Outer Wilds Animated Tribute

[@MoodyViewz]

The death of the Nomai is such a tragic, horrifying realization in game. You spend so long getting to know these people through their dialog, sharing life events and jokes, the love some had, or even those moments of aggravation with one another. It was all too easy to laugh with them, or feel for them as they struggled to make a home and continue their lifelong quest. After you reach the truth and you almost hear those last, frantic cries, it re-contextualizes it all. Your laughter echos far in hollow halls littered with bones instead of through the memory of a warm and loving home. Your friends have always been dead. They've been dead for 200,000 years, and yet, somehow they die when you read those words... and you're alone again. At least until you hear the song.

[@Rainlitnight]

People die 3 times. The first time, as all do. The second, when those that know them in some way die themselves. And third, when their memory is gone completely. I'd like to think the Eye saved them all from their final death.

[@HiddevanGelder]

where did you find last frantic cries? as far as i know ghost matter kills so quickly, certainly in those enormous concentrations, that they never even saw it coming

[@Rainlitnight]

@@HiddevanGelder I believe they meant yelling to go warn the others

[@MoodyViewz]

@@HiddevanGelder I would call Pye and Poke's cries pretty desperate my guy, given what they knew came next.

[@braaifilms4584]

Would you mind if I used parts of what you said here in the video essay I’m making? You worded it so superbly.

[@masterjason8699]

2:43 "It won’t happen in our lifetimes, but it will happen in someone else’s, someday" That line really hit me

[@Bananadorable]

SPOILERS Notably that bit of script is written by a Young Solanum who is learning about them in school and she happens to be "not-entirely-alive" when the supernova does occur.

[@razbuten]

damn do I love outer wilds and this

[@zp6182]

Fanmade tributes of this beautiful game are few and far in between, but damn they are all so lovely

[@quadrupleheart]

You and me both my dude!

[@totallyjerd1751]

Please make a video about this so more see it

[@glidershower]

@@zp6182 _Like the multiverse between realities, One Dream connects us all._

[@r2d2fromstartrack83]

@@totallyjerd1751 he did. Pretty sure it was something like... Idk, talking about playing a game at the perfect time in your life for that game.

[@nairobi8056]

It’s kinda depressing that the moment they realize that they’re death is imminent, it was already too late.

[@victor882100]

Kinda like the hearthians

[@3rdJan]

@@victor882100 damn, true! and one species set up the necessary equipment to fight it, while the others made use of that equipment to go the final step

[@atom5469]

@@3rdJan I don't think "fight it" is quite the proper wording

[@gemineyestudios3553]

“Oh cool, a Naomi animation! I can’t wait to see what fun adventures this animation shows m- oh god they’re on the interloper-“

[@gemineyestudios3553]

But for real this is a fucking FANTASTIC animation!

[@AninoNiKugi]

I'd love a series of short sequences from Outer Wilds. On top of my head, the scene of the Escape Pod 3 😭

[@S31Syntax]

I don't think my heart can take that

[@HaasSpitta]

That would be heart breaking ☹️

[@sleeper6548]

When I first reached there, I was seriously in shock, the grave and the mystery of vessel

[@_erroneous]

2:43 that line, and the Hearthian fish ducking away, really works together though This animation is amazing

[@WackoMcGoose]

Especially when you realize that Ghost Matter is _nullified by water_ (try it out in the tunnel on Gabbro's Island! and in the DLC, there's a loop event that depends on it), and that's literally the only reason the Hearthian Ancestors survived, was because they lived in the one place it _couldn't_ touch. (implying they couldn't evolve to live on land until the GM faded enough, also implying there were multiple failed attempts to try, similar to leaving a Vault before the radiation outside has faded enough)

[@jakeread9668]

When Poke and Pye went to see the interloper, Yarrow stayed behind in the ash twin project for a while. The thing is, the ash twin project was completely shut off, and likely blocked the ghost matter from entering. There's one nomai corpse in a space suit on ash twin right outside the warp out of the project, and I think Yarrow lost communications with the rest of the nomai, went to see what was going on and died a few steps from the return warp, making him the last living nomai (Except solanum if you count her)

