Why The Outer Worlds 2’s Gunplay May Feel More Like Destiny

Summary

The Outer Worlds 2's gunplay is inspired by Destiny, promising a more impactful, diverse, and mobile shooting experience.
Obsidian is focusing on improving gunplay feedback, variety, and mobility to address the original game's flaws.
Movement options like sprint-sliding and a wider variety of weapons are key improvements for The Outer Worlds 2's gunplay.

It has now been nearly six years since the release of Obsidian Entertainment's The Outer Worlds, which means The Outer Worlds 2's impending 2025 launch is understandably anticipated. Even with that anticipation, however, there may come some skepticism, as the first game might have been quite successful in the end, but not without plenty of flaws, leaving The Outer Worlds 2 to pick up the pieces and offer something better.

One such flaw found within The Outer World's framework was its gunplay, which was criticized for lacking impact and feeling too repetitive. Naturally, this was due to its Fallout influences — particularly Fallout: New Vegas, which Obsidian also developed. Earlier Fallout entries weren't known for having stellar gunplay, and The Outer Worlds adopted that. Fortunately, The Outer Worlds 2 appears to be moving away from Fallout's gunplay and targeting Bungie's Destiny franchise instead, which is widely considered to have some of the best gunplay in the industry.

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By J. Scott Thurlow

The Outer Worlds 2's Gunplay Might Be Comparable to Destiny

Obsidian Cited Destiny as an Inspiration for The Outer Worlds 2's Gunplay

Anyone who has played Destiny or even seen some of its gameplay likely knows just how solid its gunplay is. In fact, Destiny 2 arguably has some of, if not, the best gunplay ever implemented in a first-person shooter. As such, it makes sense that Obsidian might target Destiny as inspiration for The Outer Worlds 2's gunplay, in light of the first game's lackluster mechanics in that regard.

The Outer Worlds 2 appears to be moving away from Fallout's gunplay and targeting Bungie's Destiny franchise instead, which is widely considered to have some of the best gunplay in the industry.

In a recent IGN First preview of The Outer Worlds 2, the publication stated, "Improving gunplay was a major focus for Obsidian, citing Destiny as a touchstone for what good gunplay should feel like." While a direct quote from Obsidian is missing here, it still shows evidence of the developer's intentions to make The Outer Worlds 2's gunplay feel more like Destiny than Fallout.

The Outer Worlds 2's Gunplay Emphasizes Feedback, Variety, and Mobility

Based on what has been revealed so far, it seems that Obsidian has truly incorporated those Destiny influences into The Outer Worlds 2's gunplay for a system that feels more impactful, responsive, diverse, and mobile than it did in the first game. One of the biggest improvements may lie in the sequel's weapon feedback, which was a core criticism of the first game's gunplay. While it hasn't been outright confirmed, guns in The Outer Worlds 2 look like they can hit harder and pack more of a punch than they did in the first game.

Weapon feedback is a significant factor in why Destiny's gunplay is often praised, so if Obsidian has been looking at Bungie's pride and joy for inspiration, it's only natural that factor would find its way into The Outer Worlds 2.

According to the same Outer Worlds 2 preview by IGN, the sequel will let players "be more nimble and do things like sprint-slide while aiming down sights like an action hero." Sprint-sliding while aiming down sights is a popular move in Destiny 2, particularly in PvP, so that's a clear sign that The Outer Worlds 2 is improving the mobility of its gunplay based on Bungie's best. Furthermore, the gameplay trailer for The Outer Worlds 2 indicated that there will be "more weapons" this time around, with IGN's preview even referring to them as "wild and wacky." This hints at greater weapon diversity than the first game, which is also a major component of Destiny's gunplay.

From movement options like sprint-sliding to what seems to be stronger weapon feedback and a wider arsenal, everything revealed for The Outer Worlds 2 so far looks great for its gunplay. What makes that better is that it's not just a change for change's sake, but a direct response to the first Outer Worlds' biggest weakness. Whether or not the final product fully captures the feel of Destiny remains to be seen, but if The Outer Worlds 2 can even come close, it could finally deliver the kind of first-person shooter combat that matches the strength of its world and writing.

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