OutDrive

About

OutDrive is a single player casual racing game. It was developed by denver and was released on February 22, 2016. It received mostly positive reviews from players.

OutDrive is a single-player musical game set in a visually stunning 80s-inspired world of neon lights, VHS tapes, and synth pop. As a "gaming experiment in the genre of music runner," OutDrive offers a unique and hilarious experience, despite being somewhat poorly optimized and buggy. The game's developers describe it as an "atmospheric" experience, with a spectacular soundtrack and a promise of full gamepad support coming soon.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player

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72%

Audience ScoreBased on 2,939 reviews

music758 positive mentions

story36 negative mentions

music
1,542 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
49%
49%
2%
The music in "Outdrive" is widely praised for its captivating synthwave and retro 80s aesthetic, providing an immersive and atmospheric experience that many players find enjoyable. However, some users note that the soundtrack can become repetitive over time, and the inability to adjust volume or skip tracks detracts from the overall experience. While the game serves as a platform to showcase the music, it is often viewed more as an interactive music video than a traditional game, appealing primarily to fans of the genre.
- “The music is spectacular and the world is electric.”
- “The ingenious soundtrack makes up 50% of the game!”
- “The music is amazing and it is very easy to play.”
- “The music is loud and cannot be adjusted.”
- “I muted it and decided to turn on a custom Spotify playlist with Limp Bizkit on it, which while not matching the synthwave aesthetic is more bearable than the stock music looping and repeating itself over and over again.”
- “The biggest sin is how little there is to explore/drive to, even with uploaded custom music you will repeat the same tracks multiple times by the 20 minute mark making for a barebones art/aesthetic piece.”
graphics
854 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
49%
48%
3%
The graphics of the game are widely praised for their vibrant, retro aesthetic, heavily influenced by 80s synthwave and vaporwave styles, featuring bright neon colors and a visually appealing design. However, while many players appreciate the beautiful visuals and immersive atmosphere, they also note issues such as graphical glitches, repetitive scenery, and clunky controls that detract from the overall experience. Overall, the game's graphics are considered its strongest aspect, making it a worthwhile purchase for fans of the aesthetic, despite its gameplay shortcomings.
- “The graphics are beautiful, the music is great, the controls are almost perfect.”
- “Graphics 10/10 - an 80s neon wet dream come true that just couldn't be done with the hardware at the time.”
- “The visuals (which look so much better than the store page screenshots) capture the epitome of the outrun aesthetic: fast cars, neon, and a never ending road.”
- “Weird graphical hitches and tearing even on low settings.”
- “Last but not least, even at 1080p with 8x MSAA the game has less than 'ultra' graphics (a lot of jagged edges and lines) and that's the main reason I got a refund because I could tolerate the repetitive gameplay if it had smoother visuals.”
- “The neon visuals and overall the entire design is fantastic, but sadly that's where the good ends and the bad begins.”
gameplay
552 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
21%
61%
18%
The gameplay of Outdrive is widely criticized for being simplistic and repetitive, with many players noting that it lacks challenge and depth. While the visuals and soundtrack receive praise, the controls are often described as clunky and unresponsive, leading to a frustrating experience. Overall, the game is seen more as an aesthetic experience rather than a fully realized gameplay experience, making it suitable primarily for casual play or as background content rather than for engaging gameplay.
- “Very accessible gameplay and controls with surprising depth.”
- “Outdrive is probably one of the most relaxing games I've ever played, with a nice engine and gameplay, simple objectives and no real difficulty, the game is suited to play whenever you feel like relaxing or spending a good time.”
- “The gameplay is easy to learn and easy to master, just keep the needle between the red lines and don't run into walls, but it's not so hands-off that it's just a light-show either.”
- “The gameplay is even more repetitive than the OST as well.”
- “There is no traffic on the roads or pursuers, no obstacles, etc. so many mechanics could be implemented, but the only thing you have to do in this game is to drive on an empty road at a certain speed, sometimes avoiding debris from rocket explosions during helicopter attacks.”
- “Lemme say this straight: the 'gameplay' is plain, there's nothing to do or any objective other than endlessly driving around.”
story
199 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
15%
67%
18%
The game's story is generally perceived as simplistic and underdeveloped, primarily revolving around the premise of keeping a girlfriend alive by driving continuously. While some players appreciate the initial backstory and aesthetic, many criticize the lack of depth, narrative progression, and meaningful context, leading to a repetitive gameplay experience. Overall, the story serves more as a backdrop than a central focus, leaving players wanting more substance and resolution.
- “The story is simple: your girlfriend's dying, so you hook her up to your car and must continue driving in order to keep her alive.”
- “The story and music combined made the experience 10x better.”
- “I find it insanely cool whoever came up with that background story!”
- “The downside of the game is, in fact, it is an endless race into the sunset, without the opportunity to see the final video; the plot is no longer in a hurry to develop after the initial cutscene.”
- “This isn't the best game, lacks in story; it's mostly told through the opening cutscene and you get clues from the achievements.”
- “The story is simple but enough for this game: drive fast so that the girl survives.”
stability
55 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game suffers from significant stability issues, with numerous bugs and glitches that disrupt gameplay, including unexpected crashes, UI malfunctions, and erratic character movements. Players report that these technical problems can make achieving in-game goals nearly impossible and detract from the overall experience, despite the game's appealing aesthetics and music. Many reviewers suggest that the game requires urgent patches to address these stability concerns.
- “The game is buggy as hell - the menus don't really work, button mapping seems to be completely random and not really explained well, and you pretty much have to constantly fail (within a couple of seconds) of starting any game because it doesn't really tell you how to play properly.”
