Chaos and are now her minions. Due to this, the man must defeat these protectors as well. There are also many different species of creatures throughout the world, born from Light, Dark, or neutral energies, attempting to block the man's path, assisting the protectors and Chaos.
After the defeat of one protector, a rune, depicting the defeated protector, is activated in the large shrine in the Crossroads of the World, which triggers a short speech from the narrator about that protector and their corruption, as well as the opening of the next area of the world (e.g. defeating the Jungle protector will open the Underworld for exploration). When all four protectors are defeated and four of the five runes activated, the shrine teleports the man to the Temple of Eternity
Eternity
While in the popular mind, eternity often simply means existence for a limitless amount of time, many have used it to refer to a timeless existence altogether outside time. By contrast, infinite temporal existence is then called sempiternity. Something eternal exists outside time; by contrast,...
.
The Temple of Eternity is where the Sisters were imprisoned in the battle 30,000 years ago, waiting all this time for their chance to escape and "uncreate" the world. The man must travel throughout the Temple of Eternity, finally ending his journey at one section named the Trail of Tears. Just past the Trail of Tears is a giant ladder, identical to the one the ancient hero had used to fight the Sisters. So the man climbs up the ladder and fights the Sisters in one last battle to save the world.
After winning the battle, the man is ready to deal the final blow and end the Sisters' lives, when suddenly, the Temple of Eternity collapses. The Sisters have never actually seen the world, only that they wanted to destroy it and make it their own. But now, after they see the beauty and tranquility that both time and mankind had created, the Sisters humbly surrendered to the man and retreated back to where they belonged; one Sister to the Sun, one to the Moon. The spirit of the ancient hero from all those years ago then escaped from the man's body, as both the spirit's and the man's work were complete.
Gameplay
Outland is a 2D platformer with action game elements. Gameplay mainly revolves around using Light (blue) and Dark (red) energies, which allows the player to pass through their respective barriers, and attack monsters born of the opposite alignment (e.g. use Light to attack Dark monsters). The game uses an open world structure similar to Super MetroidSuper Metroid
, also known as Metroid 3, is an action-adventure video game and the third game in the Metroid series. It was designed by Nintendo Research & Development 1, programmed by Intelligent Systems, and published by Nintendo for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System video game console...
.
Along the way, players learn special powers from large shrines, from simple melee attacks to the harnessing of Light and Dark energy. Players can also collect hidden objects called "Masks of the Gods" in order to unlock extras such as concept art or enhanced in-game abilities.
Players also have an option to experience the entire storyline online with a friend in co-operative mode. There are also co-op challenges scattered throughout the world that can be unlocked and played when in co-op mode.
In addition to the main storyline, there is an Arcade Mode that puts the player to the test by putting a set time for the player to traverse throughout an entire region and defeat its protector. For example, in the Jungle's Arcade Mode, the player has 15 minutes to travel throughout the entire Jungle and defeat the Golem in the end. The highest scores are posted online on a leaderboard. Flipping a switch, pausing the game, and dying halt the timer. Arcade scores increase with multipliers that drop from enemies, and a bonus is given depending on how much time is left after the protector is defeated. An Arcade chapter for one area is unlocked as soon as the area itself is unlocked.
Reception
The game has received positive reviews. Tom Mc Shea of GameSpotGameSpot
GameSpot is a video gaming website that provides news, reviews, previews, downloads, and other information. The site was launched in May 1, 1996 by Pete Deemer, Vince Broady and Jon Epstein. It was purchased by ZDNet, a brand which was later purchased by CNET Networks. CBS Interactive, which...
awarded the game a 9.0/10 and called it an "expertly crafted platformer." The reviewer praised the game's visual style, music, and co-op." IGN
IGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
also awarded the game a 9.0 and called it "a hell of a game, and you should play it posthaste." Review aggregator Metacritic
Metacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
currently gives Outland an 83/100 rating for the PS3 and an 84/100 rating for the Xbox 360.