Look Outside and the Importance of Open Mindedness

Look Outside and the Importance of Open Mindedness

Warning! This article contains spoilers for Look Outside.

What would you do if one day, you woke up, only to discover that something strange was happening outside and that horrible things would happen to you if you looked at it? Would you be able to resist the temptation to see what was going on around you, or would you gamble your life for just one peek? These are the sorts of things that RPG Maker hit Look Outside welcomes the player to ask as it invites them into its horrifying apocalyptic setting.

At first glance, Look Outside seems like a fairly typical horror game, albeit one which stands out in its incredible effectiveness and execution. You play as a protagonist which you can name yourself, but whose default name is Sam. As soon as the game begins, you’re left with a simple choice; look outside or don’t. Of course, if you do, you’re brutalized on the spot. If you don’t, however, your neighbor Sybil will speak up after a while. She’ll give you a bit more information about what’s going on, and ultimately warn you not to look outside under any circumstances. 

The reason why becomes apparent very quickly. Whenever you choose to leave your apartment and explore the rest of the building, you’ll find that many of your neighbors have become twisted monstrosities with a thirst for blood. The game’s gorgeous pixel art paints a visceral and terrifying picture of each beast you encounter. Body horror galore is to be expected from this experience; if you’re not a fan, it may not be for you, but if you are, be prepared to be horrified and amazed, because you’re in for a real treat.

But under circumstances like these, you may be wondering where open mindedness comes into play at all. After all, the people are turning into warped monsters you need to fight off for your own survival. In a setting as aggressive as this, is it really worth the risk of being kind to your neighbors?

The answer to this question is what makes Look Outside such a unique game– because it gives its player a resounding yes.

There are many times where the people you meet truly are viscous, where there’s no way out except through combat. However, there are also a lot of people out there that are just as lost and confused as the player. People who are more than willing to lend a hand to you if you just reach out. And even more interestingly, most of these people have not been spared the outside’s wrath. 

There are many great examples of this throughout the game. For instance, one of the first friendly “monsters” (or, “cursed”, as they’re called in one of the game’s endings) that you’re likely to meet is a neighbor from downstairs named Jeanne. It wouldn’t be unreasonable for the player to find her intimidating. She wears a large coat, and many eyes can be seen peering out from underneath, an image that calls to mind one of the very first hostile encounters of the game with a neighbor who had a massive eye cut into his stomach. But, upon approaching her, she almost seems just as afraid of you. 

As it turns out, despite looking outside and undergoing changes as a result, she’s retained her sanity. She worries over her condition, and offers to pay you to fetch her laundry from the ground floor, as she feels too unwell to go out. It’s a shockingly human interaction, all things considered. 

After this point, the player naturally starts to question the world around them a bit more. Are there more people out there who’ve maintained their lucidity throughout their transformations? Is there a way to help them?

As the story goes on, you find that the answer to these questions are also yes. You meet a myriad of people who have been cursed and who remain gentle despite that. Joel the tooth child, Lyle the shutterbug, Audrey the sentient vending machine, a handful of living paintings, and so on and so forth. Even your neighbor Sybil mentions having looked outside and that having “done something” to her when you first meet her. It becomes apparent quickly that judging on appearances alone is a mistake. 

And more often than not, choosing kindness wherever you can pays off. 

Some of the cursed act as enemies at times, yes, but many act as friendly faces. Shopkeeps and traders, people to talk to and spend time with, even companions in battle. Being kind opens up your options, and allows you to really get to know a lot about the people you meet. The characters have depth, and learning about them all feels fascinating and rewarding. 

For instance, a few characters may knock at your door whenever you’re in your apartment. Through the peephole, everyone seems intimidating. Some of these characters include Hellen, Dan, and Xaria and Monty, all people who ask to come inside and crash at your place. Hellen wields a cleaver and a hockey mask like Jason Voorhees, Dan appears suddenly with a manic smile and insists on becoming friends despite not knowing you at all, and Xaria and Monty are rebellious and rude. But not one of these people is truly a threat to you. If you let them in, they’ll become the closest companions you have in the new world, sharing meals and laughs, and fighting by your side through thick and thin.

And at times, yes, kindness can bite you. Not all of the people who turn up to your door are friendly. Some people who seem friendly at first glance, like the Stargazer and Rafta from the pipes, end up betraying your trust. But more often than not, the people you meet are genuine. Lost souls trying to persevere in what seems a hopeless situation, just like you. 

Another encounter with Jeanne illustrates this well; by the time the player manages to get her laundry, it appears that it’s too late. She’s transformed beyond recognition, and upon walking into her apartment, you’re greeted with a many-headed snakelike hydra. One of the heads is actively ripping someone apart right by the door. And yet, if you speak to the original head, she’s sobbing and inconsolable, and begs for you to kill her main body to stop the ones she can’t control from hurting more people, even though that would end her life too. 

You can do that if you want. The game almost always allows you to choose violence in situations like these. Or, you can try to save your friend by taking out the aggressive heads individually instead of destroying all of her at once. And if you do? It works. 

She’ll thank you for all you’ve done, and say she’s in control again now. For the rest of the game, she’ll be the same gentle person she’d always been before. You can even return her laundry to her, and although it’s the last thing on her mind now, she’ll appreciate it immensely. 

It’s not a fake out or a trick. Your kindness is able to make a difference.

In the end, what happens to the world depends on how you play the game. There are some truly horrifying outcomes out there if you don’t act with caution. But if you fight for it? It’s possible to make life better, even in its bleakest hour.

It’s easy to think that humanity is inherently cruel. That in times of disaster, the worst in people comes out, and that this is what reflects our true nature. But Look Outside takes a stand against that view. It highlights the despair and the suffering brilliantly, but perhaps even more so than that, it reflects kindness and compassion. The situation is far from perfect, and things rarely ever work out unrealistically well. But that is what makes its optimism so potent. It’s hard fought for, and well-earned. It is these sorts of things that are important to carry into the real world, and into our future.

So, stay kind. Keep reaching out, even to people who seem different from you, and even when times are dark. You might be surprised by how many people are willing to reach back.