Obsidian has dominated 2025 for me. Not only did I play and love Avowed when it launched earlier this year, I followed it up a few months later by playing The Outer Worlds for the very first time. Now that the space RPG's sequel has finally debuted, I'm diving headfirst into Arcadia for more gunslinging galactic mayhem... and it's been full of pleasant surprises.
It was a long wait for some, but since I only had to sit tight for about 40 days, my memory of the first game might be a little fresher than yours. The Outer Worlds 2 is a huge improvement on every technical level – as expected after six years in development – but I'm most excited about one rework in particular that fixes my biggest gripe with Avowed. And, somehow, makes me think of Resident Evil first and foremost.
Target in sight
The Outer Worlds 2 review: "bigger and better than the first game in every respect, with deep, rich role-playing and plenty of freedom"
I'm talking about third-person mode. It's something that many shooters and other first-person titles have started implementing in recent years, giving players new ways to adapt games to suit their preferences.
Personally, my choices depend upon the genre or style of game at hand. I'll work with what I have, but I largely prefer third person when it comes to shooters – better aim precision, wider FOV. Conversely, I've always thought first-person feels great when playing melee-heavy combat games like Dying Light: The Beast.
It's part of the reason why I was especially excited when Resident Evil Village introduced it as an optional mode with the release of its 2022 DLC, allowing me to play through Ethan Winters' journey from Resident Evil 2 Remake's perspective. I'm already 90% sure I'll be giving Resident Evil Requiem the same treatment after experiencing its unique approach to third-person terror in a hands-on preview a couple months ago.
But alas, when I experimented with Avowed's third-person mode, I was left wanting. Not only did character movement not flow as I'd hoped, hit boxes seemed miscalculated and the look sensitivity when interacting with items had a certain clunky knack to it. I'd opted for a magical combat playstyle, which I'd hoped might feel like a spellcasting sharpshooter mode in third-person.
Unfortunately, my crosshair proved less than accurate, and I somehow found myself flinging lightning bolts over more heads than through them. It was a failed mission, so I swapped back to first-person mode and admitted defeat. Not everyone can be Capcom, I guess.
A different beast
If your game's third-person mode is going to give me grief, I'll take the motion sickness
Which is where The Outer Worlds 2 impressed me. I've only played about three or four hours of Obsidian's latest so far, and to get the most of my final few weeks of Game Pass Ultimate, I made sure to get my head down as fast as possible.
That means I didn't even check the other gameplay settings for hours, let alone learn of TOW2's third-person perspective swap until I went hunting down an FPS toggle. I was immediately intrigued at the prospect. Would this be another Avowed situation, or would gun over magic combat make all the difference this time around?
After a lot of testing, I'm pleased to report that it definitely does. I chose "third-person near", though a "third-person far" option also exists for those who prefer an even wider frame of view. Immediately, I feel my aim improve thanks to my over-the-shoulder comfort zone. The Outer Worlds 2 might be first-person by default, but it feels just as responsive in third; I can pick up ammo and consumables without having to hover at a precise, offset angle, climb ladders without any camera shudders, and I don't get caught on a single piece of scenery.
It's like night and day from my experience with Avowed, and the other other game I can think of that feels this effortlessly smooth in either camera mode is the one and only Resident Evil Requiem - and that's not coming out until February.
Here we have two examples of camera switching gone right, and my standards have soared. It's a strange yet important piece of connective tissue, bridging the realms of RPG and survival horror in a totally unexpected way. I have hope that both games will lead the charge for well-implemented camera modes in titles yet to come. If your game's third-person mode is going to give me grief, I'll take the motion sickness after all.
Check out all the other upcoming Xbox Series X games coming soon, from Fable to Clockwork Revolution.
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