The Outlast Trials is a first-person survival horror game developed by Red Barrels for the PlayStation 5. Players take on the role of Reagents, test subjects subjected to psychological and physical experiments by the Murkoff Corporation during the Cold War era. The core experience revolves around navigating dangerous environments filled with hostile enemies while completing objectives, either alone or alongside up to three other players in cooperative sessions.
Gameplay
The game emphasizes stealth and evasion over direct confrontation. Reagents must avoid detection by various Ex-Pops and Prime Assets that patrol the trial areas. Environmental hazards such as noise traps and electrified surfaces add further risk. Players rely on night vision goggles to navigate dark spaces, though battery management becomes critical during extended sessions. Distraction tools like throwable bricks and glass bottles allow temporary lures or stuns against pursuers without escalating into full combat.
Each Reagent selects from a set of rigs, which function as cooldown-based abilities. These include devices for detecting items and enemies through walls, area healing effects, smoke-emitting mines to obscure vision, stun projectiles, and deployable barricades to block paths. Progression involves earning experience from trial performance grades, which unlocks upgrades and new rig options. The Sleep Room serves as the central hub where players customize loadouts, decorate personal cells, and prepare for upcoming sessions.
Game Modes
Trials form the main structured experiences, consisting of story-driven scenarios across multiple environments. These include locations such as a police station, carnival, orphanage, courthouse, toy factory, and prison farm. Each trial features primary objectives alongside optional secondary tasks that improve final grades. MK-Challenges provide shorter, focused variants within the same maps, often with modified goals.
Additional options expand replayability. Program X and Program Ultra deliver remixed, higher-difficulty versions of core content. Weekly Therapy introduces rotating variators that alter enemy behavior, loadouts, or map conditions. Escalation mode starts players with minimal resources and increases challenge across randomized trials. Invasion mode introduces asymmetric play where some participants act as impostors hunting reagents within active trials, using specialized tools and limited time windows.
Progression and Ongoing Content
Completing trials awards release tokens that advance players toward a final solo assessment for freedom from the facility. Higher difficulties unlock progressively and reward better performance without retroactively affecting lower-tier grades. The game supports cross-platform play, allowing seamless grouping across compatible systems.
Regular seasonal updates have expanded the roster of trials, introduced new Ex-Pops, and added events with unique modifiers. Recent additions include a prison farm environment and limited-time scenarios involving environmental hazards like chemical leaks. These updates maintain fresh challenges while preserving the core loop of objective completion under pressure.
Is It Worth Playing?
The Outlast Trials delivers intense co-operative survival horror focused on tension, teamwork, and atmospheric dread. It suits players who enjoy stealth-driven experiences and working with others to overcome shared threats, though solo runs remain fully viable and often heighten the sense of vulnerability. The game maintains strong player engagement through consistent updates and seasonal events that introduce new maps, enemies, and mechanics.
Reception has been positive overall, with widespread praise for its faithful adaptation of the series' horror elements into a multiplayer format and its replayable trial structure. Steam reviews reflect very positive sentiment across a large number of ratings. Those seeking short, repeatable sessions with escalating difficulty or longer cooperative campaigns will find substantial value, particularly if they appreciate psychological horror without reliance on combat systems. The PS5 version benefits from solid performance and crossplay support, making it accessible for groups of varying sizes.
