Endless Ocean

"Endless Ocean- A majestically mundane trip for Arika that removes the positives of past titles while adding little"

Endless Ocean- Review

Having played Endless Ocean for approximately ten hours, and having completed/unlocked everything, I am sorely dissappointed. Having also been a fan of Everblue 2, also made by Arika, and centering on the underwater experience, this review will often compare the two titles by noting the differences, and characteristics of Endless Ocean that stand out, whether good or bad. On to the Review!

Graphics 7; For the WII, they are a mixed bag, but look good overall. The out of water segments feature stilted animations, and often don't fit in with the splendor of being underwater. As for the underwater, don't be fooled. The next gen consoles could make this game look magnificent, but on the WII, it looks good given the systems limitations. Coral, caves, and sealife are all brought to life with a great attention to detail that makes wandering an adventure in itself. Overall: underwater graphics, which make up the bulk of the game, are quite nice and colorful

Music : 10 The music for this game is outstanding, and features an array of vocal tracks that are calm, relaxing, and simply wonderful. The quality of the music is simply phenomenal, and goes a long way to giving what would otherwise feel like a lifeless game, the shot of adrenaline it needs.

Sound Effects; 2 There are little to no sound effects. There are no voiceovers, and outside of small swishing sounds from your fins, there are fewer sound effects than some of the old 16 bit roms.

Controls; 6 The game features full wiimote controls with no option for analog. The controls function fine, though it boils down to point and click. The option for analog control would have helped significantly.

Gameplay: 2 Some people have lauded this game for it's relaxing, do-whatever-you-want feeling. Contrary to that, this game is a borefest in my opinion, and Arika dropped almost all elements of role-playing to reach this low. In Everblue 2, their last game, it featured an arching storyline, multiple characters with personalities to interact with, and a seaworld that while not technically as sound as Endless Ocean's (Endless ocean represents depth extremely well), it was filled with treasure, sunken ships, sunken planes, and the ability to pillage and mine the mysteries of the ocean floor for currency that could buy better equipment. Endless Ocean has ditched all of these elements and settled simply for exploring its environments, which while beautifully rendered, feature nothing but the discovery of new fish and mammal types. Almost every RPG aspect is gone from Endless Ocean, and its' place we have large environments that are empty of anything other than exploring the existing life within. The game does not have any story whatsoever, but the removal of practically every single rpg element damages the realism this game strives for. You cannot go further than the game allows at a point, as it will tell you via a pop up screen you cannot access a section. Early in the game, when attempting to dive deep (before getting "deep" scuba gear- and mind you the acquisition of better equipment is rare to begin with), you get this usual pop up screen. You cannot even monitor your oxygen supply here, and there is nothing to gain in exploring except fishlife information. So as far as gameplay, there is little to nothing fun about playing this game, though I stand by the fact that the relaxing and wonderful soundtrack should have been released on its own.

Reviewer's Score: 5/10, Originally Posted: 02/15/08

Game Release: Endless Ocean (US, 01/21/08)