In We Were Here Tomorrow, you can hear your partner directly when the two explorers are close together. When you move outside hearing range, the walkie-talkies appear automatically so you can communicate at a distance. A radio appearing on screen is therefore expected behavior, not by itself a sign of a voice-chat fault.
The documented explanation does not provide an exact distance threshold. Use what you can hear and the on-screen radio state rather than an invented number of meters. At a distance, take turns transmitting: both players talking or holding the transmit control at once can prevent them from hearing each other.
Read the change from nearby speech to radio
Guide diagram summarizing the checks above.
| Situation | Expected communication behavior |
|---|---|
| Explorers are within close hearing range | You can hear each other nearby |
| Explorers move out of hearing range | Walkie-talkies appear automatically |
| Both players transmit simultaneously | You may be unable to hear the other player |
| A voice-server connection error appears | Investigate the connection rather than assuming this is the normal range change |
The facility often separates the two players and gives each different information. The distance change supports that structure: walking together and describing a distant room are different communication situations.
Do not assume that your partner sees the object you are describing. Say which object you mean, describe its shape or surrounding landmarks, and let the other player finish their response before you transmit again. These are communication habits for coordinating a puzzle, not hidden game mechanics.
Use a simple radio exchange
- Decide who will speak first.
- Have that explorer transmit one short observation or instruction.
- Release the transmit control completely.
- Let the other explorer repeat the important detail or ask for clarification.
- Continue with the next observation only once both players agree what the first one meant.
For a puzzle with multiple similar objects, describe more than one property when you can. A color alone may be ambiguous; a shape, position, or neighboring object can make the message easier to check. Avoid sending several instructions at once while your partner is still trying to identify the first target.
The exact transmit binding depends on your controls. Follow the binding shown by the game rather than assuming a keyboard key or controller button from another title in the series.
Distinguish normal behavior from missing audio
First test a short exchange in each direction. If both players can speak and receive nearby but become silent after separation, check that each understands radio turn-taking. If only one player cannot be heard, check that player's input selection and the receiving player's mute or block settings.
Tomorrow has a documented issue where audio input settings do not always save after leaving the settings menu. On PC, match the intended Windows default microphone to the game's selected input, then reopen the menu to confirm the choice remains selected.
On Xbox, an active party can take microphone focus away from the game. Console privacy settings can also affect communication. These are separate from the intended proximity behavior: being close to your partner will not necessarily repair an input or account-permission problem.
Know what a range change does not establish
The radios appearing does not identify an outage, a broken headset, or a failed checkpoint. Equally, hearing nothing is not enough to prove that the two explorers are simply too far apart. Look for a voice connection error, check the microphone selection, and test one speaker at a time.
A launch-period voice-service interruption was acknowledged, but that historical incident does not show the service's current condition. There is also no verified numeric range, attenuation curve, or wall-penetration rule in the available explanation, so do not base a puzzle plan on one.
If you use an external call while investigating a fault, agree with your partner whether you want that constant communication. It can help you continue exchanging clues, but it changes how you experience the intended nearby speech and walkie-talkie presentation.