- "It's a hard place for a sweet kid like you."
- ―Dorris
Dorris is a character in The Outlast Trials. She is the person in charge of giving the player AMPs, that help the Reagents get further skills within the trials. Despite the AMPs being considered contraband resources and tools, Dorris thinks she is helping the players beat the inhumane and perverse conditions of the trials.
Background[]
At the age of 12, Dorris was kicked out from her home in New York Bowery. The reason for her expulsion was she was having a childhood romance with the neighbour's daughter of a similar age. She spent many rough years being homeless long before she ever came to Murkoff Charity program, which was orchestrated by Murkoff Corporation to kidnap homeless and desperate individuals and bring them to the Sinyala Facility. She met the Reagent named Henrietta and participated the Trials together. After some time, Dorris decides to no longer participate in the trials and managed to establish a business relationship with the Murkoff staffs that allowed her to sell a limited selection of illicit goods inside the Sleep Room. She is a paranoiac and conspiracy theorist who discovered that many of her own worst fears are only the tip of the iceberg.
Characteristics[]
Dorris is a NPC and will not interact much with the player. Before level 10 she will not allow players to access her shop and will only speak harshly to them until they reach level 10. At this level Dorris will offer contraband known as amps to the player in exchange for Murkoff dollars. Dorris is sharp, critical and harsh. She is the opposite of Nurse Barlow, in that she also states things how Reagents need toothpaste and looks shabby right off the bat. Intially, Dorris tells the playersto keep to their own business and that she is not looking for a friend. Only after the players have gone through many trials and unlocked a certain amount of AMPs, does Dorris become more forthcoming and kind. She starts bonding with the player and telling them about her past and how long she had been abused by Murkoff.
Story[]
The Outlast Trials[]
As of the player's arrival at the facility, Dorris has become a black market seller of contraband items. She no longer participates in the trials but still bears permanent injuries from the experiences. She reveals to the players that she fears being reborn and wonders if she has been and been brought back by Murkoff, as seems some Reagents are extracted for further study and use in trials. In her early days in the trials, Dorris had made a friend, Henrietta, whom she had a deep bond with and was working on staying alive in the trials so she could escape with her. In some ways, Henrietta seemed more than a friend (given Dorris is queer it could be read as a romantic relationship as well). However, as the trials continued, she mentions Murkoff succeeded as they changed Henrietta or her in some fundamental way and so, they were forced to part.
According to her dialogues, Dorris has experienced the mental control of Murkoff Corporation and survived the Trials her Reagent friend, Henrietta. However, she eventually chose to stay in the facility where Murkoff personnel allowed her to avoid further participation in the trials through business relationships. Due to her rough adolescent years, Dorris does not seem to mind her situation and is accepting with her life in Murkoff's Trial program. Henrietta had accused Dorris on wanting to be in the trials and never wanting to get out. Dorris explains to the players that perhaps Henrietta is right as she had faced the outside world and its struggles whereas here she has some level of control and power with the facility.
This is evidenced with how Dorris does not need to participate in trials anymore and how she mentions that scientists and other staff have connections with her. Dorris prides herself in knowing the right people and having the business deals needed to survive in the facility. She also informs the player that Easterman is in trouble as Murkoff favours Wernicke over him and the project may be bound to be ceased. She mentions she has extraction measures if something like were to happen and is not worried of this outcome.
Due to being in the trials for so long, Dorris may have developed a precognition ability. She says to the player she has The Skinner Man but also "the other two" — it is heavily hinted she knows about Miles and The Walrider and have seen Blake with his phantom baby.
Personality[]
Dorris is initially rude and dismissive of the Reagents. She often refers to the Reagents passing by as "amateurs" and will not give any further attention to them until a Reagent reaches level 10. Upon reaching this level Dorris becomes more amicable and often speaks in a slightly laid-back and carefree manner. She is focused on business and will mention the sale of amps to any Reagents coming by her while trying to avoid any suspicions from the Murkoff personnel. Despite her reputation for selling the contrabands that are considered helpful in the trials, she prefers not to befriend any of the Reagents.
Dorris also seems empathic and encourage Reagents to leave, but she also fears on how Murkoff could use the 'reborn' agents to influence the outside world. Sometimes, she acts flirtatious towards the chef personnel serving the cafeteria, often referring to him as "Cookie" and trying to get his attention while maintaining her calm and carefree attitude.
Physical description[]
Dorris is a pale-skinned caucasian woman of average height and build. She has long, unkept black hair, scars across her face and appears to be in her 30's. She has brown eyes, however, one is a bright cyan and most likely blind from an injury she suffered in a trial. She wears a unique skin-tight grey Reagent uniform. She sports a default green ESOP without a rig, and notably also lacks the night vision googles and communication wristlet that all the other Reagents are equipped with.
Trivia[]
- Dorris is blind from her right eye.
- Dorris could have rebirthed prior to the player's' experience.
- Given information of her past shows Dorris is queer. Her friendship with Henrietta also hints of a romantic bond and not merely friendship. When recounting details of Henrietta, she speaks of Henrietta's severance of her in some ways as that of a partner more than a friend.
- The fact that there are bolts sticking out of her temples with remnants of the goggle's mechanism still attached and taking into consideration her most prominent facial scar spans vertically across her face, reaching her forehead, and crossing her blind eye could suggest that she either got her goggles removed by Murkoff staff in a shabby fashion or had them violently knocked off her face during a trial.
- In the image that showcases the Amps on the game's Steam page and when the player sees an interaction prompt, she is referred to as "The Shadowy Dame."
- Dame means having a rank of knighthood or the title of a lady. In this case, it could mean Dorris is a mysterious woman who sells the amps, which helped the Reagents through certain situations in the trials.
- It is unknown whether Dorris has her own sleep room or not.
- Despite Murkoff being aware of her selling the amps which are considered contrabands seen in the Project Lupara trailer, they still allow the amps to be used during the trials unless it has the No Amps variator.
- Based on her dialogues, Dorris seems to have unknowingly developed a premonition from her sleep, not only about the Skinner Man but also allowing her to see the foreshadowing visions of the ghost and the man holding a baby.
References[]
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