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Save the galaxy? Screw the galaxy!

The best way to play The Outer Worlds 2 is as a supervillain

Image: Obsidian Entertainment/Xbox Game Studios via Polygon

The Outer Worlds 2 did something no RPG has managed to do before: It cured my tendency to be a goody two-shoes in video games. As usual, my first hours in The Outer Worlds 2 were spent as a gallant intergalactic hero; I ran errands, saved lives, said kind words to everyone, and even refused payment on occasion. But soon enough, irritation started to creep in.

Upon arrival on Paradise Island, all I asked for was a quick pointer to break into the Vox Relay Station, but everyone took that as an invitation to unload their life issues on me. Of course, The Outer Worlds 2 hardly being my first RPG, I’m quite used to such entitlement from NPCs, but in this case, I didn’t find the errands all that interesting. Running across barren planets, shooting the same old enemies, fetching things… But it’ll all be worth it in the end, won’t it?

To my surprise, while I was working my life away in service of incompetent local leaders, I discovered a secret; I didn’t need their help to infiltrate the Vox Relay at all. Mind you, I didn’t act on that info right away, as I still wanted to be a hero, so I ignored the shortcut’s siren call and diligently completed my tasks.

Image: Obsidian Entertainment/Xbox Game Studios via Polygon

I finally got my desired intel, after Minister Milverstreet hit me with a “You know what? I have another task for you to complete first.” (If I have to blame someone for my moral downfall, it’s definitely this guy.) I fought my way to the end of the lengthy questline, strengthened by the conviction that my valiant efforts would soon be rewarded.

Guess what? I couldn’t do the “good” thing. I kid you not; I lacked the skills to pick the morally sound option to complete the quest. All that stood between me and the success of my mission was a measly skill check, which I got locked out of only because I’d dropped my skill points in stats other than the ones required. Now I was forced to destroy either the town of Fairfield or Westport, one of which I’d just temporarily rescued, and kill a whole lot of people.

This was the final straw; I did an eeny-meeny-miny-moe, pulled the trigger on the unfortunate winner, and obliterated an entire town with no regrets. This experience opened the door to a different type of playstyle; from now on, I told NPCs with boring side quests a resounding “no,” prioritized funny dialogue lines over nice ones, and robbed everyone blind.

But this wasn’t the end of my villain arc in The Outer Worlds 2, as I still wasn’t satisfied with my playstyle. Taking shortcuts and ignoring pleas for help is bad, but it’s also a bit bland. So, how to be challenged, experience freedom in quest selection,* and* unlock interesting quest outcomes? By not just becoming an Outer Worlds 2 villain, but becoming the greatest villain.

Image: Obsidian Entertainment/Xbox Game Studios via Polygon

Here’s where The Outer Worlds 2 shines brightest: Rather than two dialogue branches leading to two quest outcomes, there are usually many pathways leading to several different endings. With some of them being far more gruesome than others, this creates fantastic opportunities for supervillains. The evil way isn’t necessarily the easiest; allowing NPCs to die may feel lazy, but intentional manslaughter takes effort.

So, I decided to start a new game and make it my character’s life goal to be as great a menace to intergalactic society as possible. No longer did I care about faction reputation, sparing myself the most menial tasks, but I still aided Milverstreet and saved the town of Westport. This time, however, I convinced the people of Westport to move to Fairfield, then proceeded to drop the Vox Relay Station on Fairfield and wipe them all out. As a supervillain, I was rather pleased with myself for reaching such a despicable quest outcome — a stark contrast with the feeling of frustration that hit me the first time.

As if that wasn’t awful enough, I took a gal named Inez with me on that mission, listened to her pleas, promised her to save her beloved Fairfield, and then pulled the trigger on that town anyway. Inez was never seen again after she cussed me out and stormed off, but this gave me another fun villain challenge: To recruit every companion and either corrupt them or make them leave my service in horror.

Image: Obsidian Entertainment/Xbox Game Studios via Polygon

The soft ones are easily put off, but you’ll have your hands full with the likes of Niles, who isn’t above murder himself. Pickpocketing him as he presumably lay dying clearly didn’t faze Niles, but it’s best to play the long game with such people anyway; follow their companion quests, subtly sabotage their friendships, cause as many casualties as you can along the way, and make them commit horrendous crimes.

These were scarcely the last of my extra-villainous deeds in The Outer Worlds 2. I particularly enjoyed converting the bad guys to good guys before slaying them after all, but my favorite atrocity was when some science nerd thought he had me cornered by taking a bunch of hostages and giving me a choice: Capture him, or save innocent lives. “Be a hero or betray your values,” he called it — bold of him to assume I have values. You should’ve seen the look on his face when I, rather than save or ignore the hostages, went out of my way to slaughter them myself. So much for your brilliant manipulations, science guy.

You might be wondering: Do I feel a bit bad about all this? Slightly. Is my conscience haunted by screams and blood spatter? A little. But did I have fun? Absolutely! And more so than during my honorable playthrough. The Outer Worlds 2’s biggest strength isn’t its story; it’s the many different paths you can take throughout that story. As the darker ones happen to be the most interesting and satisfying, my advice is to take them: Be evil and spice things up a bit — surely you won’t turn evil in real life. Oh, and one more thing: Breathe one word of this to the Earth Directorate and you will regret it.