There are plenty of co-op horror games, but not many actually feel like a Triple A experience. The Outlast series has always provided horror at the utmost quality since the development team consisted of several veteran creators from triple A studios.
With Outlast Trials they brought co-op into the mix and when I covered this game last year I absolutely fell in love with this game. You play as a nobody who partakes in several twisted experiments. You have to solve various puzzles like collecting keys, turning on generators or escorting an npc. There are other games like that such as Dead by Daylight, but the issue there is that the baddie is always controlled by a player and if they often use the game's exploits to get the quickest win which takes away from the suspense. But with Outlast Trials all the enemies are actually controlled by AI and thus the pacing is great and always suspensful as you are being chased or hunted down by several maniacs.
Last year I covered the game on my own and though the game is still enjoyable by yourself, it can sometimes be a bit hard or repetitive as the game was clearly made for co-op. And thus I am happy that the developers provided me with several keys so that me and my friends could face the horror together. And we had an absolute blast! The co-op really pays off as certain players can lure the enemy away while another is completing an objective. Or when someone needs medicine or other supplies, you can easily trade and give those to each other. For many objectives you need to find multiple key items and that can be a bit longwinded if you play alone, but its the perfect amount for 4 players. We often would split into teams of two or individually and there was always an objective or goal to do for each of us.
The upgrade system is fantastic with perks and upgrades that really make the experience more fun and we all had enjoyed the upgrading of our rooms surprisingly well. Probably the only time we got a bit frustrating or encountered something that can be improved, is when we only needed 1 more key item, but we could not find it for a very long time. It is like searching for a needle in a haystack and it might have been better if the icon for the item would appear a bit further if there was only 1 item left.
Other than that it is absolutely fantastic and we all might have uttered the words that Outlast Trials might actually be the BEST co-op horror game ever made. Well done, Red Barrels. I can't wait to see what you'll do next!

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