great game, but skip the dlc.
this post was submitted on 22 Feb 2026
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I started the game like 'oh that's neat', then I saw dead children, broke the universe and had a boderline religious experience.
Go in as blind as possible.
Every gamer owes it to themselves to try Outer Wilds.
This game was the closest thing I'd ever personally had to a religious experience
I highly highly highly recommend two things to you if you haven't played this game. 1) Play it. 2) Play it as absolutely blind as humanely possible.
One of my all-time favorite gaming experiences, and all the more precious because you can never have the experience again without suffering severe memory loss. The fun and the journey is in learning and understanding the world, the history, the science, and the mechanics that lead you to finding the ultimate ending. And oh what an ending it is (although there are a few alternates)!
Trust me, just pick it up and play without knowing anything at all about it. Don't watch videos, don't look up wikis, don't read articles and don't read forums. This game is best enjoyed without even the smallest spoiler. All of the information is in the game that you need and it's all very very well thought out and executed. You'll explore and find secrets that lead to more secrets. You'll sometimes find yourself struggling to solve a problem, to put some pieces together, and then something will click into place and you'll suddenly understand so much. It's a great feeling. That's what this game is about.
If you do need to get help, only look in fan forums or subreddits. People there are fans and understand the value of discovery in this game, so they will only give you some hints to point you in the right direction rather than outright answers, as it should be.
I really like the concept of this game, but in trying to keep up the mystery by not looking up walkthroughs etc I ended up abandoning it. I got maybe 20% of the map filled then not being able to find anything else just made me feel dumb as hell, kinda just gave up on it.
I saw a thing from the creators once that said the thing that is most likely to keep players from finishing the game is failing to find one of the major secret locations in the first like 5-ish hours. They explore and find a bunch of information and places but don't manage to have a break through quickly enough to have that moment that gets you really hooked. In fact so many players quit with being so close to that moment. And the players that have that moment are many time more likely to end up finishing the entire game.
Unfortunately, sounds like you fell into that camp. Only thing I can recommend, if you are interested, is come back at it with fresh eyes, read through the ship log again (everything listed there is significant in some way, none of it is a waste), poke at what makes your curious, maybe ask for a specific hint of you end up needing, and get that first big "Aha!" moment. See if you're not hooked then.
Which secret location was it?
None in particular, any of the hidden places where you learn major lore, mechanics, or clues for the end game.
places like...
The Statue Workshop, the Tower of Quantum Knowledge, the Tower of Quantum Trials, the Quantum Moon, the High Energy Lab, the 3rd Orbital Probe Cannon Module, the Sun Station, the Interloper, the Nomai Vessel, the Ash Twin Project, etc.
Ah I see. Yeah I remember only getting so far the first time I played, took a break, and then returned to finish it. Definitely a frustrating feeling when you don't know which thread to keep pulling on and you don't discover anything for a while. Definitely needed a couple hints here and there but glad I kept going. The DLC is also truly fantastic.
I've heard similar stories before. It seems like one of those games that either clicks with you and becomes your favourite thing ever, or you just bounce off. I don't think I've ever heard a single person say "eh, I finished it and it was alright". I am somewhat scared I'd react like you, which is why I haven't given it a shot yet. Also because of all the stuff about anxiety and existential dread I've heard people say it induces and... Well I have enough of that as it is.
I have the same problem. There's just a time when I don't have any idea how to progress. Also its a bit over-hyped for my taste.
I saw a research thing from the creators once that said the thing that is most likely to keep players from finishing the game is failing to find one of the major secret locations in the first like 5-ish hours. They explore and find a bunch of information and places but don't manage to have a break through quickly enough to have that moment that gets you really hooked. In fact so many players quit with being so close to that moment. And the players that have that moment are then very likely to end up finishing the entire game.
Unfortunately, sounds like you fell into that camp. Only thing I can recommend, if you are interested, is come back at it with fresh eyes, read through the ship log again (everything listed there is significant in some way, none of it is a waste), poke at what makes you curious, maybe ask for a specific hint if you end up needing it, and get that first big "Aha!" moment. See if you're not hooked then.
And one of the favorite past times of fans of the game, since we can't have that same discovery experience again, is watching other people play and have those "Aha!" moments too. There are a lot of people that have played this game to completion and I have never once heard any of them be any less than in love with the game by the end. I promise the hype is deserved.
Thanks for you through answer! I need to get back to the game because I want to finish it. I also had 1-2 hiccups in the past were I couldn't progress too. I've played 17.5 hours. I need to make a screenshot of the map so I can show my progression.
I had done everything in the game and had trouble with one little thing that i wasn't piecing together to complete it, so i had to look up a hint for that, and everyone on the forums were really careful to only give as much information as you need, which i appreciate.
Details
Getting inside the ash twin project. I had even done all the quantum moon stuff - i wish that would have been integral to complete it or at least have given me bigger hints for getting inside
I really love the DLC as well, it's more linear and thus more straightforward but it does a really good job at guiding you such that each discovery leads to the next one, and the tricks you learn to progress are really fun and creative.
Keeping things very vague, I was in the same position as you and "figured out the puzzle", tried 3 times with no success (idk if something glitched?) and so I figured I was wrong. Spent another 5 hours looking around for another way with no success and had to look it up. It's the only blemish on what was otherwise one of the best games I've played in at least a decade.
Regarding your details...
Still trying to give no more than a hint here for any others that may read this. That one is probably the singular hardest puzzle to figure out. It really only has the one clue pointing out the twins' shared nature due to their proximity. Then on top of that, it basically requires you to use a your thrusters in a way that you really rarely ever have any other reason to use. It's a good way to make the solution well hidden even in plain sight, but it is typically a difficult one to figure out.
Regarding that...
I was lucky to stumble into the ATP earlier than I should have, but I'm confused what you need thrusters for? I can't even imagine how thrusters factor into the entrance...
trying to figure out how to say this without giving away too much...
You would want to be at the right place. The problem is that there's a struggle to be at the right place when the conditions are right. You can get lucky and stumble into the right place. But if you're being more intentional, your thrusters can help you do that. Just... not how you usually use them most of the time. They serve dual functions.
Full spoilers
You don't need thrusters though? There's a little cubby in the teleporter room that you stand in to avoid being pushed by the sand, then you can simply walk into it when it's active. Did you use thrusters instead somehow?
also full spoilers
If you hang out in the cubby and time it right, you don't need thrusters (or if you crash your ship on the bridge and use it as cover, which I've seen too). You can just step forward onto the pad in the time window and the teleporter triggers before you are sucked up but the sand column. If you dont notice the covered cubby and try to come from the opposite tower for the ember twin, or if you leave the cubby too early, you have to fight against that gravity. You can use your downward thrusters, though, to counteract that and still make it.
Second all of this.
This game really stuck with me after I finished it
An amazing game. Definitely best if you go into it without any prior knowledge.
I played this while recovering from head surgery. Possibly not the best choice, but it got me through it.