Getting Started

Here you will find tips to get started

Exploring Home
Before you set off to explore the galaxy, you may explore your home planet and speak with the locals, blissfully unaware of the fiery "end" that awaits you all. Your interactions with your fellow Hearthians, as well as sights and signage around the Outer Wilds Venture crater serve as a tutorial.

Speak with the locals
Gneiss will explain the basics of your Signalscope, which you can use to listen to the sounds of the solar system (see Using the Signalscope). Galena and Tephra can help you practice with the Signalscope through a game of Hide-and-Seek. The two will run and hide, and you must use the Signalscope to track them down (they are only kids, so they aren't very far away).

Arkose will explain the basics of ghost matter, an invisible gas that will burn you to death in an instant. You can use the Scout Launcher to detect ghost matter by sending off a scout.

Mica has just perfected his miniature model of a space ship, which he'll let you pilot down to three makeshift landing pads below--excellent practice for piloting your real space ship.

Gossan waits at the entrance of the "Zero-G" cave. He will explain that a satellite deep in the cave is in need of repair, which serves as an introduction to maneuvering in zero gravity. A space suit at the bottom of the cave elevator will allow you to breathe and move through the cave.

See the sights
Once you’ve spoken to everyone, you may head to the Observatory. In the observatory, you will run into a couple more of the locals who may provide some interesting details about the world.

The ground floor of the Observatory also features a museum with treasures and curiosities from around the solar system. Take time to read the descriptions and look at the exhibits in the museum area. On your first visit, most of novelties will not make much sense, but you can come back to the museum at any time once you have learned more about the solar system.

Your translator can be used on the gray stone slab with purplish-blue geometric spiral patterns painted onto it. These patterns are the Nomai’s written language, samples of which are found throughout the solar system.

The Signalscope is also useful here for listening to the strange blue “museum shard” found in a room by itself.

Other special mechanics of the game, including the purple-blue glowing “gravity crystal,” are demonstrated here. Additionally, on the very top floor is a working map of the solar system.

Finally, obtain the Launch Codes from Hornfels. He and Hal stand gazing at a beautiful white stone Nomai statue head. Once you have the codes, the statue's eyes will open, and a cut scene will activate. During this, you will see flashes of “memories” that you experienced in the last 20 minutes or so.

Make your way back down the hill to where Slate was roasting marshmallows. Enter the small lift using the launch codes, and you will be taken up to your ship. Take a minute to look around. The ship is tiny, but there are several useful items here. A space suit hangs on a wall, which when equipped will enable your turbo boosters. You will have an oxygen tank with limited oxygen (this can be refilled onboard the ship or by finding living trees). The turbo boosters use fuel fast, but this can also be refilled onboard (via a tank on the wall, or by finding the fuel tanks at the current and former camps of fellow travelers). If you are injured, you may recover health by using the medical kit on your ship or roasting and eating marshmallows over a campfire.

Finding Those Off World
As Gneiss explains during your conversation with him, several fellow explorers are actually off world already, and at least one is missing. The Signalscope, besides picking up mysterious sounds around the solar system, can also be used to locate the various astronauts by the unique instrument each plays continuously. You may also be able to locate the traveler's camps by the rising smoke from their fires. All explorers camps (current and past) have trees to refill your oxygen tank, as well as with spare fuel tanks and marshmallows.