What it Means to be an Altered Human in Outriders
You may still be blown away from what the trailers for People Can Fly’s upcoming looter-shooter RPG, Outriders, has shown us with its fast-paced, explosive content. You undoubtedly see the DNA of other prominent games in its execution, but Outriders has taken only the best concepts from titles like Gears of War, Destiny 2, Anthem, and more to create a new experience we desperately crave. The biggest decision to make before jumping into the wilds of Enoch is which class of Altered human you want to be. If you need more information, look no further as we highlight just what to expect from Outriders’ epic new classes.
1. The Trickster
Space and time are your plaything to do with as you wish. The Trickster class is a specialist at hit and run, rogue tactics. Consider the combination of Hunter from Destiny and Interceptor from Anthem. Agile and built to move, the Trickster is best utilized for tactical maneuvers, eliminating snipers, and setting up the enemy for your allies to take them down. Many of the Trickster’s skills will revolve around slowing down time for the bad guys and charging them with electric energy. He can generate a large field to slow multiple enemies or use a melee attack to simply slow one. The Trickster can also teleport long distances and appear behind enemies to take out snipers and create an effective pincer maneuver.
As an up close and personal specialist, the Trickster heals by getting kills in close range, whether that is a shotgun blast, a melee strike, or a sweeping blow of his energy sword that makes the enemy burst in a rain of blood. Not only will this regenerate health, but generate a temporary energy shield that will function like a second armor for some much needed survivability. The Trickster is best used in mid to close range to be effective, with the teleport available to close the gap on difficult enemies. Shotguns are definitely the Tricksters best friend alongside a sturdy assault rifle to pepper enemies as they enter the stasis field.
2. Pyromancer
The name says it all. Pyromancer is here to deal massive AOE damage and set the stage on fire. Not quite as effective in mobile combat as the Trickster, the Pyromancer is otherwise very well balanced in offensive and defensive capabilities. Capable of throwing a small wall of flames, the Pyromancer is also incredibly effective at uprooting enemies under cover with its eruptive ground attack. Striking the ground, flames burst forth until they meet a target, imbuing the unfortunate enemy with explosive energy and causing it to go up in flames, damaging all of its nearby allies. The Pyromancer is also capable of throwing forth a wall of ash which clings to the enemy, slowing them down and dealing severe fire damage while putting them up in flames. If it were to be compared to similar classes, the Pyromancer is a blend of the Warlock of Destiny and the Storm or Ranger of Anthem. This is a class that can take a hit and excels at mid range combat, dealing huge AOE damage from a moderate distance.
The Pyromancer is a tactical asset to the team, able to mark all targets in the area for everyone. It will highlight where they are, their hit points, enemy level, and any effects such as shields or resistances. A Pyromancer is able to heal their wounds when a marked target is killed regardless if they are the one pulling the trigger. This makes Pyromancer a natural tactical leader, best kept in the center of battle or slightly back to observe and advise the team. Assault rifles, LMG’s, and sniper rifles are a Pyromancer’s best friend for controlling a wide area of combat.
3. Devastator
The Devastator certainly isn’t there to look at the flowers. Obviously the “tank” class, the Devastator is what happens when Destiny’s Titan mixes with Anthem’s Colossus. Brute force and smashing is the name of the game. This class is attuned to the gravity of Enoch and manipulates it in a powerful field that surrounds their body. While sprinting towards the enemy, the Devastator can use his powers to rip stones out of the ground and create a skin-like barrier around him for ramming full speed through hordes of savages and bestial creatures. He can manipulate the field around himself to leap high into the air, target an enemy, and come plummeting down in an explosive shockwave AOE that sends debris flying. The Devastator is built to take damage and dish it right back; if he isn’t standing in the thick of combat, hes probably facing the wrong way.
Much like the Trickster, the Devastator class will heal based on close range kills. With its superior health pool and damage output, the Devastator does not gain a shield like the Trickster, but it also doesn’t need to; it will be shredding enemies to pieces to often to worry about a shield. The Devastator is of course going to be about serious damage, so weapons like shotguns, hand cannons, and LMGs are all viable options.
4. ???
While we did get to share an extensive look at the Trickster, Pyromancer, and Devastator classes, what we did NOT get to see is the mysterious and unknown fourth playable class available when Outriders launches in Holiday 2020. With each class seemingly representing one of the classic elements, could this fourth class have something to do with the air? Or perhaps given the nature of the Anomaly and what it has done to humanity, perhaps it is something more dark and sinister? Until People Can Fly are ready to tell us, we can only speculate.
This brief look at the classes only scratches the surface of a few, un-modified abilities each class has near the start of the game. They can be used in all manner of intricate combinations with one another to unleash truly devastating effects. The weapons listed above are of course merely recommendations based on my time with the game, but no weapon is locked to a specific class. If you want to be a Devastator with a sniper rifle than by all means, go for it.
Are you as pumped for Outriders as we are? What do you think the fourth class will be? Let us know which class you want to play first on Facebook, Twitter, or the Comments section below