[@dsmaster7173]

thing is, the stranger was also completely sealed off and there's still ghost matter on the inside of it

[@jakeread9668]

@@dsmaster7173 The stranger wasn't sealed off, there was a hull breach and an elevator shaft leading in from the docking bay

[@poecollector64]

0:00 "Oh awesome, the algorithm recommended me Outer Wilds fan content" 3:12 *bawling my eyes out*

[@MegaChickenfish]

Holy crap. Every single skeleton in the entire solar system, thinking about what they were trying to do when the ghost matter hit. To warn, to teach, to hug someone close one last time. _I'm not crying, you're crying._

[@Bus_Driver_Jay]

I remember once seeing a theory that the Interloper was a weapon fired by an alien race that had become aware of the Nomai efforts to reach the eye, presumably a race in a similar position to the Owlettes and having reached the eye earlier.

[@charliepalterman8179]

Sorry for responding so late but I think this was from "The Outsider" outer wilds mod in the observatory.

[@Peachabooboo]

I work as a professional story artist in animation, and I implore you to consider getting into the animation industry! Even with you having had no animation experience whatsoever, your shot choices were very on point and created a very emotional narrative. Beautiful work! Thank you so much for letting me revisit this moment in a wonderful, heartfelt new way!

[@braaifilms4584]

Thank you! Animation as a medium definitely combines my favorite parts of creation; story telling, writing, acting, sound editing, etc.

[@Tat011]

Oooh this is good, really like the attention to detail here, like showing a bunch of different Nomai characters in their final position you find them in game.

[@jacksonbarkerthebluehairedfox]

There's something symbolic about the heroic music just stopping so abruptly when the ghost matter's shell ruptured. In the blink of an eye, all the Nomai in the system were gone.

[@lordbroccoli4182]

It’s honestly haunting to see all the Nomai basically frozen in place. They died and then locked up basically exactly where they were, leaving a perfect screenshot of their final moments, if only for a time

[@ThomasPlaysTheGames]

Really enjoyed this. It feels so naturally made as a passion project.

[@cloud99vii27]

OMG Solanum voice is so cute, great choice for actors, animation and all, I wish this last way longer becuase it was amazing Seriously if you want to make a proper film, do a Kickstarter, I think OW community will be so happy to be a part of it

[@my_name_is_kane_]

I LOVE this!!! I'm in a very similar boat as you oddly enough! I'm working on an Outer Wilds Animation with VERY minimal animation experience. Seeing you're work gives me hope that I can finish mine. Amazing work, and can't wait to see more from you! ❤

[@braaifilms4584]

Absolutely. This project was somewhat kickstarted by watchagonnado's Night in the Woods Animated Tribute, which was also made with minimal experience and helped me push to create this.

[@Rillion02]

@@braaifilms4584 I KNEW IT!

[@datrandomdugggy5537]

@@braaifilms4584 can you link me to this night in the woods tribute video?

[@braaifilms4584]

@@datrandomdugggy5537 kzbin.info/www/bejne/a6OQmKqmdrl_ppY there you go

[@Demonskunk]

Oohf, right in the feels. This is wonderfully made. The still vignettes of the Nomai immediately after the ghost matter hit...

[@Splashpaws]

I LOOVE the interpretation of these scenes !! The nomai have so much character and all their writting and dialogue .. it’s so EASY to imagine what was going on in the moment ..

[@oliverboisvert5215]

This is the moment in the game that always hit me the hardest, and you've put it beautifully into animation. Thank you

[@lone6383]

This is so underrated. My friend sent it to me and I nearly cried. You really captured the interaction between Poke and Pye on the Interloper perfectly. Something about it is just absolutely chilling. Thank you for putting this beauty into the world !

[@JShortsFR]

Can't wait for the devs to see this omg so hype! EDIT: IT WAS AMAZING! Great job! Bravo!

