Outriders

Outriders is a gritty, third-person cooperative role-playing shooter developed by People Can Fly and published by Square Enix. Set on the hostile alien planet of Enoch, the story follows humanity's failed attempt at colonization, where a mysterious energy storm known as the Anomaly destroys technology and mutates organic life. Players step into the boots of an "Outrider," an elite soldier who has survived the storm to become "Altered." This mutation grants access to one of four distinct classes—Technomancer, Pyromancer, Trickster, or Devastator—each offering unique abilities to manipulate time, fire, earth, or technology in a desperate war for survival.

The game distinguishes itself in the crowded looter-shooter genre with its aggressive "heal-through-killing" combat philosophy, which discourages cover-camping and forces players into the fray to regenerate health. While Outriders is strictly a PvE experience with no competitive multiplayer, it maintains a dedicated player base through its deep build customization, extensive weapon modding system, and challenging endgame Expeditions designed for squads of up to three players. Its hybrid nature appeals to fans of both visceral shooters like Gears of War and loot-heavy RPGs like Diablo.

Built on Unreal Engine 4, Outriders can be visually demanding, particularly during chaotic combat scenarios filled with heavy particle effects and volumetric fog. While the minimum specifications are modest, maintaining a stable high framerate requires a capable modern CPU to handle the physics and AI calculations. To ensure smooth gameplay, especially during intense ability spamming, users with mid-range hardware should prioritize enabling upscaling technologies like NVIDIA DLSS or AMD FSR. Lowering "Effects Quality" and "Shadow Quality" can also significantly improve 1% low FPS drops without drastically impacting the game's dark sci-fi aesthetic.