The Outlast Trials Ending Explained, Does the Game Have a Story?
by Rubaditsha | Updated May 23, 2023
Outlast Trials Ending Explained
A Cold War emerged, sparking a battle for dominance that forever changed the lives of American citizens. In the midst of despair and destruction, the Murkoff Corporation seized the opportunity to prey on individuals who believed they had nothing left to lose.
Placing enticing propaganda posters strategically, they enticed people who were desperate for warmth, comfort, and a means to survive. Unbeknownst to these individuals, stepping into the Murkoff Facility would subject them to unimaginable horrors. From cruel human experiments to brutal torture inflicted by stimuli, those who entered never returned as the same person. However, for those who miraculously survived, their ordeal had transformed them into something unrecognizable.
Imagine enduring torturous suffering day in and day out, holding onto the faint promise of eventual freedom. Would you willingly subject yourself to such torment? Vincent's guide on the lore and ending in The Outlast Trials delves into this harrowing question.
The story of The Outlast Trials begins with a demonstration of how propaganda manipulated vulnerable and destitute individuals. Feeling trapped and hopeless, they sought refuge in the Murkoff Corporation, unaware of the company's dark intentions. This game serves as a direct prequel to the original Outlast, set in the 21st century, implying that the events of The Outlast Trials took place in Colorado, where the Mount Massive Asylum was later established. It suggests that whatever sinister activities occurred within the Facility contributed to the asylum's creation, decades later.
Murkoff enticed innocent and impoverished people through their false charitable outreach, offering them purpose and a chance to escape their desperate circumstances. Those who fell for this facade found themselves inside a concrete building devoid of windows and doors, with the promise of freedom upon completion of the Programs. Blinded by a cloth covering their vision, these individuals quickly discovered that the experiments conducted by Murkoff were acts of torture, perpetrated by the so-called "qualified" staff who showed no regard for peace, kindness, or safety.
The Outlast Trials involved inhumane experiments aimed at deliberately altering the mental and physical state of the patients. Participants were subjected to gruesome and horrifying experiments that felt all too real. The hallucinations induced by a strange gas and the presence of hostile, inhuman, and deranged agents, whose sole purpose was to prevent completion of the trials, were genuine threats. Patients would come to realize that Murkoff Corporation had the capability to modify their biology, granting them new abilities through the installation of Rigs and Prescriptions. However, these alterations would have lasting effects on anyone who underwent them—an integral part of Murkoff's grand plan.
Apart from the multiplayer game, the story of The Outlast Trials unfolds through cutscenes. The protagonist is forcibly taken off the streets, subjected to excruciating surgeries that permanently alter their mind. As other patients around them are killed, they manage to survive long enough to plead for their life, which prompts the antagonist, Hendrick Joliet Easterman, to manipulate them further by feigning friendship in their time of need. Another surgery ensues, where a Night-Vision Camera is drilled into the protagonist's temple, signifying their readiness for the experiments. With all their personal information erased, it is as if the protagonist has vanished from the real world, with no one to remember them.
The ultimate objective of The Outlast Trials is to mold the individual into something entirely unlike a normal human being. Through experimentation, surgeries, and torture, Murkoff will only grant freedom to those who have embarked on the "journey" of rebirth. The initial experiment within the Mansion aims to make the patient forget their former self, eradicating their past identity—whether good or bad. Murkoff wants them to destroy their previous selves, enabling them to become something entirely new.
Each trial in The Outlast Trials requires the patient to perform morally wrong acts, subverting the inherent goodness found in people. These acts serve as a form of brainwashing, shaping the individual into a heartless person willing to inflict pain on others for personal gain or to appease Easterman. The agents who relentlessly pursue and attempt to kill the patients during each trial are failed experiments themselves, repurposed as tormentors for new subjects instead of being eliminated.
The first trial entails eliminating a whistleblower against the Murkoff Corporation, punishing them through electrocution. The subsequent trial involves punishing children who have been depicted as "bad" and in need of correction. The final trial revolves around purifying the children by teaching them inappropriate stimuli, all in the name of enforcing "obedience."
All the trials aim to brainwash the patients into committing heinous acts in order to propagate Murkoff's ideology. The Outlast series is known for intertwining religious themes with horror, where antagonists follow their beliefs to the point of mutilating their bodies and engaging in murder and sexual crimes. Those who obstruct the experiments are failed subjects who may not have met expectations or demonstrated excessive instability, preventing their reintegration into society until Murkoff deems it appropriate.
