The Outbound Ghost

As charming as this game seems, unfortunately I can't recommend it. I went into this game basically knowing nothing about it. I heard it was Paper Mario-esq so I watched the trailer and bought it on sale to give it a try. I've since played through the main 4 chapters on hard difficulty but decided not to peruse the epilogue 5th chapter. My verdict? The game has some solid core concepts and heart, but simply isn't finished. [b]Story[/b] No spoilers: Initially, the story has some intrigue as you explore a new world alongside your mute main character. You quickly realize that everyone else are ghosts too, and there's some mystery as to what happened and why. Other side plot points are brought up or hinted at along the way, adding complexity to the story. Unfortunately that complexity is unrealized, as the plot remains shallow and questions go unanswered. The pacing of the story is slow and heavily tied to location. You get new story beats as you continue moving throughout the world. There are no side quests or meaningful character interactions outside of the story. Spoilers: Everything that the story had going for it falls apart before, or by the end of Chapter 4. Firstly, I want to address the pacing issues. Each chapter you play as different character. I like this in theory, but the characters don't maintain contact with each other, leading each chapter to feel detached and drawn out. Any character development for your first set of characters gets stunted, pushed aside, or hinted at with no real resolution. I went into this game thinking it was about the main white ghost, but our character doesn't matter in the story by the end. Starting in Chapter 2 the main character can talk just like all the other characters and their mystery is hand-waved away later on. The plot of the story is our main character chasing another character Adrian, to try to get info from him. Chapter 1 follows the "main character" chasing Adrian until we're pushed off a cliff. Chapter 2 follows one of our party members looking for the main character, and she gets a whole side story with her brother. Chapter 3 has our characters reunited (kinda), and they continue chasing Adrian. Chapter 4 is from Adrian's POV, and involves us replaying the game from his perspective running away, but we play it in reverse order. I liked the concept of going through the game zones again in reverse, it felt innovative and we were drip fed more info. However, by the end it felt drawn out and repetitive. The worst part of the story is the ending! There's no resolution to the main plot or any of the other hints dropped as you explore the world. What happened to the ghosts? Why was the water poisoned? What's the deal with the cult? It just feels unfinished. [b]Overworld[/b] The map zones look fine, I didn't have any issues with the art or setting or anything like that. I also thought there were plenty of save points and most in convenient locations. There's a nifty fast travel system and an occasional puzzle to solve as you traverse. There are a few side roads here and there which lead to treasure, and a mechanic where you can hide in bushes to ambush enemies and get the upperhand in battle, which I liked. With all that said, I had some problems with the overworld. Some of these are nitpicks, some are bigger issues. [list] [*]At the beginning of the game, you get a dash to help you move faster. I wish this dash could be upgraded somehow, because a lot of the traveling segments are long and uninteresting. It takes a while to get anywhere. [*]In the menu, there's a map of all the areas in the overworld and list of the main hubs you can fast travel to. The map cannot be zoomed in and there's no indicator of where you are currently. Each area is labeled with some small text that's hard to read. When you scroll through the list of locations, they do not highlight where on the map you're going, making it hard to use. In the end, the game gives you no real reason to fast travel or revisit old zones, so I didn't use the map for most of my playthrough. [*]The game has a couple overworld "puzzles" to solve. Nothing very engaging. The main puzzle is to light, or unlight a series of torches in an area which will unlock a secret. The problem is these torches are also used all over the place as decoration, so you end up going out of your way to snuff every torch you see, unsure if it will lead to a secret or not. I found that annoying over time. The other "puzzle" is the lockpicking minigame. This was so trivial I wouldn't even call it a puzzle or a game. Again, the concept is there, but it feels unfinished. [*]Once your team has told you your next objective, you better hope you remember it! There's no way to get that info again. If you forget where you're going, trial and error baby. [*]Crafting exists solely to make combat badges for your fighters. Almost all loot you pick up will be for crafting. Most of the badges aren't worth making in my opinion, I kept waiting for the game to give me some good options, but they never seemed to come. Also, the way you get new crafting recipes is weird and never explained. There are purple pickups in specific locations that give you a choice between two crafting books. To my understanding, each location only has those two books to pick from, so your first pass through of the zones you miss half the books. The books get stronger in the later zones, which makes sense for the first pass through. In chapter 4 when you revisit the zones, you get the other book, but since you're going to zones in reverse, you get weaker books the more you progress. [*]Leveling was ambiguous. I never knew what level I should be in any given zone. When I killed all the enemies, I seemed to stay on level with them until the very end of the game. There are no good grinding zones and I wasn't sure if enemies respawed at all until I got to the end of the game (they do). [/list] [b]Combat[/b] Generally, I liked the combat system and found the fights challenging. Boss fights felt like boss fights, I often had to retry them 2-3 times until I understood the enemy better and could beat them. The combat was one of the best parts of the game for me. If you lose a battle, you're given an option to retry it right away, which was really nice and keeps you in the moment. I felt that I became more proficient at combat the further into the game I got, since I gained new abilities and understood enemy mechanics better. Everything felt balanced. The final fights were harder, and I think that's because I was under-leveled and wasn't sure what level I needed to be. I decided to push though anyway and was able to beat the game after several attempts. There are plenty of fighting characters to choose from. You get some through story progression, and others you can obtain in the overworld through special fights, which I also enjoyed. Each fighter has it's own archetype and playstyle, some more complex than others. My only nitpick with the combat system is that I wish characters had a bit more self-sustain built in. [b]Misc.[/b] [list] [*]Music was charming, I enjoyed it throughout the game. [*]There were some accessibility options in the menu which was nice. The game allows you to customize how you play by letting you scale how much damage you do, how much you take, general difficulty, and how much exp you earn. [*]I wish we had a way to sort menus better. New items, skills, and characters always appear at the bottom of a list. [/list] To conclude, I see this game as one with more potential. The devs clearly had a vision for it, it just needs some more work to get polished up and finished.

