Outer Wilds

A 10/10 masterpiece. An experience that you only get to have once. If you decide to play this game and ever get stuck, do NOT look up help/walkthroughs unless you know it's very specific--do your best to ask someone who has played before, because the last thing any of us want is for you to have your experience ruined by some careless completionist. If I could go back and replay this for the first time again I would do it in a heartbeat.

I'll try to keep this mostly spoiler-free, aside from some vague thematic discussion. On a whim I looked at this game in my library, and apparently today is the 5th anniversary since I last launched this game, meaning it's my 5th anniversary of finishing EotE (the DLC) and the game as a whole. I know this review will probably be lost in the ocean of others, unread by most or quickly forgotten by those who do... but hell if that isn't thematically perfect for Outer Wilds. It's not an exaggeration for me to say I still sometimes think about this game and that it changed my view on life. It won't click for everyone, and it won't have as heavy an impact on everyone. But for me, it remains my favorite piece of media of all time, and likely will for years to come. We exist on a blue marble in an unfathomably large universe. The scale of everything is scary... but doesn't that also mean all the bad things that happen, all the negativity in the world, are miniscule in the grand scheme of things? Your life is your own, and it is the only thing you can fully control. So put good out there into the world. Why the ♥♥♥♥ not? The universe doesn't care, and you will one day be dead and forgotten - so burn bright for one glorious eyeblink. Live your life and make meaning for [i]yourself[/i]. Have productive days, have bum days. Have happy days and miserable ones. Have regrets, but above all, find meaning and fulfillment. That's what it means to be human. If it wasn't hard, what would be the point? You owe it to yourself to give Outer Wilds a try, and to go in with zero expectations. The game is about discovery, so to look things up is to skip to the last page of the book. It requires patience, and to have a good time you must enjoy exploration for exploration's sake. There are no quest markers, no companion telling you where to go, and nothing to drive you forward but your own curiosity. Maybe this type of gameplay isn't your cup of tea; nothing is for everyone. Or maybe your life has led you to a point where you don't need the message that it ultimately gives you. That's completely okay, and you shouldn't feel bad if you don't get it or if you feel like this game is overhyped. But maybe you'll see what I and other fans see. If even one other person gets something similar to what I've gotten from this game, it's worth it. Be curious on your journey.