Outer Wilds Review (Pepsicle)
I've held off on writing this review after finishing the game to properly collect my thoughts on it, it's been about a month and I think my thoughts have settled.
If you want to play this game, please go into it knowing as little as possible about it. If you need some convincing, allow me to explain this masterpiece of a game.
I'll keep this review as spoiler free as possible, be wary of spoiler tags.
The Base Game:
Overview
This is the best game I've played this year, and maybe the last few years. It's hard to describe how this game makes you feel. A friend of mine started gushing over this game about half a year ago and has been pushing me to play it since then. I finally gave in not really knowing what the hype was about but willing to give it a go. I love space games after all. I bought it and gave it a go.
I won't lie, it took me a couple hours to really understand what the game was about, or well, start to understand. This is a game you may never completely understand. There are so many different plotlines, characters and details. The writing for this game is incredible but the way it's told and the way you discover it is what really sells it. The rush of realization halfway through reading a mural what happened, a new soundtrack kicking in and the feelings. This game forces you to be invested in what happened and motivations for characters.
Mechanics
This game has tons of mechanics, most of which you won't understand the use of right away, but all of them are used masterfully. There are no upgrades in the game, you start with the exact same tools you finish with and you can utilize every tool starting the first time you use it. You just might now know how to use it yet. Every time you figure out something new you can use certain tools for feels amazing and these rarely get overused or boring.
The Solar System
I think it's fair to say that the solar system itsself is a character of the story. It changes throughout your playthrough and there is an insane amount of environmental storytelling. The colors and/or features used to define every planet are instantly recognizable and are well chosen.
I will talk about 2 planets here and this will contain minor spoilers (general description of the feature of the planets):
Hourglass twins
These twins are a great way to visualize the passage of time. One planet filling the other one with sand. The Ash Twin slowly deposits its sand into the Ember Twin. The Ember twin is filled with mazelike cave systems which become inaccessible as time passes. On the Ash twin, more things become visible throughout your playtime. This mechanic is used amazingly to add a factor of stress and patience for some areas.
Giants Deep
Probably one of my favourite planets in terms of visual design. The constant tornados, rushing waters and islands getting flung out of atmosphere (?!?). So amazing. I'll never forget diving through the covering clouds and almost crashing into the waters only to recover and be presented with multiple tornados. Absolutely amazing. The "feature" you eventually discover is one which proves that the devs trust the player but reward attention to detail.
The developers' expectations
Humans are dumb, and the devs played into that massively. They know exactly where to hide something which you will later find and have a genuine facepalm moment because "Now it feels so obvious". The way they constructed the non chronological learning of new tricks and mechanics is incredible. Since I completed the game I have observed a couple other people playing the game for the first time. Seeing how they interpret the clues, don't know the secrets, learn the secrets, facepalm after knowing the secret, everything is a delight to see. Some learned a fairly important thing super early on (compared to my playthrough) and others learned barely anything in their first few hours but loved the experience. I will keep recommending this game to friends.
The "Puzzles"
It's hard to call these puzzles but I guess they are. The "Puzzles" in this game are usually great but sometimes a bit too much. Spoilers:The black hole forge puzzle/sequence was really annoying to me. Most puzzles are a delight to complete and give a satisfying crumble of the story for the player to feast on. Some of the harder puzzles or puzzles that require the knowledge of a certain trick are definitely points players can get stuck on, my tip: just do something else until you realize what you have to do.
This might sound like a big problem with the way I describe it, but in my experience I only got annoyed by 2 or 3 puzzles. The rest are a delight to figure out.
The Soundtrack
The soundtrack for this game is incredible. The way it blends with events and areas, the way the tone goes somber or upbeat depending on what you're learning. One track in particular should be highlighted, spoilers ahead: Haha pranked it's actually two tracks but I couldn't just say that. End Times and Final End Times are amazing. The track conveys the feeling of dread, the universe ending, and most importantly, the acceptance of it beautifully. Final End Times takes this to a whole other level. The confusion upon hearing it when you first get the WP from the ATP is an experience. "Huh? Already? I'm like 10 minutes into the loop?" And then the realisation hits. "Oh, this is it. The way it plays muted as you make your way through DB, avoiding the AF. It's amazing. I also set my alarm to Final End Times which is kind of ironic, starting the day with the soundtrack of the end of life. Oh well, it is what it is.
My overall conclusion
This game is fantastic. I have never played anything like it and I'm afraid I never will again. I dearly wish that I could factory reset my brain and play this game for the first time again.
The story, characters, world, soundtrack are tailored together in a masterful way, delivering one of the best and most interesting games of this decade. I sincerely hope that as many people as possible play this masterpiece of a game and experience the piece of art that Mobius Digital has created.
Also Devs, please release the switch port I want to give you more money :(
(I also reviewed the DLC but couldn't fit it into the word limit. You can find the review on the DLC storepage.)