The work that Obsidian Entertainment put into The Outer Worlds has paid off. After selling 2 million copies, the space-based RPG has earned both rave reviews and an enthusiastic following. In a recent documentary series by Noclip, an Obsidian developer revealed that not all of the content developed for the game made it to release.
Noclip's documentary is a five part series that talks about the development process and game design behind the runaway hit. In the first episode on the game's initial concepts, the game's director Leonard Boyarsky told interviewers that the development team had been forced to make several cuts to The Outer Worlds in order to finish it.
Specifically, Boyarsky talked about removing an entire planet from the game. Previously, Obsidian had wanted to create small scopes for The Outer Worlds' storyline. However, the developers soon found that the initial concepts were "too big." While Boyarsky and his team cut several elements from the final game, he regretted making the last cut, which involved removing the planet. The director felt that removing the levels took away from the game's storyline and character development. Specifically, he felt the lost planet created a better transition to the ending, which might have felt "rushed" in the final product.
Although this cut might be disappointing to players who were hoping for more content, Obsidian's decision might have been for the best. As another director told Noclip, the team wanted The Outer Worlds to be short and to have a lot of replay value. While removing an entire section of gameplay might have hurt, it could have also given the developers more time to work on the storyline's branching paths. Ultimately, the cut planet did not cause massive issues for The Outer Worlds. If this decision allowed the developers to polish gameplay and design, the final cut was likely worth it.
After all, a potential sequel to The Outer Worlds could likely make up for any shortcomings that the original game held. However, until Obsidian revisits its beloved world, diehard fans and newcomers alike still have new content to look forward to, like the upcoming Nintendo Switch release.
The Outer Worlds is available for Xbox One, PlayStation 4, PC, and will soon be available for Nintendo Switch.