Outcast

Outcast is an action-adventure computer game by Belgian developer Appeal, released in 1999 by publisher Infogrames. It was named the "Adventure Game of the Year" by GameSpot the same year.

Plot

In 2007 the U.S. government successfully sends a probe to an alien world in a parallel universe. The probe starts transmitting video images of the world back to Earth. Then, just minutes into the mission, an alien life form discovers the probe and damages it, causing an unforeseen backlash of energy to create a black hole threatening Earth. Cutter Slade, a former U.S. Navy SEAL, is given the job of escorting three scientists (William Kauffmann, Anthony Xue and Marion Wolfe) on a mission to this alien world to recover the probe and close the black hole.

Arriving in this alien world, Cutter is separated from the other scientists and is hailed by the natives as their messiah, the Ulukai.

Gameplay

Outcast uses a unique way to save games, integrated with the game world. At the start of the game, the player receives an object called a "Gaamsav". He is instructed that the Gaamsav is able to "capture his essence", so that it may later b

e restored. To save a game, the player equips the Gaamsav and "squeezes" it, making it glow and emit a sound. The sound can be heard by enemies and they will investigate, so that the player must take the situation into account before saving a game. After a few seconds, the game pauses and a menu overlay appears.

Outtakes

After Outcast was released, developer Appeal published a series of short films on its Web site, called "Outcast Outtakes" (they are included on the DVD version of the game. ). It was essentially a series of in-game recordings which were made to poke fun at itself, such as Cutter making an advertisement for his backpack that acts much like a magic satchel, by showcasing that he could store house furniture such as doors and chairs in it, or extra scenes involving Nikaa, a Talan whose sex remains under debate to this day. These films were made purely for fun, and do not exist in the game itself.

Outcast