The Big Picture
- Outlast is a violent and terrifying survival horror game that immerses players in a derelict asylum filled with mutated inmates.
- The game features a memorable cast of villains, including a hulking serial killer, creepy twins, and a twisted doctor, adding to the horror experience.
- Outlast's unique visual aesthetic, using the protagonist's video camera and night vision, would make it a perfect fit for a found footage style horror film adaptation, with franchise potential due to its sequels and prequel.
The Five Nights at Freddy's movie has officially opened the floodgates for adaptations of horror video games, and we think a perfect candidate for a film adaptation of a horror gaming classic is 2013's Outlast (not to be confused with the Netflix survival competition series). The first ever game from developer Red Barrels, Outlast made a massive splash in the horror games genre, being praised as one of the scariest video games to hit screens in years. The brilliant fan-favorite game throws players into a derelict asylum, where they must survive an onslaught of the mutated inmates who are now running it. As scary as something like Five Nights at Freddy's is, it's a more approachable form of horror entertainment, even somehow having a decent following of younger fans. Outlast is not that at all, being packed to the brim with violence, perversion, and downright heart-attack-inducing scares. With its compelling story, surprisingly profound lore, unique visual aesthetic, and potential for a franchise, Outlast would be a perfect choice for a new horror game adaptation.
Outlast
Hell is an experiment you can't survive in Outlast, a first-person survival horror game developed by veterans of some of the biggest game franchises in history. As investigative journalist Miles Upshur, explore Mount Massive Asylum and try to survive long enough to discover its terrible secret... if you dare.
- Developer
- Red Barrels
- Platforms
- Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Linux OS X, Nintendo Switch
- Mode
- Single-Player
- Genre
- Survival Horror
What Is 'Outlast' About?
The story of Outlast begins with Miles Upshur (Shawn Baichoo) — a freelance journalist who decides to investigate a strange series of reports tracing back to Mount Massive Asylum. He does this after getting an anonymous tip that the asylum's owner, the Murkoff Corporation, has been using the institution's patients for dangerous and unethical experiments. When Miles arrives at the asylum, armed only with a video camera, the suspicious environment seems wholly abandoned. It's the perfect set up for a survival horror game.
After some snooping around, though, it doesn't take long for Miles to start finding bodies or, instead, dismembered body parts. Before the shocked reporter can even process what's happening, he stumbles upon a barely alive Murkoff security guard. The dying guard tells Miles that the company's mutated test subjects, known as Variants, have escaped their confines and are killing everything in sight. Miles meets one of these Variants moments later, as well as a remarkably creepy priest named Father Martin (Andreas Apergis).
While the simple answer would be for Miles to get out the way he came in, the ruined facility is still under lockdown with no easy means of escape. Against his own will, Miles now needs to find a way out of Mount Massive Asylum, while also discovering how everything went so wrong in the first place. The truth of Murkoff's shady dealing will likely get out, but Miles escaping is another story.
The Best Part of 'Outlast' Is Its Memorable Cast of Villains
While surviving the asylum, players will run into more than a few colorful characters in Outlast, most of whom want to kill Miles Upshur. Some of these enemies are random thugs who show up once are twice, others are foes who stalk you throughout most of the game. The most prevalent boss is Chris Walker (Chimwemwe Miller), who, as explained in the prequel comic Outlast: The Murkoff Account, used to be a security guard before being subjected to Murkoff's experiments. The hulking serial killer is the first and last Variant that Miles meets in Mount Massive, so there's a reason why he's the defacto face of the game.
Other memorable faces in the asylum are the Twins (Neil Napier and Alain Goulem), who waltz around Mount Massive wearing absolutely nothing. While they proudly stroll around naked, terrorizing the player with their machetes, the Twins aren't active pursuers like Chris Walker. They spend most of their time delivering creepy speeches to the player whenever they can, but make no mistake. If they get too close to someone, they'll put those machetes to use.
However, by far, the most significant scene stealer of Outlast is Dr. Rick Trager (Alex Ivanocici), who undoubtedly has the most memorable sequence in the game. At first, it looks like Trager might be one of the few friendly faces left in Mount Massive. In reality, he's one of the most twisted minds on the campus, abducting the remaining inmates for experiments of his own. He even permanently mutilated Miles before stalking him in his medical ward with an oversized pair of scissors, all while cracking jokes and making casual conversation.
An 'Outlast' Movie Would be Perfect for the Found Footage Genre
A key source for Outlast's unique visual aesthetic is how it utilizes Miles' video camera, more specifically, the camera's night vision. The video camera isn't just there so Miles can record evidence for what happened at the asylum but also so he can see his surroundings. After all, with limited power in the facility, some parts of Mount Massive are entirely pitch black.
A horror property that makes heavy use of a video camera? That sounds like an ideal choice for a horror film shot in the style of found footage. For those unfamiliar with the term, a found footage film is one where all the footage is diegetic, meaning the camera is one that the film's characters actually interact with. Excellent examples of popular found footage films include the pioneer in the genre, The Blair Witch Project, and the long-running Paranormal Activity franchise.
Admittedly, the world of found footage is infamously overcrowded, with many entries being presented that way just because of its cheap production costs. That's not to say that the concept still can't be done well, as proven by the many films in the anthology-based V/H/S series and unique takes like Apollo 18. With cleaned-up shaky cam and enough appropriate usage, Outlast could work phenomenally well as a found footage film (though it could also work through a more traditional lens).
'Outlast' Has Huge Franchise Potential
The Outlast series isn't just a good contender for a single film but an entire franchise. As of this writing, there is a midquel, sequel, and prequel set in the Outlast universe, all of which would be perfect follow-ups to an initial Outlast film. The first is Outlast: Whistleblower, which was released as DLC for the original 2013 game. It is so much more than a half-assed add-on though, as Outlast: Whistleblower is a phenomenal midquel that tells the story of Waylon Park (Baichoo) - the rogue Murkoff employee who tipped off Miles Upshure to the company's shady dealings to begin with. The gripping story sees Park try to survive the collapsing asylum during the same time as Miles, where he runs into familiar enemies like Chris Walker and new ones like the mad groomsman Eddie Gluskin (Graham Cuthbertson).
Outlast would later get a more proper second installment with Outlast II, which shows another investigative journalist as he survives a cultist civil war and tries to find his wife. Apart from the "II" in the title, Outlast II could almost be considered the Halloween III: Season of the Witch of the franchise, as it only features a very loose connection to the original game. It features a brand new story in a brand new setting with brand new characters, proving that this franchise is ripe for diversity and expansion.
Finally, there's the most recent and unique installment, The Outlast Trials. A prequel set during the Cold War, the game showcases the early days of Murkoff's inhumane experiments as it places its subjects into tests that look like they came straight out of the Saw films. Being a multiplayer game, The Outlast Trials allows its protagonists to have more profound interactions as they try to survive, something that we haven't seen too much of in the prior games.
Purchase and play Outlast now on Steam.
