Outriders update leaves community unhappy with massive nerfs and balance changes

Since the much-anticipated release of Outriders, players have been facing numerous problems in-game. Problems ranged from server connectivity issues to disappearing inventory and minor glitches that stopped players from completing missions.

For their part, the developers have acknowledged their shortcomings and tried to remedy the situation.

Following numerous complaints and outcry on social media, the developers actively began addressing the problems on Twitter. While most of the issues were trivial, certain problems left players unable to enjoy the game.

This has sparked outrage amongst many gamers.

It's a known issue that will be fixed in the upcoming patch. Please see the links we posted as the information is there.

— Outriders (@Outriders) April 8, 2021

Ratio

— Kev in (@Kevin08594832) April 3, 2021

Can you go ahead and issue refunds? People paid to play this game while others got it for free on gamepass and the only difference is some level 10 gear? Can we get more incentive?

— Reakt Joker (@ReaktJoker) April 3, 2021

Should have played on Xbox man.

— The Boogeyman (@TheBoog00653348) April 3, 2021

Despite the backlash on social media, the developers stayed true to their commitment and began addressing these issues one-by-one.

Over the past week, they have been forthcoming and transparent about the issues plaguing the game.

We are aware of multiplayer issues that players may be experiencing.If you experience long matchmaking wait times, turning Crossplay off in the settings may help speed matchmaking up at this moment in time.Our team are continuing to work on improving the situation!

— Outriders (@Outriders) April 6, 2021

Potential workaround for anyone who has an issue joining a game (getting stuck at 80%) or getting a spinning Outriders logo. From the lobby, do not select "continue".Instead: Select a starting point and acknowledge, then launch.

— Outriders (@Outriders) April 4, 2021

We know everyone is very keen to know more about the fix for PC <-> Console crossplay. The fix for this is tied to the overall patches that we are currently cooking up and running through testing.We hope to soon share more news about their release schedule and content

— Outriders (@Outriders) April 6, 2021

Us typing up the big Reddit dev news update to be published tomorrow. "What about..." we hear you say. Yes - the Reddit news update will probably cover that too.Also: Typewriters. Because of the Anomaly and stuff. pic.twitter.com/QsgOxY6ePO

— Outriders (@Outriders) April 7, 2021

Despite the constant correspondence with the community, the recent Outriders update has left players dissatisfied with nerfs and balance changes. Many thought those changes were unnecessary.

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Outriders update leaves community unhappy

On April 8th, 4:30 p.m. BST/UTC, the game servers were taken offline, and maintenance work began. Alongside the scheduled maintenance work, nerfs, balances, inventory restorations, and many other issues were addressed.

Players were even rewarded with a free Legendary weapon, Titanium currency, and a 'Frustation' emote for putting up with server issues.

If I could lend some advice, Don't be so fast to nerf abilities, if you're seeing too many people using specific ones, bring the others UP rather than taking those down, tearing down was Destiny's biggest mistake. It's overly a PVE game, nerfing down only screws the players.

— Zryu (@Zryu19) April 8, 2021

Nonetheless, once the servers were back online, all hell broke loose as unhappy fans began swarming the Outriders Twitter handle with comments and questions. They demanded answers.

According to most players, no one asked for the nerfs, balances, and changes implemented during the maintenance. If anything, these changes made the game harder for casual players who disliked grinding for legendary gear.

Try being on world tier 15 and not getting any and being on expedition 14 and barely getting 1 a day😭

— cal hynds (@cal_hynds) April 8, 2021

The changes only apply to subsequent playthroughs.

— Outriders (@Outriders) April 8, 2021

There was an exploit whereby users were abusing this system to generate multiple legendaries in a very short amount of time.

— Outriders (@Outriders) April 8, 2021

The problem didn't just stop at grinding for legendary gear drops. It also extended to the entire gameplay.

The majority of the community felt that nerfing and re-balancing items in a PvE game made no sense. They claimed that it would impact the game in the long run by reducing the player base.

A goddamn buff how we supposed to do end game whelp doesn't matter now I guess like everyone else u got our money nd that's all that matters y not re balance the enemies because those marksmen never miss most are to tanky wat about the fact that armor seems to a sht stat

— Jay (@AJPaperstax) April 8, 2021

bro by the time they fix the game the hype is dead and no one gunna play it, simple. It has no PvP and no dedicated Endgame, shits not compared to Destiny or Division imo simply because its not comparable once you actually play the game. Cool they have abilities?? Not the same.

— ♔ Xho (@notXho) April 8, 2021

killing your games replay ability and punishing legit players by taking out a honest reward for time invested in world with all ten earth trinket,bounty, and beast hunts instead of just patching the ability to do the exploit itself. Why even have the replay system then? No sense

— John Russell (@JohnRus90428125) April 8, 2021

I dont get way they're making it more frustrating to play their game. I guess they're thinking the longer it takes for players to get what they want, the more they play the game. The nerfs and changes to make grinding harder is only going make people frustrated and drop the game

— No-Ink (@NoInk7) April 8, 2021

They're missing the forest for the trees. I appreciate the transparency (for the most part) but these nerfs makes this kind of game and its idea (being a badass killing machine) oxymoron. Nerfing the skills just makes this game a plain cover based shooter.

— No-Ink (@NoInk7) April 8, 2021

Just my 🪙🪙 but if more games, specifically online interactive but non-competitive games, took the approach of acknowledging the communities creativity then pushing forward w/ planned "rebalancing" as new challenges for gamers to overcome moving forward. Everyone wins. WT/CT 16+

— Yeah, it's Denty so what you wanna 🥊 about it? 🤣 (@D3n7y) April 8, 2021

You say this to try and make me look like a complete fool, right? But think about this. You need one thing, what makes you think something else like these op abilities won’t break the game also. What’s going to happen next, more nerfs.. Anther meta... NERFED. Endless cycle.

— 🎥 Kxng (@itzSpyda) April 8, 2021

Angry gamers shut down other players who tried to defend the developers. The community is not happy with these changes. They want the nerfs reserved. One user summed up the situation perfectly in a tweet.

Isn’t it funny how outriders responded to all the other answers but hasn’t said anything about the nerfs here or on Reddit even though there is an uproar. 🤦🏼‍♂️

— Fujimo808 (@Fujimo808gaming) April 8, 2021

It's not just Twitter, the Outriders community on Reddit addressed the issue as well. They also called out the developers for unnecessary nerfing.

Outriders Reddit Community not happy with the nerfs (u/_superchan, Reddit)

It's sad to think that just a few hours before the nerfs, veterans of other multiplayer games such as Anthem, Warframe, and Destinty 2 came together on Outriders Reddit to boost the game's credibility after a botched launch.

According to the developers, these nerfs were implemented with the best interest of players in mind. With the community staging a full-blown revolt against these nerfs, it's hard to say what happens next.