Obsidian’s Outer Worlds Snafu Is the Last Thing They Needed

Obsidian Entertainment has been going through a notable rough patch as of late. Acquired by Microsoft in 2018, the developer’s most recent major IP has been The Outer Worlds, which took players on a cosmic journey through a corporate-run galaxy. Despite earning solid reviews in 2019 and generating a sequel in 2025, the series hasn’t done well enough for the studio to move forward with a new entry. While the positive reception to their other game Grounded 2 is a promising development for the studio, the company is definitely in need of a win. 

That’s what makes Obsidian’s unintended mistake with a recent upgrade offer for The Outer Worlds all the more frustrating. What could have been an effective way to bring in more players to The Outer Worlds and earn the developer some goodwill in the process may have just backfired in a major way, giving Obsidian a much worse reputation to deal with going forward. Given the way the industry works now and how important public perception of companies is to players, this could be a serious problem for Obsidian.

Obsidian’s The Outer Worlds Error Is A Real Problem For The Developer

Obsidian just had a very poor turn of fortune with their “Spacer’s Choice Edition” for The Outer Worlds, infuriating players in the process. While the original version of The Outer Worlds was delisted at the end of May, Obsidian Entertainment promised that anyone who owned the game would get a free upgrade to the “Spacer’s Choice Edition” for the PS5 and Xbox Series X/S. The studio was up front about the prospective upgrade, posting on Steam and across social media about the development. They overtly told players that it would go into effect for all platforms and were even working to ensure players who had purchased physical copies of the game could get access to the upgrade. Some players even took the opportunity to purchase the base game before it was delisted so that they could have access to the extra content.

All in all, it seemed like a great way for Obsidian to get some positive press and solid final sales for the six-year-old game. However, it seems that Obsidian overpromised on what they could actually deliver. While players with the game on Steam did get the upgrade, players who own the base version of The Outer Worlds on PlayStation and Xbox didn’t get the same upgrade due to “various entitlement restrictions and backend issues.” Although the company has been very up front about wanting to make amends with players who were left frustrated by this development, the damage may already be done.

The Damage To Obsidian’s Reputation Might Be Worse Than It Seems

In the current gaming market, there’s a certain level of importance on the reputation of developers and publishers. Studios can thrive with the right player base just as easily as they can collapse under negative press. Unfortunately, Obsidian might have just committed a cardinal sin of the current industry and angered the fan base. New players who may have been won over by the chance to delve fully into the Spacer’s Choice may now have a more immediate annoyance with the series.

Older players who wanted an excuse to revisit the game or try out DLC they missed may feel betrayed, especially given how open Obsidian was in advertising the free upgrade. Players who didn’t even want to go in on the game will now have their perspective on Obsidian shaped by the controversy, ensuring that their future games come with a certain asterisk in the eyes of players. This is the kind of move that many players online have been openly complaining about, a larger corporate body seemingly taking advantage of the average player.

Some players online have made the case that DLC could be made free online for a window as a means of giving the content to players, but that the company’s decision to apologize and give excuses suggests their priorities are more focused on saving face than appeasing players. While this might not impact The Outer Worlds all too heavily, given that the series has already been confirmed to be discontinued by the developer, it could cast a shadow over future games from the developer.

Future games could come with the association to this event, especially if people on social media endeavor to further cement the company’s connection to the snafu. The best-case scenario is that enough players get the content from Obsidian, and the controversy blows over. Other studios have survived public problems and come back with a strong game that sells well. No matter what, it puts a lot of pressure on Obsidian’s next games. Hopefully, Obsidian is able to put this controversy behind them. If not, The Outer Worlds could end up haunting their future endeavors.