Octopus Overlords

Apparently this has been out on consoles for a little while, but I only just started reading comments about it recently.

Up front, it is sadly only on the Epic Store for PCs at the moment, but I gave in and signed up for the Epic store a bit back anyway. It's also apparently $10 off right now, or Epic was running a special or something, so $15 instead of $25 at the moment.

I don't want to spoil too much of the game as learning it's backstory is part of the fun, but it's a really charming exploration/adventure game where you are tasked with exploring a small, strange solar system. A chain of events has happened that put in motion a cataclysm, and it's your job through repeated expeditions to determine what's going on and keep the cataclysm from happening.

Part of the game is running around on foot in your spacesuit trying to traverse various worlds and find clues, while another big portion of it is flying your half primitive, half super advanced spaceship around the solar system trying to land on various object and planets. There's also a small tutorial portion of the game in the very beginning where you can practice some of the skills you'll need (flying the lander, zero g maneuvering, etc).

In a nutshell, if you like exploration games, this one is pretty amazing. Call it Myst meets No Man's Sky with Myst being the managing partner.

If you're still a little curious about what makes this game tick, here's a few spoilers to help sell the game. They're all things you learn very early in the game, but if you're already sold on it, it's best to experience them yourself.

I don't know how I've never heard of this, looks right up my alley. Thanks!

I’ve looked at the trailer a few times. I liked the look of the solar system but the trailer didn't sell me on what was the point. I think I'll check this out when I get home.

Scoop20906 wrote: ↑Fri Jun 07, 2019 5:03 am I’ve looked at the trailer a few times. I liked the look of the solar system but the trailer didn't sell me on what was the point. I think I'll check this out when I get home.

I've got a couple hours in. It's really neat so far, but there's a little bit of that Myst frustration of not knowing what you're supposed to do to get past some puzzles. I haven't hit a true dead end yet, though. The game gives you a good 'figure out the puzzle' bulletin board, detective movie style with lots of arrows pointing between different pictures and notes, and so far I've always been able to have some kind of lead to pursue a bit further.

As for what's the point, (light spoiler warning: spoiling the overall premise that you discover in the first 30 minutes of the game)

It's a hard game to classify since it's so original. You've got the Majora's Mask element of the world being doomed with a timer that keeps resetting. The space travel is very light but there is a bit of lunar lander piloting skill involved. There's a lot of exploration and discovery elements as you zip around the solar system investigating the tiny planets, and then Myst/adventure game aspects as you try and figure out how to get past challenges and mysteries in order to explore further.

I'd say it's a super easy purchase to justify if you're at all interested in the premise, but maybe pass on it if you're prone to getting frustrated with figuring out what you should be doing next in an open ended adventure game.

I made 3 or 4 more loops last night and made some progress.

The interesting thing I'm learning now, is that things in the solar system don't stay static as the loop continues... if you visit the various planets at different times different areas will often disappear or be revealed.

I learned the hard way last night that...

Bought it!

I was feeling pretty positive about the game, but after a few more hours I'm liking it even more. Turns out I missed some early breadcrumbs that I was supposed to easily stumble across early on, so I had been adventuring with more confusion than was necessary. Apparently if you pay attention to the things they tell you to do, it's easier to know what to do.

Really loving the game now, and I feel extremely compelled to keep playing to get to the end and see how it all plays out.

wonderpug wrote: ↑Fri Jun 07, 2019 5:00 pm I was feeling pretty positive about the game, but after a few more hours I'm liking it even more. Turns out I missed some early breadcrumbs that I was supposed to easily stumble across early on, so I had been adventuring with more confusion than was necessary. Apparently if you pay attention to the things they tell you to do, it's easier to know what to do.

Really loving the game now, and I feel extremely compelled to keep playing to get to the end and see how it all plays out.