[@HelloworldXY32]

They kinda have already. Andrew Phralow dropped into the premier that happened a few mins ago

[@JShortsFR]

@@HelloworldXY32 Bro that was epic, love it!

[@tumultuousv]

@@HelloworldXY32 dope

[@Mallow-568]

The fact you came up with nothing to make an animation this nice is not easy, and it's pretty incredible. I too as seems to be the case with someone else in the comments are also working on an Outer Wilds animation, but I'm at least going at it with 5 years of Blender experience. The fact you all have the dedication to outright learn the entire craft before as you're working on it is crazy to me. I'd have never had the trust in myself to embark on something like this 4 years ago, congrats this came out as fantastic as it did!

[@OhMyRoystone]

The switch to child voice narration really did it for me here, you chose two of my favorite "scenes" from the Nomai's story, great job! I would pay a lot of money to watch a fully-fledged animation based on Outer Wilds.

[@FalloutFM]

This was clearly an animation made of love, it shows so much, I fully approve and think outer wilds deserves every bit of love we can give back

[@GrimmBones]

Now, I'm not sure if the video implies that they died slowly, inevitably, from the Ghost Matter. But just to clear any misunderstanding, they didn't. They died instantly. The moment the comet erupted, any Nomai that was hit with it died right then and there. Which is so much sadder, cause not a single one of them got to say goodbye, or even sorry. Wonderful video, though! Truly! I always wanted to see more Outer Wilds animations! And the fact you made this, with no prior knowledge of animation, is genuinely heartwarming. What a way to get someone into animation than through such a wonderful experience of a game! I think the Nomai would be proud of you for that.

[@ADudeNamedLucky]

I played this game and had made substantial progress, mostly I’ve just been going around and getting stray pieces of information I missed. I’m on the Ember Twin, underground in the Sunless City, and I find the scrawled writing on the floor that points to the anglerfish skeleton. Unlike the others it looks wider, messier, and that makes sense, a child wrote it, cute. I follow the path, reaching the anglerfish skeleton and reading the rules written by the children and the arguing about who’s tallest now and the older kids trying to make it fair for the younger kids. I don’t remember how I died, but it was soon after that. I return to The Sunless City, excited to find the next discovery, eagerly traversing the rather maze like interior of the city, and I manage to stumble my way back to the first writing that guides you to the anglerfish cave and freeze. My stomach drops and my smile fades cause laying next to that messy handwriting is a small skeleton, of what one can only assume is a child. That cut me deep. All the Nomai were written in such a human way. Flirting through walls. Making jokes about science. Being excited to prove their hypotheses true. And then something happened. They all stopped. Their stories half finished. They’ve all been gone for who knows how long. And it hurts. Outer Wilds is one of the best games I’ve ever played. It’s truly a magical and unique and beautiful experience. I don’t know if another game will ever do what Outer Wilds did to me. And that’s okay. I’ve gone on the beautiful journey that their star system held for me. Now it’s time to move on. But the experience of playing this game will never leave me.

[@SpencerPlewe]

A very moving illustration of how this event may have taken place. Just floating into that crystal chamber was a horrific twist my first time.

[@Thatrdrplayer]

I like how the animation isn’t all choppy it’s really smooth I am also a huge fan of the game and glad to see this

[@MrLordFireDragon]

Got it out in time for Echoes of the Eye, good job! Incredible work, especially for what sounds like a first project. Really captured the atmosphere of the game in a powerful way.

[@TheStef1309]

This is probably the best tribute to the game I've seen. Incredible work.

[@leithmascari5053]

The way the "it will happen in someone else's" line coincides with the appearance of the Hearthians' anscestors is so well designed

[@L3okklol]

this game is perfect

[@Lar_Ott]

That meteor explosion animation 😮

[@Me-wx1mt]

*(SPOILERS)* I really need more fan animations focused on the nomai, I love our little walking tadpole characters but the nomai have so much material to work with Like it would be cool if someone animated solanum getting to the quantum moon or the stories the other nomai told

[@Starmarack]

This is REQUIRED viewing for those that have completed the game. Great work.

