Look Outside

This game is actually so good that it has become my new hyperfixation. It's just so good that my review cannot do it justice and I don't even know where to start. If the premise interests you even in the slightest, seriously give the game a go. The art is fantastic, the characters are enchanting and diverse, the story is immaculate, and optional contents (side quest/secrets) are very rich to the point that you can easily skip a lot of it because this game has so much. The soundtracks are great and convey emotions perfectly. Like you can’t tell me that “Iron Crown”, “Beautiful But Wrong”, “Exposure”, and “Outside the Window” aren’t absolute bangers. They are SO fitting for the scenarios that they play. Despite being a horror game, it’s actually surprisingly wholesome and not all that scary which I think is a good thing. That made the game stand out to me because I got to experience horror in another way. The game focuses on psychological and body horror over cheap jumpscares and I’ve only been scared three times throughout the entire game (Twice within the first hour and once while experiencing one of the endings in a twenty-something hour playthrough). My favorite part about Look Outside has to be how it subverts many horror cliches. Horror tends to focus on portraying the worst of people while cosmic horror in particular loves to emphasize the insignificance of humanity but NOT THIS GAME. It actually subverts quite a few cliques. Of course that doesn’t mean bad things won’t happen. Some of the endings are brutal, you can make immoral choices, and you constantly see people suffer terrible fates, but at the same time, you are often rewarded for kindness, some of the characters (even seemingly untrustworthy) will help you, and you still get to do normal everyday stuff like playing games or cooking meals. It’s strangely heartwarming when the world is ending but you are surrounded by allies who are going through it with you. Your companions have distinct personalities and I think each one has an optional side quest. They feel more like humans and less like a pawn for you to control in combat. When you cook meals or play video games, they may engage in banter or conversations with you or each other which makes the game feel human somehow. Empathy within humanity juxtaposes with apathy from the great beyond which gives both sides more meaning. I really recommend that you go in blind to really experience the game for all that it has to offer, and then if you liked the game enough, start another playthrough to experience what you missed. Reading the wiki or looking stuff up can seriously spoil the story or ruin the atmosphere so be careful what you read or see. There’s something special about seeing the ending area for the first time or not knowing who you can trust. It was kind of magical to play the game wondering what was actually outside for a very long time and then finally seeing it after hours and hours of gameplay. Most horror games love being cryptid, setting up for a sequel or attracting theorists, but I think Look Outside does a pretty good job of answering most questions and tying loose ends which was a breath of fresh air. I know some people hate to miss things on their first playthrough but the game is kinda made to be replayable. There are 17 companions each with unique skillsets but you only have 3 party slots so you can't utilize all of them effectively in a single playthrough anyways. In addition, there’s a 15 day time limit and unless you have prior game knowledge, there’s almost no way you are able to collect all of them. I’m just so glad I had minimal spoilers for my first playthrough because it made it that much better. However, the game isn't without flaw either. My biggest gripes are the clunky UI for items and crafting and progression. Most usable items are grouped at the top for easy access in the items menu but not all and I don't know why. For example, I hated how duct tape is at the bottom despite being usable, meaning I would have to scroll much further down every time I want to use it. There's crafting which is cool but also a little clunky. You have to craft items individually so there's no way to mass craft. The game saves recipes that you have already crafted but it doesn't tell you possible outcomes while selecting ingredients. I think it should tell players before they select rather than after but maybe that's a game engine quirk and hard to implement? For progression, I personally think the middle/late game areas had too many mazes. War zone and sewer are cool concepts but felt annoying to traverse since they were massive with few important rooms. It felt weird to finish one maze and then almost immediately start another because that section sorta blends together for me. In my first playthrough, I got sick of those areas and rushed through most of it but explored more in my second run. That's my least favorite section and the part that I dread the most on replay. It just feels...tedious? Outside of that, I don't really have complaints. The good definitely outweighs the bad. Oh also by the way, the game has a great sense of humor too. One of the companion’s abilities is literally doxxing your enemy lol. Yeah anyways. Great game. It made me laugh. It made me feel despair. But it also made me feel triumph. It’s been a long time since a game was able to make me feel many emotions so deeply. To the game, I want to say “I will not forget you. I will think about this for a long time.”