Ok, wonderpug. I am hooked. At first I didn't like the controls of moving around. The camera and jumping as I walked around felt stiff but once you make it into zero g things feel a lot better. You are correct, there is a very Myst feel the game. My first time landing was a disaster. I basically drove right into the moon. Luckily its easy to repair damage. The log computer in the ship does a nice job of keeping me up to date on the clues I have discovered. And yeah, there is a puzzle here to solve. I'm looking forward to visiting some of the other planets.

wonderpug wrote: ↑Fri Jun 07, 2019 9:58 am

I'd say it's a super easy purchase to justify if you're at all interested in the premise, but maybe pass on it if you're prone to getting frustrated with figuring out what you should be doing next in an open ended adventure game.

It's "free" if you have Xbox game pass. Just installed last night but haven't fired it up yet.

Still really enjoying this, but I find it so tense waiting for the nova, or whatever environmental catastrophe is about to consume my life, I can only do a few loops at a time.

Just finished. What an amazing, unique experience.

If anyone needs nudges in the right direction on any puzzles or anything, just holler. This one really is worth seeing through to the end.

This game is delightful. I love exploration in games, and this one is pretty much all exploration, full of mysteries and wonders.

Someone who works on The Simpsons likes Outer Wilds so much he mentioned it in his custom name in the credits for the Treehouse of Horror episode:



His side note: "I initially intended for a second line below my name to say 'Happy Brittle Hollow-ween', but it didn't work out"

playing right now, almost to the end, it really is a unique game play exploration on your own pace not hand holding, it is nice to go where even you want but this mean a lot of time loop waste on wandering around with no idea how to go to the set goal. Sure after a while the answer will come to me. also i like the "puzzle" are not in your face "puzzle box" all of the puzzles are more trouble solving kind of thing

People get to the end in 15~20 hours really are good observer for all the hints ,as now almost 30 hours play time still not sure how to get to the end yet.

i will not say it is the best game ever but sure it is interesting.

give it a try if you like relaxing exploration.

Just a quick bump for this coming out on Steam today. Really a unique, charming game if you haven't tried it.

I was excited to try this after reading all the "hidden gem" hype. I ended up finding it entirely underwhelming.

For me, it alternated between confusing, frustrating, and boring.

I very nearly made a comment until I realized this wasn't the Fallout/Futurama/Firefly inspired RPG from Obsidian.

If you get over that initial confusion, it's a great game, but it's mostly about exploration, so if that and the setting don't grab you might not be fun.

I just started playing this yesterday without really knowing what I was getting into, but I'm totally sucked in so far. The loop is a very cool concept and seems to be executed very well so far. It took me a few cycles of random exploring to get my bearings and discover enough to have some actual direction, but I do have a goal that I'm working toward now and am getting better at the various game mechanics (ship flying, traveling quickly in my suit, using my scope and scout) so that I move efficiently enough to accomplish things. My general approach now is working toward a goal that I've come across most of the time, but occasionally going in a completely different direction just to see what kind of crazy discoveries await. Most of the time, I wind up either completely lost or dead, but I have found useful things a few times.

Speaking of dead, I've had a few humorous and stupid resets already. I think the best/worst was taking off from a planet and engaging autopilot before fully escaping the planet's gravity...didn't take long for my ship to spin around, slam back into the surface, and bounce off into space too damaged to fly. Thankfully, I was wearing my suit when it happened, so I didn't die when life support failed. I climbed outside thinking I could repair the ship in space, but I didn't realize the ship was still moving quickly through open space. As soon as I tried to steer with my suit, I tapped my jets the wrong way and my ship left me behind. I was floating in my suit in wide open space, with the nearest planet now 6km away. I had no choice but to put myself on an intercept course with the planet using my suit thrusters and hope that I could get there before either my fuel or oxygen supply ran out. I actually made it to the planet and reached the surface...but it was Giant's Deep. I splashed into the water, used my scope to locate the camp, and started swimming...made it to land, started running for trees, and died mere steps from the breathable air that I so desperately needed. I knew that I wouldn't be able to do much on the planet, but a part of me just wanted to survive nearly becoming stranded in the depths of space and be able to say I was exploring on land when the world ended. So close...

