From Canadian studio, Red Barrels comes the anticipated release of the third instalment in the ‘Outlast’ series, ‘The Outlast Trials’. Initially released in May 2023, into Early Access, MKAU were lucky enough to be given access to the full release build of the game ahead of its March 5th official launch. I’m not the best when it comes to horror games – I can’t really play them without sweating buckets and needing a lie-down. This game definitely ticked that box for me.

Set in 1959, as the Cold War is heating up and the Second Red Scare is in full swing, the Murkoff Corporation is recruiting volunteers to be human guinea pigs in a set of trials designed to turn them into Sleeper Agents, also known as ‘Reagents’. Through psychological and physical trauma inflicted by ‘The Trials’, these untrained civilians are made to question everything about their own morals, and stripped of the very fabric of themselves to create these Reagents that are planned to be released back into society, ready to be triggered at any single moment.

In the Outlast Trials, you play as one of the civilians being moulded into a perfect Sleeper Agent to combat the looming Soviet threat. Put through several different programs, you are faced with puzzles and tasks you must complete to finish The Trials, all the while being hunted by several failed experiment subjects who now have a taste for physical and psychological torture.

Playable on KBM or a controller, you start off waking up in your bed in the Sleep Room, the lobby screen, and you customize your character with the huge array of options available. You are then thrown into a tutorial, teaching you how to interact with your surroundings, vault over furniture, crawl through small spaces and avoid calling the attention of the failed subjects. From here, you are then free to start your first real Trial.

I have to say, after failing my first trial run because I died to one of the enemies, I had to stop playing for a bit because I was legitimately anxious. I think considering you can’t really fight back against them when your character is a low level, and all you can do is just run away and hide in a cupboard or under a bed, really didn’t help me feel any better.

Coupled with trying to avoid sound traps like broken glass and hanging cans which draw the subjects to you, whilst trying to also avoid being gassed with a chemical that gives you full-blown psychosis, made things pretty bloody tense to put it frankly. Thankfully, through a few, mostly helpful NPCs in the lobby screen, you can unlock different buffs and equipment to help you fend off the baddies.

Dr Noakes, a kidnapped Engineer, can help you out with some new, upgradable rigs that can help incapacitate your enemies, heal you or upgrade your night vision goggles. Nurse Barlow, a MurkCorp-apologist Pharmacist who believes the Trials will change the world, can prescribe you with Rx which helps improve your mental and physical health and abilities.

Then, there’s Dorris, another test subject who manages a line of high-contraband items known as “Amps” which can be applied to your character to allow for certain buffs or passive abilities. You can also use the money you’ve gained in the Trials to unlock new cosmetics for your character and customize your bedroom with stacks of different items and pattern options.

This game can be played in its single-player mode, or in a cross-platform party of up to 4 players. I, obviously, much preferred playing in a party, but I’m trying to convince myself it’s because you can arm wrestle and play chess with your mates in between Trials in the Sleep Room.

Created on Unreal Engine, the game’s graphics are impressive. Gory and dark – almost to the point I was bulging my eyes trying not to miss a single movement even in a well-lit area, but only because I was engulfed and terrified of the enemies.

They’re so well designed to be horrific that I couldn’t help but feel my stomach drop at the sight of one of them. The environment is disgusting, and rightly so. Blood, decapitated bodies, and random body parts are scattered throughout the levels and really drive home the point that you are not safe and you probably shouldn’t be here if you want to stay alive.

The sound work is also fantastic. It’s loud, freaky, and definitely purposed to scare you. Even in the loading screens, you’re confronted with a voice that sounds like it’s rolling around in your head, and the sound design uses every channel available to it to really get you immersed. This is also really helpful when you’re in the Trials too, so you can hear your enemies trying to hunt you, or when your heartbeat starts racing because they’ve finally found you.

In conclusion, I’m never reviewing another horror game. This one was enough for me. It’s scary, gory, and a little too immersive for me personally, to the point I had a lot of trouble playing this on my own without a party. The premise of the game is really cool and will interest you if you’re into all the ‘MK Ultra’ experiments and the like. The Outlast Trials is fantastic work from Red Barrells. GG.

Written by: Emily France