I searched the web, but it seems I’m the only one who sees it like this. I love “The Outer Worlds: Spacer’s Choice Edition” and have played it for many hours. The art style looks grittier, and more tangible than “The Outer Worlds 2”.
“The Outer Worlds 2” looks so sleek and clean. There’s something missing, and I can’t put my finger on it.
I believe Spacer’s Choice edition was put out by the game’s publisher (the original Outer Worlds was released before Obsidian’s purchase by Microsoft) and the publisher hired a third party to “punch up” the graphics - Obsidian owned the IP, but not the game itself and had no hand in the Spacer’s Choice version.
Most people at the time, including myself, who played the original didn’t like the Spacer’s Choice version graphics. It certainly didn’t match the developer’s art direction. With Outer Worlds 2, Obsidian stuck with the aesthetic they’d originally done (with some tweaks and improvements) and that’s the difference you’re seeing.
Digital Foundry did a comparison of the two versions, when Spacer’s Choice was released.
Man, I’d forgotten how much I hated the Spacers Choice edition! They turned on all the FX but honestly it just makes the environment look cluttered. And stuff like the volumetric lighting wasn’t really the improvement they thought it was, IMO. And the character models! I’d forgotten how much the lighting changes messed up the textures and face models for the characters.
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That’s justified by its setting I think.
TOW1 is set in the failing hyper-capitalist colony that had quite a few of setbacks and catastrophes in the past and people are being exploited to death in the final push before final collapse when the leadership and the upperclass finally call it quits.
Arcadia system in TOW2 is a home to a “communist utopia” that far more advanced technologically than the rest of the colonies. It’s been ravaged by war but the former glory still remains.
Though personally I didn’t notice much difference in the art style. I guess it has more graphical fidelity because of better shaders or something? I also heard that the first game looked different before Spacer’s Choice edition and people complained about the changes, I’m curious how it stacks up against TOW2.
The first one is just a better game all around. But I liked the second, and I want the franchise to continue.
I liked the first game a bit more from story/characters perspective. It has more heart, even though it goes overboard with the satire (but that has its own charm too). Second game has much better gameplay (though changes are still rather incremental) and interesting factions. Planets/areas are better designed too, though still far from what other games have (exploration aspect was the weakest part of TOW1 and the second game is only somewhat better). But the main story and characters are not as good as in the first one.
