4.5/5 ★ – Fernofai's review of Outer Wilds.

Outer Wilds is the most unique game I've ever played. You don't realize it at first, but the longer you play, the clearer it becomes. In many open-world games, it's often claimed that you can go anywhere from the start, playing the game as you please. However, in reality, there are often limitations. Certain areas may have monsters that require higher levels to defeat, some locations may be locked until you find a specific item, or they may not even exist until you progress further in the story. Outer Wilds, on the other hand, is truly and completely "open world". You can literally finish the game in less than half an hour if you know how. And knowledge is exactly what it's all about. You can't unlock anything in this game except for information in your own head. Everything is there from the beginning. There's nothing for you to do unless you start asking questions, searching for answers, trying new things, and thereby finding new places, mechanics, and of course new questions. You don't UNLOCK them - you FIND them. This is the crucial point. As a result, playing the game can be demanding because you need to use your head, be creative, attentive, patient, and most importantly, curious. Despite the game's groundbreaking concept, there were some minor aspects I didn't like or needed to get used to: Outer Wilds introduction is very standard and doesn't really draw you into the experience. Typically, a strong introduction is desired in a game to hook players in, with subsequent hours maintaining their interest, even if they may not be as strong as the beginning. In Outer Wilds, it's pretty much the opposite. Navigating the spacecraft wasn't easy at first. While there is an autopilot feature, it didn't work for me for a significant portion of the game, so I encountered some difficulties, especially with landing the ship, which was also quite amusing at times. I really enjoyed the sound design and music, which, along with the monumental events, created some truly impressive moments. However, there was a lot of repetition in the themes, and at times, I wished that certain events had their own musical themes instead of yet another variation on the main theme, which is already quite short. Outer Wilds was recommended to me with a strong suggestion to watch and read as little as possible about it (due to the game's reliance on information for progress), and so I will also refrain from divulging too much about its actual content. Let me just say that it's an incredible, beautiful, and horrifying experience, completely unlike any other game, and I highly recommend it to everyone.