Greetings, Misfits!
The release of Outcast Tales is getting closer. We hope the game provides plenty of fun for everyone, with many hours of content to take a crack at. But don’t just sit on your hands simply replaying The First Journey over and over in anticipation, as we will be releasing an update to The First Journey, so you might want to wait before jumping into adventure with fresh eyes.
How about you play or watch something else for now instead? And that’s why we’re here today.
Together, we are going to take a look at media with obvious similarities to Outcast Tales; some of it might’ve even inspired us in some ways! Hopefully, these stories will tide you over while you’re biting your nails off in wait for the game.
Death Road to Canada (2016)
It’s a zombie apocalypse and only your dim-witted friends can save you! Explore the cute and quirky side of post-civilizational mayhem, ward off zombies with a bunch of random items, and survive while ransacking locations for fuel and resources.
The idea of a team of unique characters going on a large, semi-randomized adventure definitely was a big inspiration for the general progression of Outcast Tales. We really wanted our game to have tons of items, unique events, and character interactions that make every playthrough feel different. And yet, even with all the carnage going on, each new run still manages to tell a unique story and create a fun memory.
The big highlight for us were the car rides in-between the action locations: each one sets up some sort of a unique scenario and mini-story, lets the player do a meaningful choice that changes the outcome of their playthrough or affects their resources, and also acts as a springboard for character dialogue and fun banter. Having these episodes accomplish multiple goals at the same time while keeping things brisk and breezy is something we definitely learned from for our Campfire sections.
Trigun (1998)
Surely you expected a Western picture to be a big inspiration, didn’t you? Many probably expected something closer to The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly, though…
Both Trigun and Outcast Tales fall into the category of “Western”, but only metaphorically so: things don’t literally take place in the Wild West (in fact, both take place in the far future), but things do happen against a somewhat desert-y backdrop meant to symbolize an unconquered frontier.
What really sets these apart is injecting a hearty dose of comedy into the usually stoic setting, with both Vash and your main party bouncing off other characters in unexpected ways (that said, Outcast Tales definitely brings even more havoc to the table).
It isn’t all smiles and laughs, though: as you watch or read Trigun, deeper layers will come into play, revealing secret pasts and clandestine conspiracies. While this isn’t exactly the template used in Outcast Tales, we did want to highlight a few more thought-provoking moments throughout the adventure: as you play, your party will be faced with plenty of funny and somber choices, leading to unexpected and permanent consequences. A lot of these moments are played for laughs, but they’re often based on some type of a real moral dilemma, and we hope these sequences give you a nice opportunity to engage with the game on a slightly deeper level.
Sometimes just stopping and thinking for a few moments makes the ensuing carnage all that sweeter, you know? It’s just a few moments, though!
Slay the Spire (2019)
You might have expected that, and it’s no surprise, as the games do share some of the DNA.
Obviously, Outcast Tales is not a deck builder game, but what we really wanted to hone into are the tactics surrounding your opponents. Each battle in Slay the Spire is an event that requires you to plan your deck accordingly and engage in an arduous fight that will test your planning, wits, and maybe a little bit of your luck.
For Outcast Tales, we aimed to take that feeling of each fight being an important, boss-like event, and boosting the strategic factor way up.
You are not dealt a deck of cards this time, but you are also not braving the sandstorms all alone. The key factor to every battle is your party composition and being able to plan around your team’s moves and long-term growth.
Most importantly, Outcast Tales lets you view the upcoming turns and actions of your opponents. All the machinations are laid bare, which lets you focus on the strategizing aspect of a particular fight. Your luck really only matters for the critical hits and out-of-battle scenarios.
We hope the tactical nature of our game’s battle system produces plenty of synergies with your customizable party and the myriad of random events, making each run truly a unique experience and a tale to be told and retold.
The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy (1978-1979)
Last but not least. Let’s address what is possibly the biggest highlight of Outcast Tales: the writing.
We always wanted to zero in on the concept of making an RPG rougelite game. But is it really a true RPG if you don't have miles upon miles of optional dialogue that dives deep into every characters’ personal history, the worldbuilding, and the social mores that echo our own predicaments?
We thought so too, so instead we filled the game to the brim with jokes and outrageous situations to make it as shareable and repostable as possible.
In all seriousness, The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy is a brilliant piece of writing and a masterpiece of sci-fi satire, and if you haven’t listened to it, or read it, or at least watched it — you really should.
What makes it special for us, is that it deconstructs its genre while still preserving what makes it fun for the readers in the first place. Taking the sci-fi tropes and plot contrivances and cranking them up to eleven doesn’t take away from the core aspects of a sci-fi story, nor does it make the what-if philosophical quandaries less compelling; lampshading the trappings of the genre only ends up making them shine brighter. That, and we just wouldn’t be able to live without the thick, succulent paste of its British cheekiness.
A moment from the 2005 movie adaptation
For Outcast Tales, we strived to do a similar thing for the Western genre, post-apocalyptic scenarios, and sci-fi, all rolled into one. We even brought in Samuel Barnett to do the voice and provide the game with that missing Englishman touch.
Of course, we wouldn’t be able to preserve exactly the same narrative structure due to the game’s interactive and randomized nature. However, we’re hoping the writing chops will shine through in a myriad of character encounters, scenarios that skirt the line between hilarious and morbid, and all the billions of words of character dialogue we’re working on.
Outcast Tales can be many things, but at the end of the day we hope it becomes a fun and funny story for you to experience and share with others.
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So how was that for a trip down the memory lane? Obviously, these weren’t the only influences on Outcast Tales — we’ve also been inspired by even more video games, Terry Prachett, and our tabletop sessions, among a multitude of other media.
We hope sharing those with you gave you some insight into our creative process. Who knows, maybe you’ll even pick up some new favorites and have something to scratch that itch before the inevitable release of the game!
But enough about us: what is it that makes you excited for Outcast Tales? Are there certain inspirations you’re looking forward to? A certain gameplay mechanic you like, or a feeling you wish to capture?
Share all of it on the CRITICAL REFLEX Discord server! And don’t forget to follow our Twitter page and wishlist the game on Steam to stay posted on all the upcoming updates.
See you soon!
https://store.steampowered.com/app/2551970/Outcast_Tales/
