The Outer Worlds 2 is upon us with its fair share of cast compared to the original, but every companion you can recruit has their own personality, fight style, and story hooks to bring to your travels throughout the colonies. Some will automatically join you as you work through the main story, while others take a little more exploring and talking to locate.
Here’s how to recruit every companion in The Outer Worlds 2, what makes them unique, and where you’ll first encounter them.
Niles and Valerie
You’ll meet Niles and Valerie right after finishing the game’s introduction mission. Both are tied to your commander and automatically join your crew early on.
- Niles works well as a frontline fighter who can draw enemy fire, making him a reliable tank for early encounters.
- Valerie, meanwhile, assists the team with healing and crowd control skills.
They’re your default duo during the first part of the game, and while they become useful in the late game too, they’re particularly valuable for making it through the harder early Eden missions.
Inez
Inez is available later in your stay on Eden, after the main story dispatches you to search for means into the ARC. You will initially find her mid-mission, disputing her part in Auntie’s Choice before she proceeds on her own mission.
After completing your main objective in the area, return to the main settlement — you’ll find Inez negotiating her contract with Minister Milverstreet. Once the scene plays out, talk to her again, and she’ll agree to join your crew.
Initially, Inez will not have her companion ability unlocked. To achieve this, you will need to finish her companion quest, which is to assist her in fixing her cybernetic arm. The quest’s result transforms her ability:
- Select the Crabble target to unlock a ranged blast attack.
- Select the Raptidon target to provide her with the ability to heal herself.
Regardless of what you select, Inez is a powerful and versatile ally who is definitely worth taking into battle.
Tristan
Once you’ve completed the main story events on Eden, head to Free Market Station. You’ll find Tristan in a bar in the southern district, chatting with a bartender.
After a short conversation, he’ll ask for your help investigating a silent settlement on Dorado. Complete this mission with him, then meet back at Free Market Station. Speak with Tristan again, and he’ll offer to officially join your party.
Tristan is one of two melee specialist companions in The Outer Worlds 2. He wields a huge hammer and has the option to charge towards enemies, slamming them with significant area damage. He’s great at rapidly clearing large groups but will often falter if fights go on for too long.
Marisol
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You’ll meet Marisol during your missions on Dorado. Her recruitment is tied to a questline involving tampered research data and a personal vendetta against someone who betrayed her.
Once you’ve retrieved the information and helped her resolve the situation, she’ll offer to join your team.
Marisol is a ranged damage dealer with a support ability. When you tag an enemy, her ability makes that enemy take greater critical damage and get stunned for a short time, so she is a good setup companion for challenging fights.
Aza
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The last companion you can bring in is Aza, a cultist you’ll encounter much later in the game.
While traveling through Dorado toward the N-Ray Range, you’ll pass by a location called the Decommissioned Autonomous Extractorium, which is overrun by cultists. Clear the area, and you’ll discover Aza locked inside one of the rooms. Free her, and she’ll immediately offer to join your party.
Aza is your second melee character, and her playstyle is all about movement and area control. Her ability allows her to dash into position and hit enemies in a large cone, staggering them simultaneously. Her damage per attack is lower than Tristan’s raw damage, but she can activate the ability twice per charge, which provides her with excellent crowd control potential.
Building the Perfect Squad
Each of the six companions in The Outer Worlds 2 has a special role to play in combat and his/her own companion quest that unlocks more about his/her background.
As you advance, you’ll also be able to unlock their skill upgrades, which allow you to customize their combat capabilities according to your own playstyle preferences — whether you’re all about heavy melee combat, long-distance support, or a hybrid mix of both.
