You’re crouched in a dark corner of the Snitch trial, heart hammering against your ribs, and the only thing between you and a gruesome end is a thin wooden door. Then you hear it. The dragging footsteps. The wet, rhythmic thumping of a pipe. It's Leland Coyle. He’s whistling. If you’ve played for more than ten minutes, you know that sound means death is literally around the corner. Dealing with outlast trials all enemies isn't just about running fast; it's about learning the specific, twisted neuroses of the people Murkoff has broken and set loose on you.
Most horror games give you a gun or a sturdy lead pipe. Red Barrels gives you a brick and a prayer. It’s brutal.
The game doesn't just throw "monsters" at you. It throws Expopos—Ex-Experimental Populations. These are people. Or they were. Now, they're just meat-puppets for the Sinyala Facility’s psychological torture. Understanding the hierarchy of these threats is the difference between completing a Program Ultra trial and bleeding out in a pile of garbage while a man in a police uniform laughs at your corpse.
The Prime Assets: Why Mother Gooseberry and Coyle Rule the Trials
There is a huge gap between a random grunt and a Prime Asset. Prime Assets are the "bosses," though they don't have health bars you can whittle down. They are persistent, vocal, and honestly, kind of terrifying once they lock onto your scent.
Mother Gooseberry is arguably the face of the game’s trauma. She’s a former children’s show host with a drill-bit puppet named Dr. Futterman attached to her hand. It’s disgusting. She’s fast, too. Unlike some of the slower enemies, Gooseberry has a tendency to patrol high-traffic objective areas, making her a massive pain during the Fun Park trials. If you hear her arguing with her puppet, she’s close. You need to break line of sight immediately because once she starts that drill, your stamina bar is the only thing saving you.
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Then there’s Leland Coyle. He’s a disgraced police officer who carries an electric baton that will stun the absolute life out of you. Coyle is loud. He screams about the law and "legal" punishments while trying to fry your brain. The trick with Coyle is his reach. That baton has more range than you think. If you’re trying to loop him around a desk, do not get cocky. He will reach over and zap you, leaving you vulnerable to any other nearby Grunts.
The newest addition, Franco "Bambino" Barbi, changed the meta completely. He has a gun. Well, a sawed-off shotgun that fires darts/slugs. In a game where every other enemy has to touch you to hurt you, a ranged threat is a nightmare. You can’t just stand on a balcony and taunt him. He will shoot you. Dealing with Franco requires a lot more "hug the wall" gameplay than the other two.
Every Outlast Trials All Enemies Variant You’ll Encounter
Beyond the big names, the "Small Grunts" and "Big Grunts" make up the bulk of the population. They might seem like fodder, but in a crowded hallway, they’re lethal.
The Big Grunts
These guys are huge. You’ll recognize them by their sheer size and the fact that they usually aren't wearing much. They can’t follow you through crawlspaces or over certain obstacles as easily as the smaller ones, but if they catch you in a dead end, it’s over in two hits. The Berserker is a specific variant that is blind but has incredible hearing. Pro tip: if a Berserker is in the room, crouch-walk. Do not even think about tapping the sprint button.
The Pouncers
Ever opened a locker or a hiding spot and had a screeching maniac jump on your face? That’s a Pouncer. They don't patrol. They hide. They wait for you to feel safe. If you see a hiding spot with "trash" or weird movement inside, stay away. Or, if you’re feeling brave, throw a brick at it to flush them out.
The Screamer
This one is a literal headache. The Screamer doesn't move. He just stands there, usually in a choke point. If you make noise near him, he lets out a sonic wail that freezes you in place and drains your sanity. He’s a support enemy. He holds you still so Mother Gooseberry can finish the job.
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The Skinner Man
You only see him when your Sanity meter hits zero. He is the manifestation of the reagent's psychosis. You can’t kill him. You can’t really hide from him. He teleports. The only way to get rid of him is to find an antidote (the green pills) and get your head straight. Honestly, the Skinner Man is the reason most players fail high-level trials; they get so panicked by the hallucination that they run straight into a real enemy.
