There are a whole bunch of, well, let's say 'Wii-centric' video games from the history vaults that, in theory, seem like they might be a bit of fun to revisit on Nintendo Switch. You know the sort of thing, usually pairing some new-fangled/novelty control scheme with an activity you'd never tried in a game before; making cakes, driving a quad bike...eh...bobsleighing with the Jamaican Olympic team? The Endless Ocean series fits right into this mould and, as it turns out, revisiting its chillaxed dives — even with up to 30 other players in tow — wasn't a very good idea.
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Now, before we get into the negative stuff, let's start by pointing out that if you're looking for an incredibly low-energy, low-effort sort of gaming experience where all of the focus is on simply scanning marine life and then reading a tiny informational excerpt about each of them in order to expand your underwater knowledge, this is 100% the game for you. In fact, you'll likely never find another game more suited to your very specific needs. Please enjoy. For the rest of us, as much as learning about all the amazing creatures that live under the sea is a captivating pursuit, we're not sure we can justify the price tag given that there is precious little else to do here.
Endless Ocean: Luminous takes the basic premise of its predecessors, 2007-08's Endless Ocean and 2009-10's Endless Ocean 2: Adventures of the Deep, plonking you in tight-fitting scuba gear beneath some very pretty waves. Here you'll use a scanner (hold down the 'L' button) to catalogue an admittedly impressive array of aquatic biology as you embark on solo or shared dives.
There are various tiers of animal, from your average Joe Starfish to some great big epic monstrosities with scary names that we can't remember. STINKFIN. There. Something like that. Scanning this stuff is fun for a little while, no doubt about it. The fish all look great, there's an addictive quality to scanning a whole bunch of them at once, it's certainly nice to watch your catalog fill up, and you'll unlock customisation options as you go, but boy-oh-boy, there really isn't much more to it, certainly in terms of mechanics.
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Solo dives allow you to start fresh each time you switch on, or resume your last dive from the same location you were at last time around, allowing you to work on 100% clearing every animal type and secret in that area. The general ebb and flow of gameplay consists of simply diving down, whether alone or in a group, and continuing to tag creatures and/or items of interest until it's all been done. Very simple.
With a smattering of old shipwrecks, alluring caves, underwater temples, and other oddities to find, the best part of this game comes in the quiet moments where some colossal beast emerges from the abyss below you, or when you suddenly spot part of a building or wreck in the endless gloom and proceed to investigate. There are also some attempts to inject more depth by having you travel with specific animals to unlock paths forward at points - we had to make friends with a giant turtle at one point - but that's about as far as interesting touches go here.
The game's story mode does little to help with this monotony, tasking you with simply finding and scanning artefacts and specific targets whilst following along with a very slight narrative that doubles as a tutorial. It's fine for a while, and it looks great for a Switch game, with some lovely models, lighting, water effects, and so on, but it feels like it could — and should — have been so much more had Arika seen fit to really make the most of the act of actually diving. Instead, the developer has opted for simplicity whilst also making the absolutely killer decision to lock new chapters behind goals such as "scan 2000 creatures to continue". Eh...no thanks.
Why not give us more interesting objectives to get stuck into? And where is all the detail and life? It's a very good-looking game, as we've said, and there are tons of animal types (something like 500 apparently), but in comparison to almost any other underwater adventure we can think of, it all feels very stage-managed and artificial. There's no magic to it. Creatures appear, get scanned, and then move on. And then there's the actual moment-to-moment gameplay itself. Why not give us more movement options? