The Outer Worlds was a runaway smash last year and much to the delight of us all, now there’s new content to explore.

Peril on Gorgon is the first of two major expansions coming to the game and it offers a really in-depth, sub-story campaign full of drama and suspense, that puts some big decision making on your shoulders.

And while it’s not all perfect, it offers a more dreary and dark narrative compared to the lighthearted tone that often seeps through the base game.

How to Play

Once purchased, the content can be accessed in the main game after you’ve completed the mission ‘Radio Free Monarch’. Then travel within Halycon and you’ll receive a message through SAM, offering you a delivery. This will begin the quest ‘The Ones Who Walk Away From Gorgon’.

Please note, you cannot play the DLC if you’re in the final stages of the base game.

We recommend you’re at least level 19 before attempting the content, though the XP earns are hefty, so you can level up quite quickly.

So, yeah, once you receive the message through SAM, you’ll learn it originates from a Lucky Montoya, a former acquaintance of Captain Hawthorne.

Montoya’s message leads players to the Gorgon Asteroid and its seemingly abandoned scientific outpost, There, you meet a Wilhemna ‘Minnie’ Ambrose, who wants to learn more about the secrets of the facility and its connection to her family.

What follows is like a sci-fi detective story, as you try to navigate your way past murderbots and marauders who have made this abandoned wreck their new home. All to a catchy score which I couldn’t help but compare to the great Mass Effect.

Believe you me, the Gorgon folks are not pleased to see you. They’ll tear you a new one the first few times you encounter them – which is why I’ve recommended being a certain level.

The good news is you’ll average around 1.5k XP per kill – up to a max of 5k – on Gorgon. So you can level up really quickly through the content if you’re a little underpowered.

This ties into Obsidian’s decision to raise the level cap to 33, meaning you can now access new perks across all tiers, as well as additional flaws. Some of the new additions include a +5 Damage Per Flaw and +300% Improvised Weapon Damage.

And there are some really neat new Science Weapons which blend in well with the perks, like the powerful Light Pistol and the heavy Overheat, all using the game’s Energy cases to restock.

It all fits into the DLCs focus on technology – fighting advanced AI, scouring desktops for clues, and activating unique machinery. You’ll soon find a lot of weapons you’ve been carrying don’t make a dent in some of these enemies, so will need to rely on the arsenal you can find lying around the asteroid.

It’s a good story, full of some interesting twists and turns, and there’s some nice sub stories to keep you occupied before, during, and after – including a random quest which sees you debate the differences between a llama and an alpacha.

And Peril on Gorgon does leave you to make a very difficult choice at the end of the content, so be prepared. Interestingly, it may even be one you find yourself disagreeing with whichever way you go.

It’s a good DLC, though. If you’re levelled appropriately, you’ll find yourself enjoying it for the most part. Though it does see you jump around between locations a little bit midway through – which is both to the content’s benefit and detriment.

Oddly, I also found the performance a little underwhelming midway through the DLC. There were some noticeable framerate drops and sluggish performance on my OG Xbox – an issue I haven’t encountered as much in the base game.

The loading times for the DLC are also stretching past a minute now – issues the Xbox Series X will soon solve in a few months. Which does make me wonder whether it might be worth waiting for DLC 2 and playing both together on next-gen hardware.

But play this DLC you absolutely must. True, it doesn’t massively change the way the game is played and the content can be a bit frustrating at times – but it explores more of a compelling world and can keep you busy for up to ten hours, depending on how many side-missions you do and sport cards you collect.

Obsidian have built a mostly entertaining piece of DLC that – while not essential – is one Outer Worlds fans will enjoy from start to finish.

Pros

+ Good compelling story
+ Nice side quests and additional activity
+ The soundtrack reminds me of Mass Effect
+ Fantastic XP Gains, neat new perks and increased level cap