[@amethyst_nyx2768]

This was absolutely incredible, and as a passion project from virtually no experience too! That final scene was absolutely chilling, it showed me a new side that I never thought about for how the Nomai truly died. Amazing tribute, I hope the devs get to see this!!

[@Spedyboy]

When I pieced together what happened to the nomai i found it profoundly sad. That these alien had travelled so far sacrificed so much for a goal they didnt even achieve but, they jept going and decided to keep inventing new technology and try reconnect with the rest of their species only to have this new leaf of their life suddenly stripped away from them. And realising that one was trying to climb out to warn the other honestly brought some tears to my eyes.

[@wilsonpercivalhiggsbury5900]

Seeing and hearing these locations again through the medium of animation really brought me back to my first playthrough. My sheer awe of the sun station, the beauty of the planets, the incredible remnants of the nomai structures, and the melancholy realisation of how it all came crashing down while inside the interloper. This game is indescribably good. It was an emotional rollercoaster through the entire game. I could go on and on, naming all the places the nomai built, admiring their engineering skills and scientific prowess. Simply hearing the soundtrack randomly playing as I shuffle through my Spotify playlist is enough to make me stop and look off into the distance, remembering what I had discovered. It’s my no doubt favourite game of all time. As for echos of the eye? I’m still working up the courage to press through the game. I have no doubt it’s just as good or better then the original, but it honestly scares me half to death. At some point I’ll complete it, and I’m interested to see how the story of this little solar system at the end of the universe progresses… and ultimately concludes. The animation here is great and really fluid! I was expecting an animatic, but I’m glad to have been wrong there. The voice acting really helps sell the terrified desperation of the interloper explorers as they realise what will happen to their entire race in just a few seconds. The visuals also really show how beautiful this game is, really making you feel small, but not too small. In conclusion: This game is so damn good. I don’t think I’ll ever forget it, and this animation is great at conveying the solar system. I’m subbing.

[@ararepotato1420]

Wow! This is very good. I've always wondered what it must have been like. How fast would it have happened? Would the Nomai see something akin the northern lights spreading across the solar system similar to the super nova we witness? Would it be a slow painful death? Or a painless, instantaneous one? Such a tragic turn of events for them. Within minutes, hundreds of Nomai were wiped out, leaving behind their bones, their structures, and the Ash twin project. There is only one survivor, and she isn't technically even alive as she died 5 other times before, and cannot leave, nor know what happened to her people.

[@Darca1n]

Given how incredibly lethal even this significantly decayed Ghost Matter is in the game, I doubt they suffered much, if at all. At most a few might have had a couple seconds of seeing its expansion before it hit them, and from there it, presuming they're as vulnerable to its effects as we are in the game, would not take long at all before the effects kill them completely. Given the positions we find some of them in, it can be presumed it's not instantaneous though.

[@sagarkardam9977]

This deserves more views..❤️

[@Dr.Frankture]

Loved that little hearthian at the end

[@aorattauar7209]

Duuuuuuuuuuuude... amazing job, fantastic animation, and superb representation of how those events transpired. This is actually one of the coolest OW animations I've ever seen

[@librus8680]

"Hi, Astronaut! You know the patch of Ghost Matter inside this fence? Gossan says it used to be a little bit bigger when they were a hatchling! Y'know, cause Ghost Matter evaporates. It just takes a suuu-u-u-u-u-uper long time to go away. I hope there's still some here when I grow up. Ghost Matter is awesome! ... Yeah! I heard touching it hurts so bad it feels like your whole hand's on fire! Try not to walk into any of it in space, okay? That sounds bad and painful..." This was a fantastic piece. I really love how you were about to get all the different voices down, too - how all these strange, three-eyed, furry fellows all led lives, lived generations... loved, hated, grew up as children. It's sad... and you managed to end it on a little hopeful note, the lucky proto-hearthians managing to survive thanks to how water seemed to neutralize the effects. Well done indeed. 💙

