Into the Wilds

sometimes, it just feels like there are no words.

although I prefer not to hide my hobbies from anyone, gaming is not always viewed positively by others. therefore, i find it worthwhile to only talk about it in settings where it's going to result in productive conversation. i think this is a fair principle.

I recently completed the only DLC for Outer Wilds, known as Echoes of the Eye. I could talk about how deeply Outer Wilds affected me, throwing my hat in the ring with so many others. it is a piece of art that reaches right into the soul and leaves a mark you never knew you were missing. any artistic media that deals with the concept of time tends to do this, as we as finite beings can't quite wrap our heads around the idea of no longer being beholden to the constant demands of entropy that come with "time." it's just not within our scope of understanding at this point. Outer Wilds appreciation is a subject of its own that I'll only refer back to as relevant.

the story and experience of Echoes is a much smaller scope, naturally, as it serves as an addition to the base story. and it does this so well. because of this, I found the story and its ending to be sweet in a way that easily stands as its own incredible section of the Outer Wilds experience. the prisoner, freed. a friend made at the end of time. choosing to step into the great unknown with only the assurance that you knew who and what you loved in your limited time. knowing that's enough. holding onto the promise that love matters. what you experienced matters, even when it's unfairly cut short or painfully, unnaturally lengthened.

this sticks with me in a way that i fail to describe. for followers of Jesus, we know what comes next. the great unknown isn't really unknown. but we were created to recognize and create beauty, and I believe that the beauty we recognize in finality is special and worth dwelling with from time to time. this small piece of reality, one that will end, forces us to contend with loss, pain, and choosing what to recognize as good. love. friendship. connection. it's no surprise that we hold these so deeply, with a God like ours.

although Outer Wilds contains only a sliver of the light and beauty resulting from the fingerprint of God on His people, I believe it does all it can with it. it is a story that wastes no time on the meaingless, but chooses to spend all of its time with all that is irreplaceably human.