In my youth, my ultimate goal was to own a VW bus and travel the coast. I yearned for the salty sea, sand, and sun. However, now that I have reached adulthood, I realize the outdoors is not for me. I do not do well in the heat, sunburn more easily, and mosquitos are uber-attracted to me. I love spending time outside with my pup and the occasional beach day. But I would rather play video games and hide in the air conditioning these days. Therefore, when I heard about a video game allowing me to live out younger Blaike’s fantasy, I knew I had to check it out. So, without further ado, let’s talk about Outbound.
Outbound‘s Story
In Outbound, players will find themselves in a utopian future. Equipped with only an empty camping van, you will turn it into your home away from home. This open-world exploration game is cozy to the core. Players can expand their vans and explore at their own pace. To live sustainably, one must scavenge for materials and source energy from natural resources. These resources include sun, wind, or water power. When players are not cruising around, they can craft, grow crops, and customize their van. Additionally, you may need to adjust your systems to adapt to new landscapes and changes in environmental conditions. Overall, Outbound has a little something for every player.
Features Unique to Outbound
- Find energy sources.
- Players will need some sort of power to fuel their operation.
- Find ways to harness the power of the sun, wind, and water.
- Players will need some sort of power to fuel their operation.
- Customize the van.
- There is a modular building space to make the van work for you.
- Players can also make the van pretty.
- Customize it with paint, decorations, and furniture.
- There is a bit of farming.
- Players can keep a garden of vegetables and mushrooms in the van.
- This helps replenish your needs.
- Players can keep a garden of vegetables and mushrooms in the van.
- Crafting.
- This would not be a cozy game without a bit of crafting.
- Players can use what they find to upgrade or automate parts of their home.
- Exploration.
- Players can explore this colorful world and experience a variety of biomes.
- Each biome will have resources and secrets to discover.
- And so much more!
Thoughts on Outbound
I am always on the hunt for cozy games. While I love first-person shooters or survival games, I will always need a break from them. Therefore, when I find a title that stands out from my usual games, I get excited to share it with all of you. Outbound has all of the elements I enjoy from a game of this genre, with just enough of a tweak to make it feel different. Yes, I love farming sims, but sometimes I just want that to be on the back burner. While this title does have farming elements, I do not think it will be the main focus.
Additionally, I want to see how far the van customization will go. How crazy can I make this home on wheels? Can I make it several stories tall? Seeing how far the community will take things like this is always fun. While I am not always good at driving in video games, I like to think this will be a relaxing experience. Ultimately, I am excited to see how this title ends up and the community engagement.
Odds & Ends
At the time of writing, there is no release date for Outbound. However, a Kickstarter is pending, and a Steam page is available. I recommend checking out X for future updates. As I was reading up on this title, the off-grid and sustainability aspects reminded me of Solarpunk. Therefore, if you are interested in these elements, I would recommend checking out that article here. In the end, I am looking forward to learning more about both of these games.
