Outlaws + Handful of Missions: Remaster Nintendo Switch Review 7/10 *Some Rootin’ Tootin’ Old School Shootin’* 🤠 @NightdiveStudio #IndieGame #GameDev

First of all, the game runs gloriously on the Switch - for some reason gyro controls were turned on automatically, so I kicked those off as fast as humanly possible - but there are a lot of accessibility options for you to tweak the game to your tastes as you walk – or glide, rather - in the well-worn boots of James Anderson, a retired U.S Marshal who is out to rescue his kidnapped daughter from the casually named ‘Slim’ Sam Fulton, and his associate, the more worryingly monikered ‘Dr. Death’ Matt Jackson.

Outlaws really felt apart from other FPS of the time as the slim, stark visuals almost echo the rangy James Anderson himself. The dusty soundtrack, satisfying weapons and combat take centre stage in the relatively empty-feeling levels that you will be blasting your way through.

Yes, the stages in Outlaws feel far more dated than a lot of other titles from around this time, and I can’t quite work out if I like that aspect or not. There seems to be a lot of big, empty rooms and outside space to roam through, but with only a handful of secrets in each of the nine levels (and five extra in the expansion, bringing it to a total of fourteen overall) the sparseness of each one will either appeal or be a detraction of your enjoyment. 

Whilst it means that nothing feels cluttered, a lot of the enemy placement seems to be a little cheap, as they are often hiding behind doors or spread out in the far distance, which made for a unique experience that certainly wouldn’t work today, and I can’t settle it in my brain if this is nostalgic or just plain irritating, you decide.

With the press of a button, you can flit between the original and updated visuals, and whilst I preferred the more modern style, the differences are more subtle than you’d expect, which is fine, given that Nightdive are very clearly enamoured of the source material and want to be a true to it as possible. 

SUMMARY

I think that this game will be one that fans of the original will adore – it’s always fantastic to see POV-only games from the ‘90s/00’s available on console, and Nightdive are the best at what they do – but the sheer design philosophies that run through the game from the original development will be a tough sell to modern audiences that aren’t familiar with the game, and I can imagine that it’s a bit of a hard sell. 

Whilst there’s online multiplayer, it would have been cool to see local multiplayer included here but overall, I’m just over the moon that Outlaws is finally available to play on console, as it’s a bit of a forgotten title that has a very unique personality that still shines through today, there’s nothing quite like it out there.

7/10

🆒COOL🆒

(also available on PC, Xbox)