- “Overall a buggy, frustrating game that desperately needs either a patch or a removal from the Steam store.”
- “The game is super buggy and stutters constantly.”
atmosphere
50 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
66%
28%
6%
The game's atmosphere is widely praised for its stunning visuals and immersive 80s-inspired aesthetic, featuring neon art styles and a captivating synthwave soundtrack that enhances the overall experience. Players find it to be a relaxing and nostalgic environment, perfect for chilling and vibing, despite some criticisms regarding gameplay mechanics and repetitive scenery. Overall, the atmosphere stands out as one of the game's strongest elements, making it a worthwhile experience for those seeking an atmospheric journey.
- “The game shines with its beautiful atmosphere; I love its minimal neon art style.”
- “80s retrowave aesthetic and neon atmosphere with the amazing synthwave soundtrack seem to make it a nostalgic piece of beauty.”
- “This game's graphics and overall atmosphere are one of its strongest points; the views and background art combined with some visual effects to simulate light rays are just stunning.”
- “That being said; the game's main focus is clearly more on the visual and audible side, and so the game focuses more on the atmosphere than the diversity of the gameplay, so that isn't a huge complaint from me.”
- “This whole premise and atmosphere is actually really badass and keeps the vibe going through my 30 mins playthrough and that's the problem.”
- “I would give it a 7/10 to be fair and it's worth it just for the music, atmosphere, or the wallet-trimming price.”
optimization
38 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
16%
42%
42%
The game's optimization has received overwhelmingly negative feedback, with many users reporting significant performance issues, including frequent frame rate drops and overall instability. While some players noted that the game can run smoothly at times, the consensus is that it is poorly optimized, leading to a frustrating experience, especially on lower-end systems. Overall, the optimization is considered a major flaw, detracting from the game's potential.
- “Can be played around, and the performance is very smooth otherwise.”
- “Flavored with cold tones, it goes without brakes with good optimization and without overhangs.”
- “The game has performance issues, but nothing critical.”
- “It's badly optimized and it was obviously underdeveloped.”
- “Not optimized at all.”
- “Optimization 1/10”
humor
24 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game's humor is characterized by its meme-worthy achievements, quirky glitches, and intentionally awkward English, which some players find amusing. Players enjoy the absurdity of the achievements and the funny physics, despite the game's poor optimization and minor bugs. Overall, the humor adds a lighthearted charm, making it entertaining for those looking to share funny moments on their Steam profiles.
- “The game is a meme for achievements that you can use to spell funny things.”
- “Its not hard to control the car, but sometimes there are some funny glitches where you just go up in the air or it takes you off track.”
- “Unironically or ironically, the English is funny-bad and in some situations sounds robotic.”
grinding
18 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
11%
45%
44%
Players find the grinding aspect of the game excessively tedious, often requiring significant time investment to achieve goals, with some likening it to needing a "second life" to complete. The experience is further marred by frustrating mechanics, such as abrupt stops and challenging physics, particularly during repetitive enemy encounters. Overall, grinding is viewed as a major drawback that detracts from the enjoyment of the game.
- “You'll need a second life for grinding.”
- “There's no grinding around a curve; you just get slammed to a stop and, usually, turned around.”
- “Getting the last few achievements was tedious to say the least.”
- “God forbid you hit a wall, you'll either come to a grinding halt, or you'll go flying all over the place.”
- “Physics likewise get the job done, with little else, especially noticeable in the tedious 'enemy helicopter' scenes every 8 minutes (which can blow up the road and scatter random debris).”
replayability
16 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
13%
12%
75%
Overall, the game is criticized for its lack of replayability, with multiple users noting that there are no free play options or varied modes to encourage repeated play. Many reviews rate the replay value very low, often citing the repetitive nature of the gameplay and soundtrack as contributing factors to its boredom. Despite some improvements in playability after updates, the consensus remains that the game offers little incentive for players to return.
- “Replayability: 1/1”
- “I can't say the replay value is high considering the lack of free play or other varied modes, but for the price, I give it a thumbs up.”
- “Lastly, I want to say that there is absolutely no replay value to this game whatsoever.”
- “Replayability: 1/10”
- “In this case, replay value is bad because it's the same track looped.”
monetization
14 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The monetization aspect of the game is heavily criticized, as it is perceived more as an advertisement for its soundtrack than a standalone gaming experience. Players feel that the game serves as a poor vehicle for promoting music, with minimal gameplay and a lack of engaging content, leading to frustration over its perceived cash grab nature. Overall, while the soundtrack is appreciated, the game's value is diminished by its focus on monetization rather than meaningful gameplay.
- “Bottom line, this game is basically a very bad advertisement for good music that you can luckily buy outside of the game.”
- “The only thing that would make this game worth playing would be the soundtrack, but having to pay for a blatant rip of another game that's still in development for a quick cash grab is a joke.”
- “It's an advertisement for music, which you will be content ID matched and claimed for uploading any footage to YouTube.”
emotional
8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game evokes a strong emotional response, blending feelings of warmth and sadness through the protagonist's dedication to his girlfriend, which underpins the narrative. Players report a mix of discomfort and enjoyment, likening the experience to being immersed in a Muse music video while navigating the game's challenges.
- “The driver's dedication to his girlfriend is heartwarming and sad, and it sets the whole premise for your eternal drive.”
- “On one hand, it made me feel uncomfortable; on the other, I had a great time listening to my favorite tracks.”
- “Game made me feel like I was in one of Muse's latest music videos.”