The closest thing to Paper Mario on PC. Comfy times.

Overall nice game, but the whole combat system is really redundant and story is not over imho (main character's plot is obviously cut short for some reason)

I played this game on release, and absolutely loved what was on the table, even with the problems that had come up and the issues with the previous publisher. I'll probably be giving it a replay sooner or later and will give it a proper review then. But the main take away is that this game is great in spite of the struggles Conradical had dealt with. Worth a buy. And will be more so as they roll out long awaited updates!

As a longtime fan of Paper Mario and Bug Fables, I was genuinely excited to dive into The Outbound Ghost. These spiritual successors to the classic paper RPG formula tend to blend 2D charm with 3D depth in a way that's both nostalgic and refreshing. Visually, The Outbound Ghost fits right into that aesthetic hall of fame—it’s adorable, expressive, and visually cohesive, with an art style that pays homage while still feeling distinct. The gameplay systems show real promise too: collecting Aspects to modify combat, gathering materials to craft them, unlocking traversal-based abilities, and uncovering a layered world with philosophical depth. There’s an earnest attempt here to explore heavy psychological and existential themes, all wrapped in a soft, pastel world of spirits. It’s quirky, it’s heartfelt—and conceptually, it swings big. But in execution? It stumbles. Hard. Despite its strong start, the game quickly becomes mind-numbingly linear. I stayed up for three additional hours, not out of excitement, but sheer hope that the story would eventually open up or surprise me. Instead, what unfolded felt like a slow, overwrought high school drama—drawn out and emotionally weightless. Wins don’t feel like victories, pacing is relentless without offering breaks to explore or revisit previous content, and many moments that should’ve been charming or meaningful pass without impact. The world may be thoughtfully designed, but it’s wasted when players can’t meaningfully interact with it. The writing lacks depth, the story fails to breathe, and side content is nearly non-existent. What’s more frustrating is the input system. You’re expected to guess or memorize which keys perform what actions, as there’s no visible control map or option to rebind keys. Some functions even double up on the same key, which adds unnecessary confusion to what should be a smooth experience. It’s a rough oversight in a genre where accessibility and comfort matter. There are some “neutral” aspects that aren’t dealbreakers but still worth noting: no in-game store, NPCs that are mostly one-liners, limited item variety, no tutorials for niche mechanics like lockpicking, and a lack of more engaging side activities or team-based content. The combat is, honestly, the game's saving grace. It's clever, strategic, and polished. But strong mechanics can only carry so much when wrapped in a narrative that drags and a world that doesn't let you enjoy its details. Do I like the combat? Absolutely. Do I like the story? Unfortunately, no. Would I recommend this game? Not yet. With updates, it could become a hidden gem—but as it stands, it needs more time in the oven.

This is a great game with Paper Mario vibes. The reviews are only so low because of the lawsuit situation where the creator of the game got taken advantage of by the publisher.

The creator has completely given up on this game, and ceased all communication on it. To think it was his first game and he was so proud of it, and now that it has flopped (even though there were issues with the publisher, so not entirely his fault)... He now completely moved on other games with the same engine/graphics, and it's crazy how quickly he did so. Obvi not recommended, and it pains me to say so because the game looked promising.

