The Outer Worlds Peril of Gorgon preview: It all starts with a severed arm

The Outer Worlds is one of the highlights of this generation. This outstanding game continues RPG shooter traditions fostered by Obsidian with Fallout New Vegas, set in a vibrant sci-fi spacefaring world full of pirates, rampant capitalism, and high-tech weaponry.

The Outer Worlds is quite a hefty game in its own right, taking anywhere between 20 to 30 hours for a single playthrough. However, the game is being expanded considerably with the Peril of Gorgon, its first of two planned DLC packages, set on an asteroid colony, and one of Spacer’s Choice’ pharmaceutical R&D blacksites.

In Peril of Gorgon, you’ll uncover the truth about what happened on this mysterious rock, hired by an eccentric prodigy to repair her family’s disgraced legacy, and unearth the origins of one of the game’s most enigmatic factions.

Peril on Gorgon will be accessible after hitting level 25 and completing some parts of the main game. It all begins on your ship, following a mysterious delivery lands right on your doorstep. Or well, right in your airlock. The package contains an audio log, attached to a severed arm. How intriguing. We went hands-on with the first hour, and quite honestly left with more questions than answers. But hey, that’s probably a good thing, since I’m pretty much instantly hooked.

Addressed to the previous owner of your ship, the audio log is from a freelancer known as Lucky Montoya, of some renown. Pointing you towards the asteroid colony known as Gorgon, along with a high-stakes job with high-stakes pay. Being the cash-loving freelancer that you are, you set about meeting up with Lucky’s contact, an eccentric recluse, Minnie Ambrose.

The daughter of pharma prodigy Dr. Olivia Ambrose, Minnie lives in a run-down mansion on the edge of the Gorgon asteroid as part of a larger abandoned space colony formerly owned by Spacer’s Choice, effectively left to its own devices. Despite how dilapidated Minnie’s manor has become, she at least appears to have full command of her sanity — she does also warn you not to trust anyone, though. Which is at least slightly ominous.

Minnie offers you an enormous chunk of her considerable fortune if we’re able to complete Lucky’s mission, which was to ultimately uncover the truth of what happened on Gorgon.

Gorgon is full of abandoned factories and facilities and is notably where the Spacer’s Choice pharmaceutical company developed the Adrena-Time enhancement drug, alongside various other in-game meds that can enhance your performance (just don’t read the side effects in the small print).

Minnie’s mother spent her career on Gorgon, developing products for Spacer’s Choice, only to be caught up in a massive cover-up that led to the entire colony being abandoned.

Where did the marauders come from anyway?

One of The Outer Worlds’ weaker plot points, at least in my opinion, was that of the Marauders, who are essentially a band of loosely-organized raiders and psychopaths that seem to span various worlds. I figured Obsidian just needed an excuse to have a human enemy faction of some type, and they are given some loose plot details in the base game. However, the early parts of Peril on Gorgon hint that there might be a pharmacological reason for their addled behavior and that Spacer’s Choice may have gone to some lengths towards covering it up.

Indeed, Gorgon is swarming with marauders and raiders, picking through the ruins and murdering anyone that strays too far away from the Sprat Shack bar and spaceport.

Speaking of which, the Sprat Shack is your first port of call for investigating Lucky’s disappearance. He had long-term rented a room there and had filled it with investigative leads and information about Spacer’s Choice, the corporation behind this apparent cover-up. It’s in there that you find your first lead, pointing you towards the Office of Creative Incubation.

The Office of Creative Incubation is a large building filled with droids, marauders, and juicy details of Spacer’s Choice’ pharmaceutical endeavors, celebrating the best of their products right inside the reception area with prideful display cabinets.

A shell of its former self, sliding into ruin, it’s interesting to wonder what Gorgon might have been like in its heyday, bustling with scientists. The corruption of Spacer’s Choice was always there, though, ticking like a bomb ready to explode. The Gorgonites and the colonists paid the price, and you’re there to find out why.

A promising addition

Gorgon’s map is one of the larger in the game, with various interior areas to explore and new weapons to play with as you weave your way through the detective-style narrative. It seems like an excellent first addition to The Outer Worlds, which will be joined in a few months by another DLC called Murder on Eridanos. The Outer Worlds will also nab an Xbox Series X enhanced version for good measure as well.

The Outer Worlds “Peril of Gorgon” launches on September 9, for Xbox One, PC, and PlayStation 4.