Begging for transmedia: Outward

Vulnerability.

How many RPGs have that as their emotional core?

When you play Outward by Nine Dots Studio published by Deep Silver, you’re confronted with this feeling constantly. You're a nobody, deeply in debt, with no skills or prospects.

The Souls-like combat, the survival mechanics, the complete lack of handholding, all make every victory, every perilous journey, every lesson learned buzz with emotional intensity. I’d love to see this core expressed in a transmedia story world connected to the upcoming sequel, Outward 2. 

Here are some starter ideas:

“Not the Hero” - short animations for vertical format. Death in Outward is its own adventure: you may reawaken as a prisoner, or in some monster's lair. Premise: our “hero” gets back up, gains momentum, and gets knocked TF out each time. Fast jumpcutty episodes of one guy's adventures out of those prisons and monster dens. Just as he starts to show some mastery, he makes a cocky choice and ends up permadead. Series 2 starts with someone looting his corpse.

“The Weight of Everything” - graphic novel, light on text. In Outward, managing your inventory is closer to Death Stranding than Elder Scrolls, your choice of pack heavily influences your build, so you literally feel the weight of everything you carry. Premise: A solo backpacker makes a perilous journey. We know neither his origin nor his destination. He hides from bandits, flees from animals, runs low on supplies, struggles at every step… so why is he carrying two packs? A fallen companion seems likely, (and reminds us of couch co-op mode) but it's a mystery that will unravel along the way: what does he carry in his pack, and in his soul?

One key thing to leverage for any transmedia execution: environmental storytelling. Outward 2 could see evidence of these other stories dotted across the landscape, inviting us to connect the dots.

Outward’s lore and story are strong, but its VIBES are what linger for fans, and that's exactly what a transmedia campaign should leverage first to draw in new players for the sequel. Man, I'd have a blast designing this!