Outriders, the upcoming loot shooter from People Can Fly, won't make its original 2020 launch window, but players won't have to wait too much longer past the new year before they get to play it. Square Enix has announced Outriders now launches on February 2, 2021.
It wasn't long ago that things indicated a delay was coming after the game's Steam page was updated to reflect this date, and now it's official.
In a blog post, the publisher explained that the efficiency of the team's ability to finish the game has been hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic. Here's more from them.
It had been our full intention to deliver Outriders to you within the Holiday 2020 season. COVID-19 has certainly affected our operations over the past months, but the teams have all worked extremely hard to adapt to changing circumstances. While the core game is now in a largely complete state, our testing operations were unfortunately among the most affected by the work-process-restructuring caused by the novel coronavirus. To that end, we need a bit more time to get it right and ensure that the Outriders experience will be as smooth and issue-free as it possibly can be when we launch. It is our utmost priority to give you the best and most complete Outriders experience possible, at all costs.
There's good news too, however. The team confirmed Outriders will offer complete crossplay. That means not only can players across systems can join up together, but even across generations. Steam, Epic Games Store, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, PS4, PS5, and Stadia players will all be able to interact in the game, making it the first time a game has done that.
Also in the good news category is the announcement that players who purchase the game on current-gen systems will get the next-gen version at no additional charge. With all that, the game has gone live for pre-orders across its many platforms.