Navigating the Environment: It’s Not Just the People
Murkoff loves traps. It’s part of the "experience." While looking for outlast trials all enemies, you have to account for the static threats that turn a simple hallway into a death trap.
- Door Traps: If you see a little red light or a wire on a door, don't just barge in. Open it slowly (hold the interact button). If you trigger it, you get hit with a dart that shreds your sanity.
- Floor Mines: These hiss before they go off. They release hallucinogenic gas.
- Sound Traps: Broken glass on the floor, hanging cans, and even those annoying squeaky ducks. Every noise draws enemies to your exact location.
The AI in this game is surprisingly sophisticated. They don't just walk in circles. They search. They look under desks. If they see a door close, they will go to that door. It’s a game of cat and mouse where the cat has night vision and a lobotomy.
Strategies for High-Difficulty Trials
When you move into Program X or Ultra, the enemies become more aggressive, and your resources dwindle. You have to change how you play.
1. The Brick is King
Forget the bottles. Bricks are the most valuable item in the game. A brick to the back of the head can stun a Prime Asset long enough for you to finish an objective or jump through a window. If you have the "Strong Arm" rig, those bricks become even more effective.
2. Rig Synergy
If you're playing solo, the Stun Rig is almost mandatory. It gives you a "get out of jail free" card when you're cornered. In a group, someone should always have Heal, and someone else should have Blind. The Blind Mine is essentially a flashbang that you can set and forget. It’s perfect for when you’re pushing the Snitch or fueling a generator.
3. Loop and Lose
Don't just run in a straight line. The enemies in The Outlast Trials are faster than you over long distances if you don't use the environment. Vault over tables, slide under crawlspaces, and most importantly, shut doors behind you. A closed door buys you three seconds. In those three seconds, you can find a hiding spot or turn a corner.
Why These Enemies Feel Different
Red Barrels did something clever here. Instead of the supernatural ghosts of other horror games, these enemies represent different failures of the human psyche. You have the "Imposter"—an enemy that looks exactly like one of your teammates. They’ll run up to you, pretend to be your friend, and then stab you in the gut. It creates a genuine sense of paranoia in co-op play. You start asking your friends, "Is that you? Stand still. Why are you moving like that?"
The game thrives on this breakdown of trust and safety. Even the "Pusher," a character who just wants to spray you with gas and make you lose your mind, serves a specific purpose: he forces you to move. You can’t camp. You can’t stay still.
Mastering the Murkoff Grind
To truly handle all enemies, you need to invest in your Prescriptions. These are permanent upgrades you buy from the nurse back at the Sleep Room.
Focus on the "Slide" and "Increased Stamina" upgrades first. Being able to slide into a crawlspace is a life-saver. Later on, the ability to kick an enemy off a teammate or recover health by hiding becomes essential.
The trials are designed to break you down, but the enemies follow patterns. Once you learn that Mother Gooseberry always takes the long way around the carousel or that Coyle can't see well in the pitch black of the basement, the power dynamic shifts. You aren't just a victim anymore; you're a Reagent.
Actionable Next Steps for Reagents:
- Learn the Audio Cues: Every enemy has a unique sound. Spend one "throwaway" match just sitting in a dark corner and listening. Distinguish between a Grunt's breathing and a Prime Asset's dialogue.
- Prioritize Sanity: Never let your sanity drop to the final bar. The Skinner Man is a run-killer. Always keep an antidote in your inventory, even if it means dropping a battery.
- Check Your Corners: Use the "Peaking" mechanic (holding the interact button on a corner) to see where enemies are without exposing yourself.
- Daily Challenges: Complete these to get Murkoff Credits fast. You need those upgrades to survive the later Programs where enemies move faster and hit harder.
The Murkoff Corporation doesn't want you to succeed, but by memorizing the movement and limitations of every enemy in the trials, you can at least make their "therapy" a lot more difficult to administer. Survive the trial. Earn your freedom. Just don't look too closely at the faces of the people chasing you—you might see what you’re destined to become.