Overall I'd give this game a 4/10. The visuals are beautiful to look at, and the timing of the combat inputs is really tight (which would be annoying if they didn't). However, I'd say that's where the redeeming qualities end. It felt like oftentimes I was just wandering through the map from Point A to Point B, sometimes taking a detour to Point C and fighting whatever got in my way. There's no puzzles. Minimal exploration rewards. In fact, most of the time I felt like I took a detour to explore off-route and ended up feeling like I wasted my time or found a dead-end, which wouldn't bother me so much if walking wasn't so slow. The combat in this game (like the visuals) pulls from Paper Mario games. Your player character collects these "Figments," which are your party members and have different aspects and abilities. You can also equip them with items that will grant new abilities, make them better in certain aspects, etc. When you use an attack, there is usually a combination of inputs or specific timing to do to get the move to do the most damage or get the most benefit. While the structure of combat is pretty interesting, none of the enemies in the time I played felt challenging enough that you can't just use the basic attacks to defeat them, which I found disappointing as the game provides these different options for combat depth but I never felt pushed to explore other strategies beyond "Hit the enemy hard." The Figments I mentioned previously are basically critters you collect, and each one represents a human emotion or aspect. The story frames it as these are the difficult emotions of the people who were killed made manifest, but its a story element that literally never comes up again. You can't interact with your Figments anywhere other than battle or equipping them, which is frustrating because a lot of them have interesting visual identities. As far as story, you play as a ghost who has lost their memory and has no idea how or why they died. Your thrown on the map with only a direction to walk in. As you explore, you come across a village of people who have been murdered who are somehow okay with the fact that they have been murdered. None of them remember who murdered them, but want to find out as they believe the knowledge will help them ascent to the afterlife. None of the characters in the village or the cast of supporting characters were memorable to me. You help a pink ghost with a bow in her hair (that's how you know she's a girl) in the beginning find her way back to the village, but everyone is immediately distrustful of you despite having helped her. Your protagonist is also silent, which means you're often clicking through dialogue other characters are talking at you with only subtle head nods or shakes as input. There were so many misunderstandings for the sake of plot in the first two hours of the game when we could have just began with the murder mystery. I never got far into the story as I got very tired of the "wandering the halls, fight what stops you" game play. I have a full-time job and don't have time to waste on games that don't grab my attention, and reading some of these reviews the pay-off at the end of the story is not worth it. Another layer I found frustrating is the creator of the game was spamming subreddits a few years back, advertising that the Reborn version of the game is the one they wanted all along. That version is still "Coming Soon," but the $20 dollars that people spent on this version are still up for grabs. If you're looking for a Paper Mario game, I'd suggest first just playing Paper Mario. But second, don't go for this game unless you enjoy wandering the halls at a glacial pace and pressing a single button in combat repeatedly. The story is very bare bones and was not at all interesting to me. Why should I be invested in solving a murder mystery when the victims don't even seem to care that they died?

Don't buy this game. There is a lot of charm, but there are so many issues weighing it down, and they are likely to never be addressed. There was an issue between the dev and publisher, and that has left the game in a permanent state of limbo. If the game were perfect out the gate, it wouldn't matter, but sadly that isn't the case. Combat is wonky, and I cannot find a better descriptor than that. From my own (minimal) play, as well as watching some vids, it just has so many issues and oddities. Game is buggy, and will probably never get a patch. Art direction gets an A-. Music/Audio is straight up A++ S-tier. Story is a C, although it is harder to judge this as I did not beat the game myself. Gameplay gets a B. It's fine, perfectly average. Combat gets a D. I mentioned above, but the combat is just wonky with so many issues you could write an essay on the strange design choices and how they impact overall balance and feel. I want to recommend this game as another banger paper-verse release, but it is not. I suggest Bug Fables and Born of Bread instead, as they are both excellent, with Bug Fables just barely taking the top spot for me.

The two things you'll be doing most in this game are battling, and reading dialogue. One the developer nailed and the other... not so much. Unfortunately, it's the narrative that falls short. The plot in the game gets so pointless and convoluted by the end that it ends up ruining everything else, like the cool battle system, which was a blast besides the few hiccups here and there. The Outbound Ghost Pros & Cons Pros : - Artstyle ( looks so good, think paper Mario plus modern-day postprocessing) - Soundtrack - The battle system - The battles are super fun and addictive It's easy like Pokemon but gets harder over time forcing you to swap out movesets and party members. It's not perfect ( we will get to that), but it works. - The cool mimic ability where you can turn into any figment even unique Boss figments! (Figments are your party members equivalent to the pokemon in poke...) The stun mechanic is really satisfying. The more you attack a certain enemy, their stun meter fills. Once it's maxed out, the enemy becomes stunned and cannot attack. Cons : - Confusing Menu UI - No Block mechanic. Weird decision to me as the combat is based on paper Mario timed attacks but there is no way to block. -The main character is boring and him being a silent protagonist doesn't help. - Figments are randomly given to you with no connection to the story or explanation, you'll just be walking around and a popup will come outta nowhere. - Leveling is not balanced. Some of the enemies will randomly have insanely high HP. There were a few battles I had to play several times, as they were nearly impossible to beat until you equip certain figments with certain moves and get lucky with a critical hit or something. - The story just keeps getting more confusing as the game goes on. - 20 hours into the game and you still won't have any developments on the main mystery of the plot. It makes you feel like you're not making any progress. As soon as a revelation is about to be said something happens in the game that cuts it off as if things need to be dragged out any longer. Enemies will attack dead battlers in battle. I think the programmer left that in by mistake, but it feels unfair when playing. - The ending was pretty bad. It jumps around in between different character's points of views in a confusing way and then ends on a cliffhanger (ish) that wasn't surprising or good. - There is no resolution to all the questions surrounding the mystery of the serial killer that the game has been building up. One of the worst endings in video games ever! So yeah, good game with a lot of potential destroyed by its story elements. Can only recommend if you don't mind the bad writing and unpolished side of the battles. Buy on sale.