Over the entire span of 2022, I have been playing Outer Wilds in small bites, only now to finally come back to it after a long hiatus and finally beat it and uh... yeah. It's kind of a masterpiece.
I mean it. This is one of those games where you hear nothing but the most high praise surrounding it. A lot of times, that can damage the experience for newcomers. After all, high expectations and excitement can lead to high disappointment. But this is, sincerely, one of those games where I was not let down at all.
I could tell you in multiple paragraphs how this game is one of the most immersive experiences I've ever had in gaming, or how exploration is immensely satisfying, or how the game's freedom allows for everyone to have their own personal journey through this game and so on and so forth... but much better people have explained those things in detail alongside just the whole game's design and philosophies.
But let me say this, and I think this is truly the crux of why this game is such a masterpiece to me. Every time you play a game, the most you can hope for is that it has that one "moment." That point in your playthrough that you'll look back on even after you're done and say, "that was a great game." A whole heap of games can never craft that moment, and to achieve it even once is a sign of skill and vision.
Outer Wilds, however, is a game filled to the brim with those defined moments and they're all the more impactful, and emotional, because it's all there for you to find as soon you take off on your ship. It's a self-driven experience where every step and observation is a moment that is as equally crafted on the game's part as it is by yourself.
Essays could be written on what makes this game work, but it's the heart, the feeling, of Outer Wilds that makes it such an unforgettable, nigh almost flawless, experience.
I mean it. This is one of those games where you hear nothing but the most high praise surrounding it. A lot of times, that can damage the experience for newcomers. After all, high expectations and excitement can lead to high disappointment. But this is, sincerely, one of those games where I was not let down at all.
I could tell you in multiple paragraphs how this game is one of the most immersive experiences I've ever had in gaming, or how exploration is immensely satisfying, or how the game's freedom allows for everyone to have their own personal journey through this game and so on and so forth... but much better people have explained those things in detail alongside just the whole game's design and philosophies.
But let me say this, and I think this is truly the crux of why this game is such a masterpiece to me. Every time you play a game, the most you can hope for is that it has that one "moment." That point in your playthrough that you'll look back on even after you're done and say, "that was a great game." A whole heap of games can never craft that moment, and to achieve it even once is a sign of skill and vision.
Outer Wilds, however, is a game filled to the brim with those defined moments and they're all the more impactful, and emotional, because it's all there for you to find as soon you take off on your ship. It's a self-driven experience where every step and observation is a moment that is as equally crafted on the game's part as it is by yourself.
Essays could be written on what makes this game work, but it's the heart, the feeling, of Outer Wilds that makes it such an unforgettable, nigh almost flawless, experience.