Two key failed subjects, Mother Gooseberry and Leland Coyle, assume the roles of leading antagonists throughout the Police Station, Mansion, and Fun Park. Their behavior provides insights into their own stories. Gooseberry, previously a caring and maternal figure for children, transforms into a monstrous killer who takes pleasure in brutally punishing "naughty kids" by murdering them. She is condemned to roam the Fun Park, defending her animatronic children, forever trapped in a torturous existence as she witnesses her offspring being slain by new patients.
Leland Coyle, a former police officer who once took pride in his work, becomes a sadistic man who relishes the thrill of chasing down "suspects" and inflicting "criminal punishment" with his stun baton. The trials have exploited the Reagents' deepest fears, transforming them into ruthless killers who stop at nothing to find solace. The appearance of the Skinner Man, brought about by inhaling hallucinogenic gas, likely represents Easterman as the mastermind, exerting control over his patients and pushing them beyond their limits.
The conclusion of The Outlast Trials occurs when the protagonist accumulates enough Release Tokens to access the Rebirth Portal, located at the main exit of the Facility. Upon entering, they find themselves immersed in a watery environment reminiscent of the womb—a symbolic representation of birth. Emerging from the water and standing atop it, the protagonist takes on another religious symbol. As they run toward the light, the process of rebirth is finally complete. Awakening from their bed, they are reborn as something new, concealed behind a metaphorical curtain, much like the enigmatic beginning of The Outlast Trials. The question remains: When will the curtain be lifted to reveal the darkest intentions instilled in them by Murkoff?
Murkoff promised freedom, and it was attained, but at what cost? Although no longer trapped within the confines of the Facility like Gooseberry and Coyle, is the protagonist truly different from those still imprisoned? Murkoff eventually establishes an asylum with sinister motives, aiming to mentally and physically destroy its captives beyond repair. While many of the trials' imagery may be hallucinatory, the ending of the first Outlast game introduces a supernatural and powerful entity that requires a host to survive.
Does Outlast Trials have a Story?
The Outlast Trials presents a distinct storyline that sets it apart from previous Outlast games. Unlike its predecessors, this game takes place during the Cold War era, serving as a prequel to the events of the previous games.
In The Outlast Trials, you assume the role of a patient who becomes a subject of mind control experiments conducted by the notorious Murkoff Corporation. These experiments aim to manipulate and control your mind, ultimately leading to your release back into society. Murkoff, a prominent entity in the previous games, continues its dark and sinister practices in this prequel.
Throughout the game, you will participate in different trials, each with its own unique setting. Your objective in these trials is to complete various tasks while being pursued by relentless killers. The enemies you encounter will include recurring types as well as major characters, such as a deranged policeman who enjoys shock therapy or an insane woman with a puppet-like hand containing a hidden drill.
As you progress through the trials, you will embark on a series of journeys filled with intense violence and graphic scenes. Along the way, you will develop relationships with other patients and facility personnel, gradually unraveling their stories and uncovering the interconnected narrative..
Outlast Trials Reborn
To achieve your freedom and join the ranks of the Reborn, you must successfully complete all the trials set by Murkoff in The Outlast Trials. As you progress through the trials, you will accumulate experience points (XP), learning from multiple attempts and fulfilling your assigned tasks. In order to utilize the Rebirth Portal located at the main exit of the Facility, you need to gather a total of 10 Release Tokens. These tokens can be obtained by successfully finishing the trials.
However, it's important to note that simply completing the initial set of trials will not grant you any tokens. You must go beyond the first set and conquer all the trials available on the three maps. Additionally, within each map, there are two additional trials that must be completed before undertaking the Final Exam.
By accomplishing all these objectives, you will earn a Release Token after successfully passing the Final Exam, which serves as the key to securing your escape. The Rebirth Portal will transport you through a final challenge within the Mansion, where your journey began. Upon completing this ultimate mission, you will descend into an infinite ocean, emerging from it and running upon it (symbolically reminiscent of biblical imagery). This signifies the concluding moment of the game, where you find yourself in the safety of your home, reborn and awaiting further instructions.
Although The Outlast Trials implies that you have become one of the Reborn, the exact nature of your rebirth remains uncertain. It is unclear whether you have transformed into one of the Sleeper Agents, released back into society to carry out Murkoff's clandestine agenda. What is certain is that returning to a normal life is no longer an option at this stage.
Outlast Trials Roadmap
Roadmap
Step 1 - Complete the game on normal difficulty and find all collectibles.
During this playthrough, your primary focus should be on locating the collectibles. For more information on their locations, refer to the PULITZER guide. Five other trophies are related to the story and will unlock automatically.
