Outer Wilds

Everyone says that Outer Wilds is best experienced when you know nothing about it before jumping in. And they're right. But still, this makes it difficult for an outsider to decide whether or not they want to buy the game (yes you should); so I'm going to try and describe the kind of game it is and what the experience is like, without spoiling anything. This game is a spatial exploration game in a fictional solar system, mostly based on uncovering the knowledge and actions of an ancient civilization. The game is entirely based on discovery and information gathering; your ship log records what you learn, and that's your progression. There is no other character progression than the knowledge you accumulate. Early on in the game, you'll find that something is going very wrong. There's a mystery that you will want to solve, and the only way you'll solve it is by going out in the universe, gathering clues and piecing them together. You decide where to go and what to do based on your own c...

I don't leave many reviews, but this game. Holy fucking shit, this game, is a masterpiece, and I am SO angry that I can't even TALK about it because I will most definitely spoil something by accident. This game ruined me. I will never be the same. (In a good way.)

I'm gonna be the lone voice of dissent and say, I absolutely hate this game. Only because I can't play it! The flying controls are terrible, the little minigame for the model ship in the beginning will show you how terrible you'll be at flying the actual ship and if you can do nothing but crash - you won't enjoy this game. I find realistic flying/thruster type controls to be the bane of my existence, always terrible at the flight missions in the GTA games, and several other 'space' games due to the wonky controls. I've heard such wonderful things about the story here, but unfortunately I'll never experience it due to the difficult design of the flight mechanics.

Outer Wilds is often hailed with overwhelmingly positive reviews, and while it’s easy to see why, the hype can be a touch overenthusiastic. The game is more contemplative than explosive—planets drift slowly, mysteries unravel at a gentle pace, and your little ship makes each loop feel deliberate rather than frantic. That said, uncovering the solar system’s secrets, piecing together the story, and watching each orbit bring new revelations is utterly satisfying. Mild, patient, and quietly brilliant, Outer Wilds is still very much worth your time.

TLDR: This game is not for everyone, and for those like me, you will find this game totally insufferable and even question your own sanity/intelligence if you try to enjoy it. I have tried to play this game 3 different times within the past 3 years and every time I get so frustrated and overwhelmed at the difficulty of the platforming and the lack of direction. I know this game is often cited as one of the best games ever, is consistently rated overwhelmingly positive among all demographics of gamers, many people I know personally loved this game and have told me if I "give it a chance" eventually I will like it too, but after about 5 hours (I know Steam says 2, I play offline often) I have decided to never waste a single second on this game ever again. Time loop games are not for everyone and I felt the same way about Majora's Mask before I ultimately gave it up 2/3 of the way through the game: I don't like having to repeat things over and over again. Period. But at least with Maj...

Too late to explore the world Too early to explore space Just in time to experience this masterpiece Thank you Outer Wilds for ripping a hole in my heart and filling it with marshmallows

Overall 7/10 for me. It's a few hours of interesting adventure but you eventually hit a brick wall and it stops being fun. Buy it when it's on sale. I would say 99% of the game is a masterpiece but it's completely ruined by a few terrible mechanics that make the game virtually unplayable. What I find to be game breaking flaws might not bother you, so this might be a 10/10 game for you. 20 minute reset mechanic: I like the graphical style of the game. I like the art, the sound. It's all very nice to look at and I want to explore this world. The problem is that the game resets every 20 minutes. You could be having a great time exploring caves or searching for something, and then the game just kills you and you need to start over. Literally hours of time are wasted by this mechanic. One of the planets is covered in sand that flows to a nearby planet, so the ground level gets lower and you have more things to look at. It takes about 15 minutes for the sand level to get low, so you have ...

Absolute master piece of a game, that I'm sad I didn't play sooner. QwQ The atmosphere (no pun intended) of the game is incredible, alongside the mechanics and sound design and OST! The story is bloody amazing, and was very fun uncovering and exploring! The world building and designs and just everything! AGH! It's so goooooooooooooooooooooooooood!! PLAY THIS GAME!! (And if you do, do not search anything up. Everything, AND I MEAN EVERYTHING, is a spoiler!)

There's a general consensus among the fandom that you can't talk about this game which makes it a hard sell to most people, but once you play it you realize it's because this game is one of a kind. An exploration focused open world that is limited by the 3rd dimension no one has thought to use: Time (and how fitting that it's being used in space exploration no less). The basic premise is to try an uncover the mysteries of a (surprisingly) densely compact solar system comprised of extremely exotic and diverse planets that you don't need 20 whole minutes to reach, each requiring their own approach and each holding unique pieces of a grander puzzle that surround the biggest mystery the player has to uncover without having their hand held for them, if you don't count the fact that you're given 22 minutes to do, because you find yourself stuck in a time loop, which adds to the overall mystery of the narrative of the game (yes, this game has narrative, and it's an important part of the exper...

People say that the game "leaves it up to your curiosity". Well, it didn't pique mine. I spent God knows how long wrestling with the flight controls, and then just when I'd finally found a place to go and a thing to investigate, right when I was about to start looking at what the thing might be, the world ended. Maybe other people are intrigued by this. I was just depressed.