Outer Wilds Reviews
Though occasionally frustrating, Outer Wilds presents a unique experience to explore a world with few limitations.
Outer Wilds offers an incredible world filled with memorable moments, but the experience is hamstrung by poorly implemented puzzles and wonky systems
Outer Wilds: Archaeologist Edition is the best chance Nintendo Switch players have at experiencing a truly innovative game, albeit one that isn’t best presented on Nintendo’s little console that could. There’s quite a lot stacked against Outer Wilds thanks to how quickly it lets players do what they want and the clunkiness of the early game. Acquired tastes aside, it’s worth a try and even worth to complete. That said, if you want the best experience, you’re probably better off choosing the PC/XB/PS versions.
Your enjoyment of this outer space adventure will mostly correspond to your comfort with a general lack of direction
In the end, Outer Wilds is all about exploring a mysterious solar system and finding out its secrets. I had a fun time flying around in space and it’s good for the gaming industry as a whole to have an adventure game like this that’s about exploring a world without having to shoot or fight enemies. However, Outer Wilds doesn’t do a great job at guiding players. Instead, you are left aimlessly exploring until you figure out what to do next.
Outer Wilds gets most of the "big picture" stuff right. It boasts a solid structure, wonderfully imaginative planets, and an involving slow-burn mystery. Unfortunately, clunky controls, a few irritating design choices, and a multitude of other little issues bring the game back down to earth. If you value originality over execution, Outer Wilds is worth the ride, but expect some turbulence.
This is a game that presents itself in a unique way, and trusts you to put together its compelling mystery without assistance
Outer Wilds: Archeologist Edition on the Switch is obviously lacking in its graphical presentation and controls remain as trying as ever. But the call to explore, discover and find a story remains a solid call to take up the game. But for the best and most immersive experience, other consoles or PC are your best bet.
When the credits roll on Outer Wilds: Archaeologist Edition, you'll feel sad that there's no way to experience it with fresh eyes again. You can play the main story for close to 15-20 hours, and the meaty DLC adds another 10 hours or more, but this isn't a game that you'll return to after completion because you've solved the puzzle. As cool as the little pocket galaxy is, if you have another system besides the Switch that can run Outer Wilds, I'd recommend playing the game on the other system instead. Outer Wilds simply isn't meant to be played on a handheld console.
Outer Wilds is a big, beautiful game spanning an entire solar system that celebrates discovery while, at the same time, slaps you in the mouth for getting too curious.
Enjoying Outer Wilds depends on your willingness to read guides and discuss the game online. Otherwise, you'll probably feel like you're regularly hitting your head on a brick wall as you try to make just an inch of progress.
It's a lonely, cold planet over here. Mileage on Outer Wilds will depend largely on how much one enjoys exploration, discovery and extrinsic reward versus repetitive backtracking and restrictive (but also far too long and frequently-occurring-to-be-as-restrictive-as-it-is) time limits. It may certainly be a monkey brain desire for feedback and a more robust signposting of progress, but even knowing that the lack of it here is exactly the point, one can't help think there are examples within interactive media that have done lateral think puzzles better. Ones that would waste less time in between solving puzzles, too. Clearly, there's a majority disagreement for this view, so take it with a pinch of salt, but also go into it aware that it's not going to be for everyone. It is an experience that introduces a lot of mind-bending sci-fi concepts and a surprisingly emotional, if conflicting, conclusion. One just wonders if we like the scaffolding more than we like the building itself. Perhaps, though, it's just that some people really don't like time loop mechanics.
I could go on and on with praises for Outer Wilds. The atmosphere, the sound design, the score, the overwhelmingly amazing attention to detail, clever puzzle design, the story. It is magical. Outer Wilds is a must on Switch. Yūgen is a Japanese concept that doesn’t have a direct English translation. It varies, but I particularly like this definition: “an awareness of the universe that triggers an emotional response too deep and powerful for words.” After looking away from my Switch screen once the final credits of the (main) ending finished only to find myself back on Earth in a room that felt too small to contain something intangible, I took a quiet moment to pause and reorient myself in this reality. I think I need some time on the roof to stargaze for a while.
There's a twofold joy to Outer Wilds - the thrill of discovery itself, as you slowly decipher the variables that swirl around each not-so-distant world, and of seeing that thrill reflected in a phrase scribbled centuries ago by some castaway alien boffin.
I encounter other space explorers of my own kind. They are bizarre, likable clue-givers who provide moments of comic relief. I perpetrate no violence in this game. I am never required to fire a laser gun or grapple with enemies. (How few are the games, set in space, that absent themselves from combat.) Yet, the worlds I visit can be hostile, releasing their secrets with the greatest reluctance.
Outer Wilds is not a power fantasy. It is a game about discovering how little power you have, and how maybe that isn’t as scary as you might initially have thought. The galaxy is huge, but you can still make your mark on a small part of it.
Ultimately, it’s the planets that make this game what it is. Worlds full of mysteries and anomalies. To me they are proof that there is still no substitute for handcrafting your virtual realms.
Outer Wilds is still a brilliant game in its Nintendo Switch version, which also includes the Echoes of the Eye DLC, and we recommend visiting the small but fascinating universe Mobius Digital has given life to. It's just that this version is the worst of the bunch, and the other ones are much cheaper now, four years after the original release.
Review in Italian | Read full review
This is the textbook example of exploration and every point of interest begs to be found as it creates a cohesive and captivating experience that is a constant feast for the adventurous soul.