Outriders has been clinging to a Holiday 2020 release window for months now. Despite a series of gameplay broadcasts and preview events for the game over the past several months, Square Enix and developer People Can Fly remained mum on the looter-shooter’s exact release date —even while other holiday titles such as Assassin’s Creed: Valhalla, Godfall, and Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War were getting theirs.
Now we know that Outriders won’t be making its initial release window, as many suspected after several changes to its release date were recently spotted on the game’s Steam page, then later it’s Microsoft Store page.
Instead, Outriders is now set to release on February 2, 2021, for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X|S. There will be a Google Stadia version of Outriders, but it will not launch until “sometime later in 2021,” according to Square Enix.
The news was confirmed with a release-date trailer (shown above) shared on the official Outriders YouTube channel. The trailer also showcases new footage of the kick-ass abilities unique to each altered, as well as some of the armor sets and weapons players will have access to.
On top of the game’s new release date, Square Enix also confirmed that Outriders will feature free next-gen upgrades for both the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S.
Those who buy PS4 disc versions of Outriders will, of course, need to own a PlayStation 5 with a disc drive, which will give them access to the PS5 digital upgrade. Those who purchase PS4 digital versions of Outriders will be able to download the PS5 digital upgrade from the PlayStation Store.
The Xbox Series X|S versions of Outriders will upgrade through Smart Delivery.
No matter which version fans pick up, Outriders will support full cross play functionality across PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, and Stadia. That’s something we’ve known about for a little while now, but it’s good to have confirmation that Outriders won’t split its playerbase.
Lee Singleton, Co-Head of Studio at Square Enix External Studios, said:
We’re taking a little bit longer to ensure players have the best possible experience with OUTRIDERS [sic], we’re also including new features like Cross-Play, which will make our game much more accessible on all platforms.
Honestly, I’m a bit relieved that Outriders has been delayed to 2021, what with the glut of games releasing in October and through November. It’ll give me (and others) more time to play it (because sheesh, have I enjoyed the game already), and it won’t get lost in the shuffle along the way.
Stay tuned to GameSkinny for more on Outriders leading up to its February 2, 2021 launch, including our final review.
