Outlast

Outlast is a first-person survival horror game. You play freelance journalist Miles Upshur, who travels to the remote Mount Massive Asylum in Colorado, where the Murkoff Corporation experiments away from the public eye. Instead of fighting enemies, you have to evade them and find a way through the facility.

Outlast was released on Sep 4, 2013 for PC. The European PlayStation 4 version followed on Feb 5, 2014, and the Xbox One version on Jun 19, 2014. Outlast came out on Nintendo Switch on Feb 27, 2018, together with the Whistleblower expansion.

Outlast has its own versions for PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One and Nintendo Switch. The PC version supports Windows, macOS and Linux. On PS5 and Xbox Series, the older console version can be played through backward compatibility. No separate native release for Switch 2 is documented.

Outlast focuses on escape, exploration and avoiding dangerous inhabitants. You search for passable routes, open doors, squeeze through narrow passages and use hiding spots to escape pursuers. Miles' vulnerability shapes the entire game.

Whistleblower tells the backstory of the events at Mount Massive Asylum from the perspective of Murkoff employee Waylon Park. The expansion adds new areas and encounters. On Nintendo Switch it is included in the Bundle of Terror, while on other platforms it was released as additional content.

On Windows, Outlast requires at least a 2.2 GHz dual-core processor, 2 GB of RAM, a graphics card with 512 MB of video memory and 5 GB of free storage. For the originally listed recommended settings, Steam calls for a 2.8 GHz quad-core processor and 3 GB RAM. The current Steam client now requires Windows 10 or later.

Miles Upshur reaches Mount Massive following a tip from an insider. Murkoff secretly reopened the hospital. In his search for answers, Miles comes across disturbing evidence of the experiments and at the same time has to find a way out of the sealed-off building.

The camera is Miles' most important tool in the dark. Its night vision makes dimly lit rooms and dangers visible, but it drains power from batteries. Because batteries are limited, you need to use night vision deliberately and search your surroundings carefully.

Miles has no conventional weapons. To survive encounters, you watch movement patterns, hide and take chances to escape. Danger often arises simply because a door or a narrow passage offers only brief protection.

Mount Massive consists of interconnected hospital areas, dark hallways and locked rooms. The game world alternates between searching for a way forward and frantic escape sections. The building and its inhabitants tell part of the story directly through the environment.

Miles investigates what happened at Mount Massive as a journalist. Documents and observations he finds give his stay at the hospital a wider context and make the role of the Murkoff corporation clearer. Anyone who wants to uncover the whole story should search the area off the direct path.

Outlast is a purely single-player horror game. The original adventure relies on a linear story, escape sequences and exploration rather than multiplayer duels or open combat.

Outlast relies on unlit corridors, sudden shifts into chase situations and limited vision through a video camera. The music is by Samuel Laflamme. The presentation uses intense scenes of violence and disturbing imagery.

The Nintendo Switch version offers German, English, French, Italian, Spanish, Japanese, Portuguese and Russian text, among others. Language and audio support may vary depending on the platform version.

Outlast is rated 18 and over in Germany. The Nintendo version carries a USK 18 rating. Extreme violence and disturbing scenes are among the defining elements of the game.