Glad you're enjoying it! This ended up being one of my most memorable gaming experiences. It's got a lot of cool moments that stick with you.

Damn it appears to have dropped off gamepass my timing sucks.

I really need to try this one again...

coopasonic wrote:Damn it appears to have dropped off gamepass my timing sucks.

I'm playing it on Xbox using GamePass Ultimate, where it just became available at the end of January. If it's not available on Game Pass for PC, that really stinks.

So, I tried this again last night. It's interesting, but good lord...those controls. To say that I'm terrible at them would be a vast understatement. I can rarely manage to position my ship in a decent spot, and I feel like I'm constantly fighting to simply move around. My last loop had me land sideways in a tree. I figured I'd hop out anyways and see what was there, and I ended up unable to either get back to the ship or get up to the location that I was trying to explore. I ended up rage-quitting before the loop reset.

It seems pretty interesting, but getting over the learning curve of simply getting around seems...daunting.

EDIT: Spent another hour with it tonight. I can say with full confidence that this game just simply isn't for me.

I played a couple loops, landed on (yay KSP training) and wandered around one planet (the wet one) found some interesting stuff, but it doesn't appear to be sticking. I think the lack of voice acting might be why. Well also, I have no idea what I am or should be doing or how to figure out what I should be doing.

coopasonic wrote: ↑Tue Mar 30, 2021 7:44 am Well also, I have no idea what I am or should be doing or how to figure out what I should be doing.

I never finished (enjoyed it, but something happened, or something distracted me... you know the drill), but I think that's part of it. Keep doing 'stuff' and it eventually falls into place. At least that's my vague recollection.

I inspire confidence, don't I?

coopasonic wrote: ↑Tue Mar 30, 2021 7:44 am Well also, I have no idea what I am or should be doing or how to figure out what I should be doing.

This, maybe even more than the controls (which I hated), really killed it for me. Guess I’m just not a fan of the “wander around and hope you eventually stumble over something that advances the vaguely defined objectives” genre.

The flight suit controls in zeroG are... special. I played two more loops, went to two different places, one unlocking more of the story I guess, the other unlocking another mystery and both ending with me taking a dip into the sun. Apparently autopilot doesn't go around things, even if they are really big and really hot.

coopasonic wrote: ↑Tue Mar 30, 2021 7:44 am I played a couple loops, landed on (yay KSP training) and wandered around one planet (the wet one) found some interesting stuff, but it doesn't appear to be sticking. I think the lack of voice acting might be why. Well also, I have no idea what I am or should be doing or how to figure out what I should be doing.

If you're lost, check the journal in your ship. If you see a lot of question marks at a location, that's probably a good place for you to explore.

Yeah when I made that post I hadn't actually seen the conspiracy board. That does help a good bit in guiding me, though "There is more to discover here" is a pretty annoying message.

coopasonic wrote: ↑Tue Mar 30, 2021 11:00 am Yeah when I made that post I hadn't actually seen the conspiracy board. That does help a good bit in guiding me, though "There is more to discover here" is a pretty annoying message.

This is likely my game of the year, but if exploring and discovery in games doesn't interest you, it might not be your cup of tea. It's hard to say too much without spoiling cool moments, but a huge part of this game is "ooh let me discover these weird planets" transitioning to "my god there's a huge underlying plot to discover". But yeah, discovery.

It has a lot in common with walking simulators. It's about experiencing a bunch of things and realizing how the fit together and what they all mean later on. The moment to moment gameplay doesn't really give a sense of advancement or progress, so the it's more about just experiencing it for its own sake until you have enough pieces of the puzzle that you start to see the story.

That kind of experiential gameplay isn't for everyone.

I did get the Pchooooooo! achievement, so there is that.

Yeah it's intriguing but a bit low key for me. I'm still going to play around with it some more as there are bodies I haven't tried to land on yet.

Blackhawk wrote:The moment to moment gameplay doesn't really give a sense of advancement or progress, so the it's more about just experiencing it for its own sake until you have enough pieces of the puzzle that you start to see the story.

