It’s Bursting with Character
Grounded is the latest first-party console exclusive for Microsoft, courtesy of Obsidian Entertainment. That’s the same developer behind the fan-favorite Fallout: New Vegas, and 2019’s Outer Worlds.
The charm and writing that was front and center in both of these titles hasn’t gone anywhere this time around, either. Whichever character you pick, the writing is quality and you’ll frequently find yourself chuckling away at their commentary about the back yard environment and creepy crawlies that dwarf them in size now.
This may not seem like a huge win on the surface, but it shows that Microsoft is beginning to move away from its ‘dude bro shooter’ stereotype that the likes of Gears of War (it’ll always be my beloved, though) and Halo had helped form.
If you want a taste of what we mean, just check out the trailer shown during Microsoft’s July 20/20 event for peak Obsidian humor.
It’s a Great GamePass Title
If there’s one thing that’s become more abundantly clear over the last few months, it’s that Microsoft and its Xbox division see Xbox Game Pass subscriptions as its priority. Each and every one of its first-party titles comes to the service on day-one and it’s been no different for Grounded.
While the likes of Forza Motorsport, Halo Infinite, and other established first-party series are huge attractions for potential Xbox Game Pass subscribers, Grounded feels even more at home here.
That’s primarily down to how much more fun Grounded feels in multiplayer and the snowball effect it could have around, a group of friends, for example. If one Game Pass subscriber checks it out and recommends it to their friends, the subscription seems far more appealing at a cheaper price point — albeit a monthly recurring one — than buying the game outright, particularly when it’s still in early access.
Suddenly, one Game Pass subscriber has turned into four, and with a huge catalog of other games on the service, it’s difficult to not see the great value it offers.
Plenty More Potential in the Tank
Let’s address the elephant in the room here. While Grounded is oozing with charm, has a compelling gameplay loop, and the mysteries of its garden are enticing enough to keep players pushing through the ‘main story content,’ it’s still a little rough around the edges in places.
For starters, its multiplayer system’s a little basic and temperamental, with players unable to invite their friends into their party (at the time of writing, at least) and sometimes unable to join the host’s game due to connection issues.
Then you’ve got the fairly light offering of story content on its initial release, with players not really needing much longer than a handful of hours to push reach the end of what’s currently available.
Oh, and the thirst and hunger system really didn’t resonate with us and felt a little too invasive on the rest of the gameplay. Though you can change the ‘mode’ so these are less of an issue, it also tweaks other gameplay settings that you may not want to.
But that’s the beauty of early access. Obsidian Entertainment has already stated its addressing the multiplayer issues, more story content will follow up to the official version 1.0 release, and tweaks and adjustments can be made to all of the gameplay.
Given the high quality of the developer’s previous titles and the promise that’s shown in what is here at the start of Grounded’s Early Access, we’re confident the game will go from strength to strength over the coming months.
An Obsidian Showcase
What’s particularly promising from Microsoft’s point of view is just how well its acquisition of Obsidian Entertainment is paying off.
Since it became part of the Xbox first-party family in 2018, Obsidian has released an excellent story-focused RPG in Outer Worlds, released this charming, humorous survival/ crafting/ base-building game in early access, and has a blockbuster RPG true to Obsidian’s roots in Avowed in the pipeline.
Though Outer Worlds and Avowed are similar, Grounded showed that Obsidian doesn’t have to just make RPGs.
It’s successfully pushed the boat out into the survival/ base-building realm and shown Obsidian’s potential to release an eclectic mix of AA/AAA titles for Microsoft’s platforms moving forward.
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