[@Vellzi]

Absolutely fantastic. Shown this to all my friends that have finished OW, all of them agreed: Very sad but very good

[@leofourgeaud3068]

"We do not have much connection, you and I. Still this encounter feels special. I hope you won't mind if i think of you as a friend." -Solanum Anyway, i love and hate this animation because it's too perfect to make me forget the horrible death of the NomaÏ and the loneliness of my 'friend' (yeah i assume to call her like that). Thank you really much for this amazing video

[@hannaoui5]

"¡Now Poke!"... it gives me shivers

[@NateAlyn]

This literally was incredible to listen to and watch. Amazing how you brought the true story to life. I feel like the game was trying to teach us that death is inevitable and there is beauty in it because with every death, there is a new beginning.

[@ravenstar1397]

NATE? NATE YOU'VE PLAYED OUTER WILDS? HEAH

[@honorablemr.hardwork3724]

you just made me sad, but this is great

[@sorrynamebroke]

If it makes you feel better, the Nomai likely didn't feel anything when the Ghost Matter covered them, they were dead before they could even feel it.

[@Ganjalf_the_Green]

I didn't know I needed a Outer Wilds tv series with this style. Hypothesis: now I do. Suggestion: do you have any plans to continue this and make it a full scale series about all the game and DLC? I know it would be MASSIVE amount of work (to say the least), but I'm almost sure that with Kickstarter you could make it, and it would be something amazing. Only problem is, can you kickstart something you have no rights on?

[@TrayTerra]

Speed running a crying session over here, don’t mind me 😔

[@jacksonpumpkin9910]

ITS BEAUTIFULLLLL

[@casualbird7671]

Oh my goodness it's here! You made the nomai look wonderful. It's eerie how you had them all just freeze in place when they were killed by the matter.. very well made, thank you for making this.

[@wjblegge]

Love it, love it, love it. Hit the same notes as the original game for me and it was great to see my fave Nomai Pyke in the flesh (so to speak). Thank you for this mate and to the voice actors as well.

[@dayalasingh5853]

Solanum saying "the end of the universe is scary even if it won't happen in our lifetimes" but then she "survives", it does indeed happen during her lifetime. Also I've been watching VODs of someone streaming the game on Twitch and it's amazing to see all the messages written by solanum, when I played the first time I didn't pay attention to who was writing the messages, but seeing her messages she writes throughout her life really let's you learn about her.

[@MarmaladeSparrow]

Oh my god this is beautifully done - the animation, voice acting, the vibes! I'm so impressed you did this and it's such an awesome tribute to an amazing game :O

[@snek9406]

To be honest, the animation is absolutely incredible but the suitless Nomai are also absolutely terrifying. THEY STARE DEEP INTO MY SOUL WITH THEIR 3RD EYE.

[@ProduccionesPulaSA]

wow this is amazing dude, great work!

[@gbayogezal8857]

Your curiosity is amazing! I am Japanese, but I'm a huge fan of Outer Wilds. I thought it was good to see your work and play this game! I'm sorry if my English is strange.... We are Outer Wilds Ventures!

[@braaifilms4584]

❤️

[@ammonkunzler3948]

I was skeptical coming in, but this absolutely blew me away. Amazing work, and I loved your narrative in the video description. Thank you for remembering them.

[@3rdJan]

This is so good! You're saying you've never animated anything before?? That's insane to me, I would never have guessed. Great voiceover work too! I really love this.

[@Me-wx1mt]

this is beautiful. seeing the little tadpole hearthling is so cute

[@leimmortalraven3246]

I remember when I first found the center of the interloper. When I floated into that chamber and that haunting melody of Castaways kicked in... a chill went down my spine cuz I just knew something terrible had happened there.

[@nellstay18]

J'aimerai tellement qu'il y est de grosse production qui nous ponde de belle serie ou filme animé de se jeux fantastique. C'est telment bien et touchant

[@GLayne]

Well done ! Fantastic stuff.