Now that I've made some actual progress into it understanding what's going on, I have to say that I don't really agree with the first part of this statement.

The game is a bit of a struggle at first because the world is completely open. You can go just about anywhere, but most of it won't make sense...until you stumble across a bit of information that points you in a good direction. Follow up that lead, and you'll get another nudge in the right direction...then another, and another, and another. At this point, my exploration is pretty targeted based on things I've learned, and there is a story building. I just had to get over the initial hump.

With that in mind, I'll leave a small hint for anyone completely lost at the beginning...
The game actually does a good job of leading you to the next appropriate destination once you find the start of the trail (which I spoiled above). The more tricky part then becomes figuring out how to approach each planet. Every place you visit has a unique twist that keeps exploration interesting, and the passage of time becomes a critical aspect of the game. The entire solar system changes over time, and some goals can only be accomplished in certain windows of time...but the game's big gimmick makes sure you always get another chance.

A couple of other random useful tidbits...

The controls are tricky, but there are a few key things to remember. Planets have gravity (and some stronger than others, so pay attention to the readout)...get too close, and you will be pulled to the surface. If you're trying to land in a specific spot, switch to landing view and hover over the planet using bursts of the takeoff thrusters, while at the same time using your directional controls to essentially put crosshairs on your landing site. Once you're lined up, let gravity pull you in and tap your takeoff thrusters to set the ship down easy.

Matching velocity with a targeted planet or object in space is key to maneuvering around the object. There is a button/key that does this for you, and it's especially important for flying with your suit in space. If you're in your suit near a moving object and you match its velocity, it's like you're sitting still relative to each other. Then it's a matter of gentle directional taps to make yourself drift in the desired direction. If you ever get out of control, just hit the button to match velocity again and you'll essentially come to a stop relative to whatever you're maneuvering around. Gentle adjustments are often the key to success. Note that matching velocity doesn't work for your ship if you're too close to a planet and get pulled in by its gravity.

Get comfortable listening with your scope and using it to locate the explorers from your home on each planet. This will give you a good starting location to land on a new planet, and conversations with them will often tell you about places to explore or hints about the planet you're on.

Lastly, review your ship's log regularly. Time starts over throughout the game and your own memory might not be great, but the log never forgets anything important. You can always see what you've learned, and question marks will highlight places you might want to visit next.

The game is a bit of a slow burn initially, but I'm finding it thoroughly engaging now that I've discovered my path and adapted to the controls. While the overall pace is slow, you will encounter moments of pressure as you're trying to get someplace before the world changes too much around you, accomplish one more thing before the reset. Don't let the beginning discourage you, because it definitely gets better with time.

just wonder you guys talking about control issues. do you use control or K/M ? as fine control for the Thrusters sure play with control will help a lot. as later there are some fine ship/suit control needed

if ship control really are the sticker point ,auto pilot and match are your friend ,use if you feel losing control.

the game really is a bit slow burn at start if you dont line up all the log /lore together really are easy to get lost ,but this is part of the fun once the Eureka moment hit.

for so so many games i had play it is really one of the few if not the only game can play only one time for the full experiences



this pic look cool too bad can't find a good hi res version

Finished! I love pretty much everything about this game, from start to finish. While not perfect, it does so many unique things so well that I can forgive a few wrinkles. The core 'gimmick' of the game works perfectly because they implemented it without making things too complicated, and rarely force you into a situation of a 'beat the clock' scenario (although it does happen in a couple places that still aren't too difficult). Without saying too much for those who haven't finished, I also liked the simplicity of the ending. Outer Wilds is more about the journey of discovery than a big plot wrap-up, and the conclusion fits that perfectly. One of the characters at the final scene even makes a comment to the effect of really appreciating all the things he learned along the way even though his story has reached an end.

This was such as cool game and great surprise...definitely one I'll remember!

I'm so glad to hear another forumer got to the end, and I'm glad you liked it! I agree with you, not without faults here and there, but it does so many unique things and left such a lasting impression that I can forgive the bits I didn't love.