Outer Wilds

Steam Reviews

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• Recommended Posted July 30, 2025 on Steam 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 curiosity and desire to learn; when you explore a place, you learn things that give you background knowledge and/or hints about how to get past obstacles in other places. If you find yourself blocked, go explore another planet: chances are the information on how to overcome what's blocking you is written somewhere else. The game is totally non-linear and encourages you to try new things. At first, you get scattered bits and pieces of information and you don't understand anything, it's totally baffling. Then, as you get more bits, you start seeing connections and elaborating theories on what the hell is happening. This is a very exciting and enthralling part of the game, the reason why spoilers are so bad for this game, and the reason why you shouldn't use Internet guides. Making hypotheses and figuring out where you need to go next in order to check these hypotheses is a huge part of the fun and the experience, and you shouldn't spoil yourself out of it. Then you get key elements of information, and the pieces of the puzzle start falling into place. In the end, when you've almost explored everything, you finally understand what's going on, and it's incredible. Everything is cohesive, all the things that you couldn't figure out at start make perfect sense, and you're awestruck by the immaculate story put together by the developers, and by the grandeur and beauty of it all. And in the same moment, you know exactly what you need to do to finish the game. During the whole experience, you meet a lot of characters. Your fellow Hearthian explorers, who each have their own personality, but also Nomai characters whose lives you read about on the walls they left behind, and you grow attached to them. The game isn't only a pleasure for the deductive center of the brain; it's full of emotion, too, and the end of the game is powerful enough to make the most cold-hearted of us melt into a puddle of tears. This game is unique, it's exciting, it's nerve-wracking at times, it's fun, it's tragic, it's heart string-pulling, it's awe-inspiring, and my only regret is that it can only be fully experienced once. Once you have played it, it will be your regret too.
• Recommended Posted December 16, 2025 on Steam [h1] Do yourself a favor, go blind into this one [/h1] This game is a wonderful experience, a game you can play only once. Don't watch trailers, don't watch a gameplay, just turn the game on and let it lead you. [i] I hope that one day I'll wake up and forget about my playthrough, so I could play it for the first time once again [/i]
• Recommended Posted November 1, 2025 on Steam One of the most immersive and creative games I've played in a while. You begin to explore because it's fun. You keep exploring because you need to understand. And when you finally do, you'll wish you could forget it all to experience it again.
• Recommended Posted January 13, 2026 on Steam To whoever reads this, This is easily one of the best games I've ever played - the kind of experience that stays with you long after you've finished it. On the other few games I've reviewed on Steam, I'd normally write why I enjoyed that particular game. However, Outer Wilds is a very special case, because the less you know, the better. Do yourself a favour and just go in blind. Don't watch any videos, trailers, etc. The most I'd say you can do is view the screenshots on the Store page - but that should be the maximum you do. The reason I, and so many other reviewers, can't say much is because the game revolves around a mystery. How much information you view or hear, no matter how small, will slightly give away that mystery. Wouldn't you prefer to uncover it all to yourself? Wouldn't you prefer to feel that awe, wonder, and joy experiencing it for the first time, completely unspoiled? So how do you convince someone a game is good without saying much? The most I can say is trust me, and trust the countless others reviewing it in the exact same way. I'm going to be intentionally vague here but if you enjoy space, exploration, mystery, the unknown, and a strong sense of story, then this is the game for you. And if you do enjoy it, make sure to play the DLC - it adds to it in such a special and meaningful way. I'd recommend that after the main game (my opinion). The sad reality of Outer Wilds is that it cannot be replayed, it is quite literally a one-time game, because once you know, you know. So to those who decide to purchase it, enjoy the journey while it lasts, because this is a one-of-a-kind experience. I highly doubt you will play another game like this - I know I wont. When you complete it, you'll join the group of people who wish they can wipe their memory to play it again. Cherish it. And for myself, I'll continue to spread the word about this game. Maybe I'll even get the chance to watch someone else play it, just to see their first reactions to those specific moments. Safe Travels, Portfolio
• Recommended Posted December 25, 2025 on Steam There will come a time where a friend will recommend you this game. It's extremely important that you listen to them. You might think, right, why would I? It seems indie, puzzle like, I don't like those type of games. But when you think back of all those games you've played, and the impact that they've had on you, and how it slowly stopped doing that. Well, this one is here to make you feel like that again, maybe hit harder than anything you've ever played before. You won't forget this one, I won't.
• Recommended Posted March 12, 2026 on Steam I havent finished the game in 24 minutes. I've pirated the game and it was so good that i just had to buy it after i finished it, as a thanks for the developers for such a good time. Honestly this game is so peak. If youre willing to think and explore on your own, youll be rewarded with an experience like no other. This game wont give you directions, its world will, and youll follow because thats how human nature works.