Attributes in The Outer Worlds work much the way they did in Fallout. Putting points in your Attirbutes during Character Creation determines the starting value of your various Skills. Unlike Fallout, once Attributes are decided, their values cannot be changed via perks or any level-up system. However, they can be buffed by equipping appropriate armor or drinking all types of drinks, albeit temporarily.
Each Attribute has 6 ranks (in ascending order): Minimum, Below Average, Average, Good, High, Very High, and Maximum.) Any Attribute that ranks Below Average or Minimum comes with an additional Penalty. Worth noting, that you cannot achieve Minimum or Maximum value of an Attribute without appropriate armor, buffs, or debuffs.
Each Attribute also influences various skill buffs during gameplay. Each increase or decrease affects said skills by 3 points each, unless you increase 2 Attributes that affect only one skill (say Strength and Dexterity for the 1-Handed Melee skill), then it would combine to increase by 6 points. However, if you were to increase an Attribute to Maximum, or decrease it to Minimum, the relevant skill will be appropriately modified by 5 points rather than 3.
