Screenshots & trailers
What players say
Why the number is what it is: aspect mentions counted across 377 sampled Steam reviews (356 positive / 21 negative), recent and most-helpful. Plain keyword counting, fully reproducible; nothing here is written by a machine.
What positive reviews talk about
- Story & writing20% mention it
- World & exploration13% mention it
- Music & audio9% mention it
- Visuals & art4% mention it
What negative reviews complain about
- Story & writing29% mention it
- Controls & UI19% mention it
- World & exploration14% mention it
- Grind & repetition14% mention it
Satisfaction by hours played
Same score, different games: see how sentiment holds up the longer people play.
Under 5h
71%
28 reviews
5-15h
83%
53 reviews
15-40h
98%
222 reviews
40-100h
100%
68 reviews
Review sentiment over time
Weekly positive-review rate (green) and review volume (bars). Dashed lines mark significant patches; the amber line is the start of the current scoring window. Hover the dots to see what drove a dip or a jump.
How this score was computed
The VGC Score is a weighted blend on a press-comparable 0-100 quality scale. Steam approval rates are first calibrated (95% positive on Steam ≈ 89.5 quality, since Steam approval skews high). Press and tracked creator reviews each count ~2x a player review and share one cap against player evidence (creator buy/skip calls pool into an approval rate, calibrated like Steam approval); all-time sentiment is capped and halved (it's context, not verdict); reviews of the current build carry the most weight when a fresh patch anchors the window; and a 'typical game' prior keeps small samples from pegging the scale. Because press reviews and Metacritic user aggregates describe the launch build, their weight decays as the game ages (3-year half-life after a 1-year grace). That's how a game that launched rough can outgrow its old reception once updates win players over. Reviews under 2h playtime (the refund window), non-Steam activations, and free copies are downweighted.
| Component | Positive | Quality (0-100) | Weight (pseudo-reviews) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Press reviews (OpenCritic) | – | 85 | 37 |
| All-time Steam reviews | 96% | 90 | 1030 |
| Metacritic user ratings | – | 93 | 225 |
| Post-patch Steam reviews (trust-weighted) | 95% | 89 | 3000 |
| Calibration prior (typical game) | – | 72 | 50 |
Scoring window: since the last significant patch (May 6, 2025) · 300 reviews sampled · 20080 total reviews in window · weighted 245 up / 8.2 down · computed 2h ago · full methodology →
Press & Creators reviews (66)
Individual verdicts from outlets we track: scored reviews first, most trusted outlets first among them. The small badge is each outlet's trust score: how well its scoring history aligns with players.
- 80
“Outer Wilds is a very pleasant and unexpected surprise created especially for fans of the adventure genre. Interesting exploration, good puzzles and nice presentation can drag you in a couple of dozen hours.”
read full review ↗ - 100
“This is a rare adventure game in which the journey is actually more of a reward than the destination.”
read full review ↗ - 80
“Outer Wilds is a meditative, slow, but ultimately rewarding sci-fi extravaganza that everyone looking for an adventure should play, but be prepared for some frustration and repetition.”
read full review ↗ - 90
“If you can overlook the technical challenges, and we could, Outer Wilds remains a wondrous experience on Switch. With almost no gating and a free rein to investigate a rich corner of the universe, it captures the quest for learning in the most direct way possible: the only reward for progress is knowledge. Starting with no information at all, you come to understand the intricacies of this little solar system better than its inhabitants. Having soared through such an epic, introspective, and existentially inquisitive adventure, we probably came to understand ourselves a little more, too.”
read full review ↗ - 80
“For those who won’t be deterred by the endless deaths and time-looped backtracking in Outer Wilds, its intriguing mystery and non-linear exploration of an entire solar system will be a novel and deeply engaging experience.”
read full review ↗ - 95
“Outer Wilds stands as a masterpiece of exploration and narrative in a video game industry often dominated by fast-paced action. Through its non-linear story, engaging writing and soundtrack, the game perfectly captures the essence of interplanetary adventure and gives players an unforgettable experience. With a depth that enchants, this title proves that video games can be much more than a pastime, offering total immersion in a mysterious universe just waiting to be discovered and loved.”
read full review ↗ - 100
- 78
“Your enjoyment of this outer space adventure will mostly correspond to your comfort with a general lack of direction”
read full review ↗ - 50
“It's a lonely, cold planet over here. Mileage on Outer Wilds will depend largely on how much one enjoys exploration, discovery and extrinsic reward versus repetitive backtracking and restrictive (but also far too long and frequently-occurring-to-be-as-restrictive-as-it-is) time limits. It may certainly be a monkey brain desire for feedback and a more robust signposting of progress, but even knowing that the lack of it here is exactly the point, one can't help think there are examples within interactive media that have done lateral think puzzles better. Ones that would waste less time in between solving puzzles, too. Clearly, there's a majority disagreement for this view, so take it with a pinch of salt, but also go into it aware that it's not going to be for everyone. It is an experience that introduces a lot of mind-bending sci-fi concepts and a surprisingly emotional, if conflicting, conclusion. One just wonders if we like the scaffolding more than we like the building itself. Perhaps, though, it's just that some people really don't like time loop mechanics.”
read full review ↗ - 70
“This is a game that presents itself in a unique way, and trusts you to put together its compelling mystery without assistance”
read full review ↗ - 88
“Outer Wilds is one of the biggest surprises of the year, without any doubt. An easy adventure to recommend for its ingenious proposal and pleasant ambience, but it may be that few get to devote the necessary effort to understand the operation of its narrative and gameplay.”
read full review ↗ - 100
“I could go on and on with praises for Outer Wilds. The atmosphere, the sound design, the score, the overwhelmingly amazing attention to detail, clever puzzle design, the story. It is magical. Outer Wilds is a must on Switch. Yūgen is a Japanese concept that doesn’t have a direct English translation. It varies, but I particularly like this definition: “an awareness of the universe that triggers an emotional response too deep and powerful for words.” After looking away from my Switch screen once the final credits of the (main) ending finished only to find myself back on Earth in a room that felt too small to contain something intangible, I took a quiet moment to pause and reorient myself in this reality. I think I need some time on the roof to stargaze for a while.”
read full review ↗
GameMAG
Slant Magazine
Jump Dash Roll
Nintendo Life
STWGames Italia
VGChartz
Nindie Spotlight
Cubed3
Push Square
SomosXbox
Nintendojo…and 54 more tracked reviews.
Patch history
- Outer Wilds Patch 16 is Now AvailableMay 6, 2025significant · resets scoring window
- Outer Wilds is Steam Deck VerifiedSep 27, 2023
- Outer Wilds Patch 14 is Now AvailableSep 26, 2023
- Echoes of the Eye is here!Sep 28, 2021significant · resets scoring window
- E3 + VFX Development UpdateJun 22, 2018