As the title states, this is not a First Impressions article for Outer Wilds (thanks so much, Dr. Potts!๐ค). This is more of a confession of sorts and a brief explanation as to how my brain is working with progression in this game.
First off, I'm going to avoid spoilers because the Outer Wilds community is excessively protective about talking about story points. There's even an in-game character who literally says, "If I tell you how, it'd kinda feel like cheating." I did look up a solution to a particular puzzle involving quantum mechanics and the Observer Effect, because I felt like I was running out of time. I consulted the Internet, and their one hint reminded me of a piece of equipment I had forgotten about that I wasn't actually using.
And that's been it. I have been experiencing this game without any further assistance, and at times it feels a bit daunting because of how the game progresses. There is an in-game Ships Log that keeps track of all of the information that you collect while you're out scouting the solar system. As I see that log fill up with more information about more planets and other celestial phenomena, and seeing that little orange tag "There's more to discover here," I know that there's still more to find out. The way I feel like I'm experiencing this game, in order to fully understand the story and to reach whatever the actual ending to this game is, I need to complete this log. But only 3.8% of everyone who's played Outer Wilds on Steam (upwards of 101,000 people) have actually completed the ship's log, or maybe they did while in offline mode and the game didn't recognize their achievement. So only 3,838 people have completed the ship's log, but likely more than that have actually finished the game, meaning that understanding the game and beating the game are not reliant on completing all of the entries in the ship's log.
That knowledge both comforts me and worries me a bit. On one hand, knowing that I don't need to find out every bit of information in this entire galaxy is a significant weight off my mind. On the other hand, if I don't need to find everything, how will I know if I'm investigating the correct line or if I'm following a thread that only 3.8% of all other players on Steam have discovered?
Ah well. I guess it's just time to wake up, roast another marshmallow, and head back out into space.
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