The 10 Simms Recordings are one of Directive 8020‘s most story-critical collectible sets. Unlike standard Secrets scattered around as environmental objects, every Simms Recording is a video message from crew member Pari Simms to her mother back home, documenting her growing suspicion that something is deeply wrong aboard the Cassiopeia. Watched in order, they tell a parallel story running alongside the main narrative.
All 10 recordings appear on wall monitors throughout the ship. They’re easy to miss if you’re moving quickly — and they’re run-missable, meaning if you leave a section without grabbing one, you’ll need to replay that episode via Turning Points to get it back.
How Simms Recordings Work
Each recording is activated by approaching a wall monitor and interacting with it using your Utility Strap. A short video clip of Pari plays, and the recording gets logged in your Collectibles menu under the Simms Recordings tab. They don’t affect survival outcomes or endings, but they’re required for the Heard It All trophy and achievement, and they provide important context for the mimic storyline that shapes the late-game endings.
Episode 1 — Two Recordings
Recording 1: First Contact
After your character exits the cryo-pod chamber, you’ll enter the Crew Quarters corridor. On the left wall before the first junction there’s a monitor showing a screensaver animation. Interact with it to trigger the first recording. Pari is excited here — still unaware of what’s coming.
Recording 2: Patches
After the lockdown lifts and you get access to the Medical Reception area, use the window to the right of the main door to unlock the side office. Exit that side office and find the stairwell on the opposite side of the corridor. The monitor at the top of those stairs holds Recording 2. Pari mentions her cat, Patches, who was smuggled aboard — and notes that one of the crew seems off.
Episode 2 — Three Recordings
This is the most important episode for collectible hunters. Three recordings in a single episode means it’s very easy to miss one or two if you’re pushing forward quickly. Slow down and check every room before triggering any story transition.
Recording 3: Something’s Wrong
After descending the first staircase in the Crew Complex, stop at the benches immediately on your right. A tablet on the top bench contains this recording — it’s the only Simms Recording stored on a tablet rather than a wall monitor, which is why so many players walk straight past it.
Recording 4: The Sounds
After exiting the lounge area, descend the stairs to the left and look left at the base of the stairs. You’ll find a floating debris crate, and below it against the wall is a picture frame with an embedded monitor. Pari is clearly frightened in this one, describing sounds coming from within the walls at night.
Recording 5: Who Can I Trust
In the Crew Complex Locker Room, accessed via the corridor past the fragile crates. Look at the left wall first and use your Utility Strap to open the lockers — the monitor is behind the second set of lockers from the entrance. Pari names a specific crew member she no longer trusts in this one, and that name matters for decisions later in the game.
Episodes 3 and 4 — No Recordings
Episode 3 contains no Simms Recordings — focus on story progression and standard Secrets. With Episode 4 being the only episode in the game with zero collectibles of any kind, including Recordings and regular Secrets.
Episode 5 — One Recording
Recording 6: Love Lost
After placing the Power Cell in the Hydroponics section to restore power, walk down to the left of the activated doorway rather than immediately passing through it. A video recording is mounted on the wall at the end of this dead-end corridor. It’s the most emotionally heavy recording in the set — Pari talks about someone she’s lost and what she’s decided to do about it.
Episode 6 — One Recording
Recording 7: The Plan
In the later portion of the Hydroponics section — same left-side corridor as Recording 6 but further in, past the second sealed door after you restore auxiliary power. Easy to confuse the two areas, so if you already grabbed Recording 6, keep going down the same corridor past the next sealed door. Pari outlines what she intends to do with everything she’s found.
Episode 7 — Two Recordings
Recording 8: Almost There
After passing through the engine room and exiting through the door at the far end, don’t continue forward immediately. Turn and look at the right wall before ascending the next staircase. The monitor is there. Pari’s tone shifts — she believes she’s found proof of what’s been happening.
Recording 9: The Helmet
After finding the alternative route around the dead-end cave in Episode 7’s outdoor section, squeeze through the gap. You’ll see a figure in the distance. Before following them, go up the hill on the left toward the wrecked ship debris. A helmet on the ground contains the ninth recording via an embedded data chip. This one is the most explicit accusation Pari makes in the entire series.
Episode 8 — One Recording
Recording 10: The Last One
In the final episode, before the escape sequence triggers, there’s a large assembly room with multiple monitors showing mission data. The Simms Recording monitor is on the rear left wall of this room, separated from the other monitors by a support column. It’s easy to walk straight past while focused on the escape. Recording 10 is Pari’s final message — it changes slightly depending on whether Pari is alive in your run, but the recording is always collectible regardless.
Collecting After the Run
If you miss any recordings, you don’t need to replay the whole game. Use the Turning Points menu from the main menu to jump back to the start of any episode and replay just that section. Your collectible progress carries over from the completed run, so you’re only replaying the episode you need.
Collecting all 10 unlocks the Heard It All achievement, triggers a Curator Scene tied to the Simms story thread, and provides important context for the mimic storyline — context that reframes several late-game moments significantly if you’re going for alternate endings.
ALSO READ: Where to Find Rose Minerals in Outbound
Olatunde-Bada
Pritish Samantaray