Outer Wilds: Echoes of the Eye DLC Review
Exploring the awesome mechanical solar system of Outer Wilds in 2019 was truly something special, so having the opportunity to return in a DLC expansion feels like Christmas came early, or in this case, more like Halloween. Echoes of the Eye weaves one more thread worth pulling into the already intricate tapestry of Outer Wilds, comfortably bringing back its charming sci-fi woody aesthetic and intricate time-loop puzzle solving, but this time with a creepier tone. and some sections that completely change genres from adventure to horror game. That’s not exactly what I ended up wanting from the most Outer Wilds, and its siled nature makes it a bit more linear to explore, but Echoes of the Eye is still a great reason to revisit this constantly exploding star.
Before I dive a few words about spoilers: I’m not going to go into specific plot points or puzzle solutions here, but I will discuss some of the new areas and mechanics. Anyone who has played the base game knows that much of the magic in Outer Wilds can come from the surprise of stumbling upon an exciting discovery or witnessing one of its timed events from the right place. Echoes of the Eye is no exception, and I’m going to preserve that surprise as much as possible, but those looking to get in completely fresh should be warned that some of them will be mentioned out of necessity.
Echoes of the Eye cleverly integrates its new mysteries by pretending that they have been there all along, hidden in the shadows. A new museum exhibit in Timber Hearth will direct you to a nearby research station that monitors a photography satellite, and if you follow that simple but exciting clue it will eventually lead you to a whole new area with as much to do as any of. others. the planets of the base game. This setup means the Echoes of the Eye won’t bounce around the solar system trying to piece together distant clues, making its discoveries a bit easier to unravel, but there are still plenty of interlocking secrets to find in this area alone.
Most of this side adventure is basically a haunted river rafting trip (which rules absolutely), with many of its puzzles and new mechanics based on the use of light. That includes the rafts you’ll travel between locations, which have orbs that you can turn your flashlight on to float in a specific direction, as well as closed doors that open when illuminated. It’s a little twist that sets the way you navigate this area from the others, but it also maintains that same sense of wonder as things surprisingly change at set times during each loop.
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Focusing on light is also a smart choice because it fits in perfectly with Echoes of the Eye’s creepiest vibe, often forcing you to wander through the dark and occasionally making light a luxury you desperately wish you could afford. Avoiding spoilers as much as possible, this new area is essentially split in two: half is much closer to inspiring planet exploration and doubling the physics of the original game, while the other part occasionally transforms Outer Wilds into a game. proper horror. I’m talking about a “stumbling around in the dark kind of horror game trying to figure out how to progress while monsters hunt you down”, and it sure plays that metaphorical screeching fiddle well.
Outer Wilds has always had some creepier sections and the looming death threat, but this tangible mechanical change (though well implemented) is not what I was expecting and ultimately not something I was too keen on compared to my previous planet jump. . I’ll freely admit that I generally don’t like horror games in general, and those who do almost certainly enjoy these sections more than I do, but that’s the problem; these bits are so Unlike the rest of Outer Wilds, they almost feel like a completely different game, one that’s fun but a lot less unique, and it almost made me wish I was playing more of their usual style.
The horror sections are unavoidable, but thankfully not much of the roughly seven hours that the surprisingly sizeable expansion of Echoes of the Eye took me to complete. (There is also a “Reduced Frights” menu option that makes these sequences a bit less intense, which is a small but appreciated inclusion for those who don’t like horror but love Outer Wilds, although not one that changes enough. as if to really solve that particular problem.) And to hell with the genre, the story that is told throughout this DLC is still riveting. The self-contained structure and more linear layout of its locations means that the pieces of that story are easier to assemble than the story of the Nomai from the base game, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t fun to discover anyway.
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