There are a total of 31 notes and 31 documents to be found. It's important to gather all of them in a single playthrough, as they do not carry over to subsequent playthroughs and cannot be obtained through chapter selection. It's advisable to create new save games regularly so that if you miss a collectible, you can easily go back to retrieve it. You can have up to 50 different save games at a time. While it is possible to achieve 100% completion in one playthrough, it is highly recommended to start on normal difficulty.
This is because dying on insane difficulty will result in the loss of all your collectibles, forcing you to start from scratch. Additionally, normal difficulty provides you with more camera batteries and reduces the damage inflicted by enemies, which is extremely helpful when searching for collectibles throughout the game. If you encounter any difficulties, refer to the LUNATIC video walkthrough for comprehensive guidance. After completing this playthrough, the only remaining trophy will be for completing the game on insane difficulty.
Step 2 - Complete the game on Insane difficulty.
Insane mode is based on Nightmare difficulty, but with the added challenge of no checkpoints and the inability to save the game. If you die, you will need to restart from the beginning, losing all your progress, including collectibles. In this mode, you can only carry two batteries for your camera, spare batteries are less common, boss enemies can kill you in a single hit, and normal enemies require two hits to defeat.
This step may require multiple attempts (typically around 5 tries). The advantage is that if you sprint through the game, it will only take around an hour to complete. The game becomes significantly shorter once you are familiar with the optimal paths. Since enemy behavior is entirely scripted, you can easily replicate the same strategy each time. For more information and a comprehensive walkthrough, consult the LUNATIC guide.
Outlast Trials Full Game Release Date
The Outlast Trials, developed and published by Red Barrels, is a psychological horror survival video game played from a first-person perspective. Serving as the third installment in the Outlast series, it takes place before the events of the first two games, offering players a prequel experience.
The game introduces a group of test subjects who find themselves embroiled in a mysterious experiment set during the Cold War era. The main objective is to survive the harrowing challenges and threats that await them. The Outlast Trials was initially released on May 18, 2023, via early access specifically for Microsoft Windows platform.
How Many Players can play Outlast Trials?
The Outlast Trials offers players the option to play solo or team up with a group of up to four players in cooperative multiplayer mode. In this mode, your objective is to work together to survive and escape while being relentlessly pursued by deranged killers.
This aspect sets The Outlast Trials apart from its predecessors. Rather than following a linear path to progress through the story, players must collaborate with two, three, or four other individuals to complete objectives within each map, all while evading monstrous adversaries. The game adopts an episodic format that seamlessly integrates cooperative multiplayer into the storytelling experience.
It's worth noting that The Outlast Trials ensures that cooperative play is not obligatory, as certain objectives can still be accomplished individually. However, the benefits of teamwork are significant, whether engaging in the narrative-driven trials or the shorter MK-Challenges.
While cross-platform play is not currently available during the early access phase, the inclusion of cooperative multiplayer in a game like The Outlast Trials may raise some eyebrows, particularly among players accustomed to tackling the game alone. Playing alongside up to four players alters the dynamics of each encounter. Although direct combat is not an option, each player can enhance their skills to better assist their teammates, whether through healing, stunning enemies, or detecting threats through walls.
However, the introduction of cooperative play does not necessarily make The Outlast Trials easier. On the contrary, having other players by your side can sometimes lead to unexpected consequences. Players may experience hallucinations and provide misleading information, causing doubt and confusion. Furthermore, doppelgangers capable of impersonating other players may attack if allowed to get too close.
In addition to the multiplayer feature, many players have expressed the hope that The Outlast Trials will be included in Game Pass, similar to other titles. However, there is currently no confirmation regarding this matter. To sum up, The Outlast Trials allows for cooperative multiplayer with a maximum of four players. Early access is now available for PC, and the game can be purchased on platforms such as Steam and the Epic Games Store.
Outlast Trials Ending Explained:FAQs
The Outlast Trials is a first-person psychological horror survival video game developed and published by Red Barrels. It is the third installment in the Outlast series and serves as a prequel to the previous games. Players take on the role of test subjects in a mysterious Cold War experiment and must survive while being hunted down by deranged murderers.
Yes, you have the option to play The Outlast Trials solo or in cooperative multiplayer mode with up to four players. The game provides the flexibility to tackle mandatory objectives alone if desired.
In cooperative multiplayer, you can team up with 2, 3, or 4 other players to complete objectives on the map while avoiding monsters. The game follows an episodic format that integrates cooperative play into the storytelling experience.
Not necessarily. While cooperative play can provide benefits and assistance from teammates, it also introduces new challenges. Other players may experience hallucinations and make false callouts, leading to doubt and confusion. Additionally, doppelgangers can impersonate players and pose a threat if approached too closely.