Spoiler Free Review.

Outer Wilds is one of those games you can't really describe or talk about, as one of the key joys of the game comes from experiencing it and learning for yourself what it is about.

The only limitation to your progression is your own understanding of the game's universe and how things work within it,. Exploration is the prime directive and is consistently rewarded with new experiences and knowledge, which directly translates to your own progression. You'll find no doors that stay locked until you accomplish X or find it's key, your knowledge is the key. Outer Wilds can be completed in just over 10 minutes, but it will take you hours, days even to figure out how.

It's also one of few games to truly "Get" space travel. The wonder of exploration, the terror of space itself and the unknown, and how it plays by an entirely different set of rules than what we're accustomed to on Earth.

So the real question, Should you buy and play it? I would say yes if:
If you enjoy mysteries scattered about in bread crumb trails of information you must discover and piece together.
If you enjoyed how Subnautica's story played out, and wouldn't mind a similar experience sans the combat, survival hunting, crafting, base building and "Need this tool to advance" mechanics.
You enjoy stories that have more than one "So THAT's how they did X" moments.
You enjoy games who's stories offer one hell of an experience that you can only talk about with those who also had it.

Likewise you might not enjoy this game if:
You're morbidly afraid of the horrors of deep space.
You prefer action/combat/survival/sandbox games over pure story driven ones.
You do not enjoy when the answer to a particular area in the game is not always in that same immediate area.
You do not enjoy games who's stories offer little replay value once complete. (Even though it's one damn good experience)

Spoiler Free Review. Outer Wilds is one of those games you can't really describe or talk about, as one of the key joys of the game comes from experiencing it and learning for yourself what it is about. The only limitation to your progression is your own understanding of the game's universe and how things work within it,. Exploration is the prime directive and is consistently rewarded with new experiences and knowledge, which directly translates to your own progression. You'll find no doors that stay locked until you accomplish X or find it's key, your knowledge is the key. Outer Wilds can be completed in just over 10 minutes, but it will take you hours, days even to figure out how. It's also one of few games to truly "Get" space travel. The wonder of exploration, the terror of space itself and the unknown, and how it plays by an entirely different set of rules than what we're accustomed to on Earth. So the real question, Should you buy and play it? I would say yes if: If you enjoy mysteries scattered about in bread crumb trails of information you must discover and piece together. If you enjoyed how Subnautica's story played out, and wouldn't mind a similar experience sans the combat, survival hunting, crafting, base building and "Need this tool to advance" mechanics. You enjoy stories that have more than one "So THAT's how they did X" moments. You enjoy games who's stories offer one hell of an experience that you can only talk about with those who also had it. Likewise you might not enjoy this game if: You're morbidly afraid of the horrors of deep space. You prefer action/combat/survival/sandbox games over pure story driven ones. You do not enjoy when the answer to a particular area in the game is not always in that same immediate area. You do not enjoy games who's stories offer little replay value once complete. (Even though it's one damn good experience)