I went through a jag a couple years back where I was downright obsessed with “van life.” This became really popular during the COVID years when YouTubers and others modified vans into tiny homes to travel the country in style (and promote their ongoing vacations to the envy of us house-locked schlubs). It wasn’t that I personally wanted to live this way, but I did want to vicariously engage in the fantasy of being in a small, cozy apartment on wheels with the world at my fingertips.
Happily, I’ll soon have the chance to do this — again, virtually, but for far less money than tricking out a real van — thanks to Outbound, a multiplayer sim that’s in the making for a hopeful 2026 launch. So what is it about this title that has me positively drooling in anticipation?
If you haven’t crossed paths with this project yet, let me introduce it to you. Outbound is a game where each player drives around a camper van that has the quasi-magical ability to park and expand into a much larger structure (think “a full-blown cabin on the roof if so desired”). Players explore expansive landscapes full of eye candy, secrets, materials, and goals. As they do so, they’ll collect new recipes, craft various helpful items, and deck out their vans in style.
While this isn’t an MMORPG, it is a co-op game with other players with whom you can socialize and collaborate.
Yes, this is Van Life: The Game, only without the expensive repair bills or the rats that like to crawl up into the interior looking for a midnight snack (seriously, it’s a problem that van lifers have to deal with on a regular basis, but all of those picture-perfect YouTubers don’t usually talk about it). And it’s such a great idea that one has to wonder why Square Glade is the first studio to really put something like this together.
People are really on board with this concept. Last year, Outbound ran a Kickstarter and raked in almost $300,000 to support the project. It’s currently going through alpha testing and hopes to be here by next year.
While there are several elements of this game that have clear analogues elsewhere — in Palia, for example — it’s the twist of a contemporary mobile home that promises to set it apart. You don’t only run around as a person ferreting for supplies to bring back to home base; you drive around in your base and find new spots to camp and forage.
Square Glade isn’t a stranger to this type of game. Its previous effort, Above Snakes, established up a crafting sim set in the wild west. You can see some of the same gameplay loops and visual style that Outbound also shares, albeit in a more advanced fashion.
Speaking of other games, another reason that I gravitated toward Outbound was the fantastic experience I had with 2016’s Firewatch. Now that was more of an explorer walking sim rather than any sort of “survival crafting” anything, but Firewatch did focus on enjoying solitude in nature, living in a small one-room home, and the warm visuals of western landscapes. When I finished Firewatch, I genuinely wanted more — but it was a one-and-done experience.
Happily, Outbound looks like it could take the visuals and vibes of that title and turn it into a more longer-lasting gameplay loop. It doesn’t seem as though it will feature that much in the way of narrative, however, but I’m willing to take what else it has to offer.
As with any upcoming game that’s been mostly screenshots, videos, and descriptions, I reserve actual judgment until I play. Early reports coming out of the alpha are generally positive, although some of the videos I’ve watched say that there’s still a good amount of work to be done to tighten up the game and sand down its rougher parts.
I don’t have a ton of “must haves” in my upcoming games list, but Outbound is definitely one of them. I sincerely hope that Square Glade knocks it out of the park with a solid foundation that appeals to explorers, builders, and virtual campers alike.
Do you love spectating and speculating about upcoming MMOs? We do too! Every week, Justin tackles another upcoming title on the MMO Hype Train with opinions, analysis, and blind fervent hope. Choo choo all aboard!
