OgnistY
2001
In terms of GBA arcade racing games, this one takes the cake. Better than Super Circuit by a mile.
2019
This review contains spoilers
I slept on this game when it released. Being an Epic exclusive, I really didn't give it much thought. Seeing that it had recently come to Steam, I decided to pick it up in the 2020 Summer Sale, along with some other titles I'd had my eye on for a little while. After buying it, I waited yet again and played through some of the other games I bought during the same sale. I didn't know it at the time, but it seems I was saving the best until last.
While at its core, Outer Wilds is just a game like any other, everything about it seemed to just hit me a little differently. I can honestly say I've never played a more intriguing and atmospheric game. I was hooked from the start and found every little scrap of info I could, to the extent that I got the Archeologist achievement purely by accident when I'd unlocked every ship log. There's an entire universe of content swimming in this tiny little homely solar system.
The history of the Nomai is an incredible tale which is told both with words and through abundant visual storytelling, and it's a joy to find every bit of information you can.
Regarding the primary gameplay element, the 22 minute time loop, it allows for a multitude of elements that would otherwise be very difficult to include. Lots of things run on a timer. Take the Hourglass Twins for example. Ember Twin slowly fills with sand over the 22 minutes, meaning you have to race against time to access the underground city, while Ash Twin is slowly losing its sand, revealing the towers beneath. Each loop allows you to go and complete a new task that you didn't previously know you needed to do, and lets you continue with new knowledge you didn't previously possess.
The soundtrack is absolutely incredible. I've heard it so many times, but the track that plays at the end of every loop never ceases to give me goosebumps, and I genuinely teared up at the track that plays during the finale.
Since completing it, Outer Wilds has become my #1 videogame of all time, and I don't think I could recreate the experience I had with any other game as I did playing through this one.
Outer Wilds is a hauntingly beautiful piece of audiovisual art, and I won't soon forget how I felt the first time I played it.
While at its core, Outer Wilds is just a game like any other, everything about it seemed to just hit me a little differently. I can honestly say I've never played a more intriguing and atmospheric game. I was hooked from the start and found every little scrap of info I could, to the extent that I got the Archeologist achievement purely by accident when I'd unlocked every ship log. There's an entire universe of content swimming in this tiny little homely solar system.
The history of the Nomai is an incredible tale which is told both with words and through abundant visual storytelling, and it's a joy to find every bit of information you can.
Regarding the primary gameplay element, the 22 minute time loop, it allows for a multitude of elements that would otherwise be very difficult to include. Lots of things run on a timer. Take the Hourglass Twins for example. Ember Twin slowly fills with sand over the 22 minutes, meaning you have to race against time to access the underground city, while Ash Twin is slowly losing its sand, revealing the towers beneath. Each loop allows you to go and complete a new task that you didn't previously know you needed to do, and lets you continue with new knowledge you didn't previously possess.
The soundtrack is absolutely incredible. I've heard it so many times, but the track that plays at the end of every loop never ceases to give me goosebumps, and I genuinely teared up at the track that plays during the finale.
Since completing it, Outer Wilds has become my #1 videogame of all time, and I don't think I could recreate the experience I had with any other game as I did playing through this one.
Outer Wilds is a hauntingly beautiful piece of audiovisual art, and I won't soon forget how I felt the first time I played it.