[@Barusuzin]

As a Outer Wilds fan, this is pure masterpiece

[@woutervossebeld4664]

This is... just amazing...

[@4ltFFour]

This genuinely brought me to tears. Thank you for making this. It is beautiful.

[@dddodin]

It would be great to see an animated biography of Solanum .

[@МолчаливыйКлинок]

Chills!

[@batatat]

i've been waiting for months with notifications on and it was 100% worth it!! while i'm not an animator, but i have considered giving it a shot, and if it's possible to make something this good after a year with no experience... maybe i should play outer wilds again

[@IlyaWazuhiru]

so sad, such a lovely tribute i need a full-length feature now :P

[@ChillyBlue]

this is SO GOOD

[@CamelliaFlingert]

This is a beautiful work, made me cry again

[@andreszarmach554]

this was truly beautiful. thank you for making it

[@Marqan]

That's amazing, perfect tribute to the game! So fitting, ad in line with the feel of the game, awesome!

[@margheritacellai107]

It's beautiful

[@InvasionAnimation]

This is amazing!

[@leithmascari5053]

This deserves so many more views

[@GenTheFurredArtist]

WOAHHHH! THIS IS SO GOOD!

[@Broeckchen]

Absolutely amazing and gets across the tragedy and impact of that moment so well! ;u;

[@glidershower]

To me, [ghost matter] was always _hyper condensed water,_ and its shell made of the minerals not dense enough to sink but become dense enough to contain it, far _far_ beyond the pressures encountered in the Giant's Deep or anywhere else in normal nature, the ripped core of the frozen world the Dark Bramble destroyed. It's like the Eye itself claimed vengeance against the ones that had the actual power and tried to uncover its secrets. "Not your time, but others'" and erased the slate clean except for the ones that it knew it will survive it _until the clock was about to stop 22 minutes before the end of everything._ *And the life dream started again.*

[@ZenBearV13]

Absolutely beautiful. I love the little girl’s reading, she did a great job.

[@Farfelade]

It's nice to see other people trying for the first time to put out a complete animation on their own And even more interesting considering it's about Outer Wilds, a game that, I believe, didn't get as much fan animations as it'd deserve! I'm glad you took on the challenge to actually do it. Finishing a big project like this one is definitely not easy and you did quite a great job with that, the staging, how accurate it portrays the story of the game, it's well handled! I hope this first experience will make you want to learn and experiment more with this media, you're on a good start!

[@JamesWitte]

amazing

[@ejosephh11]

Subscribed and turned on notifications 4 months ago for this moment

[@Odisher7]

2:45 goosebumps. Literal fucking goosebumps. And almost tears. What a great video xd

[@veiledAutonym]

Welp, now I'm ugly crying. This is a hell of a thing to find right after waking up. With all love and honestly no sarcasm at all... Thank you.

[@Alphaaa13]

This beautifully represents how I thought about the end of the Nomai after piecing together the small bits of info about this. I love the relevance of Solanum's monologue and the contrast to how irrelevant it seems when first read.

[@poecollector64]

Exploring Brittle Hollow: kids learning about the heat death of the universe, cool Later: oh shit-

[@FireJaadoo]

great work!!!

[@1tyrus]

THIS IS AMAZING!!! I had goosebumps throughout the entire thing

[@matthewcallow8971]

Dang ... this is really good

[@ItsDylanHarding]

Great sound design, pacing and animation! I love seeing animated fan films and tributes like this for OW, it's like getting a glimpse at a series or feature adaptation that'll probably never happen.

[@chrisjones5949]

Excellent work. The ultimate fate of the Nomai is so damn sad.

[@rive_the_roseblooded]

I love this and it made me cry

[@PloverTechOfficial]

This is amazing!!! I absolutely love it. You are a valued member of our community, thank you!

[@fluffymoose1129]

whens duolingo gonna release nomai writing???

[@Nikolai0169]

I completely forgot I subbed to you after i saw the trailer for this animation. You've done incredibly well animating this, and the voice performance you guys pulled of was amazing as well.