Outer Wilds Archaeologist Physical Edition PS5 Review

This review is for Outer Wilds the Space Exploration Puzzle game originally developed by Mobius Digital on PS4/BX1/PC and released in 2019.

This review is for the Archaeologist Edition. The DLC includes Echoes of the Eye, released 29 September 2021 digitally, and now a physical edition as of August 2024.

 This review will aim to be as spoiler free as possible, as this is how the game is best first experienced. Some of its best moments in this game came from following the hints to curate your sense of discovery and detective work, without any clues outside of the game.

In Outer Wilds you play as a lonesome astronaut (“explorer”) in a fully simulated solar system. The game world with its endless 22 minute time loop and its planets are one giant sandbox astrophysics-like puzzle, comprised of many smaller puzzles along the way. Your home planet is Timber Hearth, where your journey begins each time you wake up.

If the sound of a game that combines the open world nature of The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild with outer space problem solving (without a Ganon-like end Boss) and space travel appeals to you, then I’d highly suggest you simply go and play the game without reading any further or spoilers!

The Outer Wild’s world is meticulously crafted, where objects, POIs and clues are placed for a clever reason to assist building the world’s lore and entice you to piece together its many mysteries. How the team at Mobius Digital managed to put this all together as a small indie studio is a technical marvel. There are diverse planets all moving in real time with complex physics simulations. This is a breathing and evolving solar system ready to be explored. Stumbling across black holes, deep water currents, draining sand and collapsing planet crusts are just a few examples. According to interviews with one of the lead developers Alex Beacham https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LbY0mBXKKT0 each unique planet’s orbits are calculated in real time consistent with Kepler’s laws of planetary motion, that appear to follow Newton’s Laws of Physics and Relativity (satisfying the inner Maths/ Physics nerd in me).

Initially navigation in your tiny, fragile spaceship is challenging, but becomes natural with repeated practice. You almost have to un-learn the less simulation-like physics of most other AAA games.

Upon travelling across the solar system to visit the next breadcrumb of clues on a distant planet, I was quickly reminded of the fragility of human life in space. An example is forgetting to decelerate adequately, crashing into a planet’s dense land mass, blowing up the ship. Or when the astronaut’s spacesuit is pierced by a sharp object or blown up by fire, suffocating from inside out!

Your Hearthian astronaut is tasked with uncovering the emotional mystery of an ancient civilization, the Nomai. Why did they disappear? What were they trying to find? Translating ancient text, finding artifacts, exploring caves and discovering ancient technological ruins are all part of the mystery that quickly becomes an answer extremely compelling to find.

You are provided with a real time 3D “map” of the solar system, complete with real-time motion of the celestial bodies as it changes and evolves in real time. It is very possible to use the gravity of the planets to sling-shot the astronauts ship to further planets quickly. Another clever way the game assists your detective abilities is the Rumour Map- which highlights clues and points of interest, helpfully with big “?” and “there’s more to explore here” prompts to keep you searching and digging for more on your space hike.

The gameplay progression in Outer Wilds is extremely unique. You never unlock abilities or gain anything but your own knowledge and understanding of the vast solar system and its locations. You can find shortcuts that always existed, but you never knew they were there. When you learn a new pathway or mechanic, it is always actually available to you. The player can rest at campfires if wanting to return to specific locations at a key point in time during the 22 minute time loop. Some areas become closed off or open up depending on where in this cycle they are accessed.

Outer Wilds presents an Incredible mystery and the story entices the play and pushes them to find every secret it has in store. The environment is a joy to simply explore- perfectly spaced planets, satisfying to travel across the solar system.

Conceptually the game presents (without forcing on the player) an amazing reflection on our purpose in the universe and place within the vastness of the infinite universe. It captures the feeling of a small, vulnerable, fragile explorer on a voyage of discovery and intrigue. Each loop provides more information to continue to dig deeper and follow the trail of mysteries. The game does not hold your hand, but also rarely becomes frustrating, with many different threads to try if you get stuck. These threads often lead back to each other and help push the whole mystery solving progression along.

I have nothing but praise for the world’s atmosphere, cozy yet bleak art style and incredibly emotion evoking soundtrack. This is especially true in the late game discovery areas. The game absolutely succeeds in its ability to present internal philosophical concepts without forcing them upon the player.

Echoes of the Eye DLC

This incredible expansion was released after the base game. It adds another mystery to uncover within the solar system. It adds further context and answers that weren’t fully explored initially. Without too many spoilers, Echoes of the Eye adds interesting new mechanics to allow exploration and experimentation. It takes a different path to the base game and keeps it fresh with new darker elements- both environmental and storytelling wise. It is hard not to feel a sense of cosmic horror could possibly be behind what the Hearthian astronaut is about to uncover on the final journey.

Overall Conclusion (Base Game and DLC)

It is not hyperbole to say that Outer Wilds transcends video games. To me it is a work of art. Along the journey, I had many moments of profound awe, sublime and even emotional experiences that have been hand crafted by Mobius Digital.

It is a strength of Outer Wilds that it does not hold the player’s hand, you are free to explore and make connections in the order that you would like to.

If somehow, I was to have my memory wiped, this is the game that would be best experienced again from scratch… all over again! The game is an emotional journey with many layers and rewards for the persistent and curious player.

I hope this review has convinced you to give Outer Wilds a try and without reading any spoilers first. If you get stuck, I promise it is worth persisting, or even taking a break and not looking up any solutions. The Eureka moments provide a well worthwhile payoff to the curious explorer. There is a good reason that if you ask a question on the Outer Wilds subreddit, the community will happily give minor hints to ensure as many people as possible can experience Outer Wilds in the way its creators intended.