Dodo Blog

For the next couple weeks I’ll be doing a series of posts on the use of interactive animation in a number of notable games…

Today, Outcast…

It may be cause for concern that a ten year old game still merits inclusion, but it is a testament to just how far ahead of its time Appeal’s open-world adventure really was.

There were many things that made this game, but I will focus on two:

Gratitude and directions.

When you arrive in Adelpha you are something of an unknown quantity. Much is expected of you, but the general populace will not believe in you until you act to help them.

Dispatching a convoy of hated soldiers will gain you much appreciation. It will also change the behaviour of the NPCs around you. Previously observed in silence, now you are greeted with salutes and encouraging gestures.

It doesn’t directly change gameplay, but it creates positive feedback that makes the world feel alive, like your actions matter…

NPCs in Outcast don’t stay in one place. You often need to go look for people. This would be annoying if it weren’t for the game’s fantastic directions-system. You can stop anyone and ask for the whereabouts of a particular NPC. The AI is such that it remembers where it last saw a character and will tell you roughly where to go.

“Yes Ulukai, I saw him going north some time ago.”

So you head north and ask someone else.

“You want that Talan, there,” he says as he turns and points to your right.

He doesn’t say “that character is just east of me“… he turns and points. To this day I haven’t seen any other game do this.*

Simple gestures or expressions can be so much more powerful than dialogue…

Next up: Ico & Shadow of the Colossus

* as a core mechanic, outside of cutscenes