The Outer Worlds: How To Find The Shrink Ray And How To Use It

When it comes to The Outer Worlds, science weapons rule, mainly because they make the game so much cooler—but none are as cool as the shrink ray. While The Outer Worlds is a wonderful game filled with insane scientists, hilarious (and sometimes annoying) companions, and brilliant quests, many players prioritize the awesome science weapons that are dotted around the huge map. This is completely understandable, since they can really change the game and just make it so much sillier—but that isn’t to say they’re not useful!

It can often be pretty challenging to actually locate these game-changing weapons unless the player knows the location before completing certain quests. Luckily, the shrink ray is relatively easy to find, and it’s even more enjoyable to use on unsuspecting enemies. Just be warned, the weapons’ effects aren’t permanent, and the ammo can be a pain to get hold of, so use this awesome weapon wisely.

Where To Find The Shrink Ray

The shrink ray really comes into the story at the end of the main quest “Stranger in a Strange Land” when the player gets back onto the Unreliable to continue their quest to bring back their frozen companions with the help of Phineas. The player doesn’t have to do too much to get hold of the shrink ray, which makes it a great first science weapon as well as a wonderful gun as a whole—especially due to how useful it can be in a desperate situation and how hilarious it is to use on terrifying enemies and unsuspecting people.

All the player needs to do is go to the Unreliable and head into your quarters. Then simply read through the notes on the terminal to learn all about Hawthorne’s quest in tracking down the science weapons and to start that questline. Next, set course for Phineas’ Lab and head right on in until the player meets this crazy scientist, standing behind a protective barrier. It’s easy to get lost in the loot and the endless ramblings, but the gun is just on the counter to the right when the player approaches Phineas, and it’s labeled “Phineas’ Weapon.” Pick it up and have a great time ‘testing it’ on some poor creatures. Just be mindful of the limited ammo!

The Guns Beginning Stats

This shrink ray isn’t the most powerful gun in the game but the developers never intended for it to be an overpowered gun due to the pure fact that it shrinks people. Nevertheless, the gun has some pretty good stats and can be upgraded in the future to become that little bit more useful as the game progresses.

Ultimately, it’s not designed to be powerful; it seems like it’s designed to be funny more than destructive. After all, who doesn’t want to hear the tiny screams of a Raptidon after you shoot it? Plus, it can be good to get hold of just in case it’s needed to save the player’s life at the end of the game or in the new DLC Murder on Eridanos. The weapons base stats are as follows:

• DPS 36 Plasma
• Item Lvl 9
• Skill Handguns
• Damage 18
• Magazine Size 100 (Energy Cells)

What It Does

Not only does the shrink ray look awesome, but it deals plasma damage, and obviously shrinks the target. It’s worth noting that they are only smaller for a few seconds, so it isn’t completely game-changing, but, even so, when the player starts fighting a huge Raptidon, making it tiny can save your life, and make you laugh.

It’s also worth mentioning that, due to the enemies being that much smaller, they can be annoyingly hard to hit. But, luckily, their armor and damage get reduced along with their size, so, if the player just increases their tech/science skill, then the reductions will be reduced even more. Then you’ll be a force to be reckoned with.

How To Use It

It’s well known that, due to the shrink rays energy cell ammo (which is the same for all science weapons that use ammo), the gun is a pretty special weapon and not something to be used as a primary attack. The shrink ray needs energy cell ammo to work, and it is recommended that the player use the science weapons when they really need it, or when they want to have some fun with a certain enemy.

The best way to use the shrink ray is, ironically, pretty much never use it until the player finds they cannot survive the encounter without some help from the shrink ray—i.e., it’s best used as a last resort. That being said, if the player hoards the energy cell ammo, then they may find they have enough to really do some damage when it’s needed. However, as the end of the game approaches, guns get much more powerful and do tend to overtake the science weapons themselves, powerful and unique though they may be.

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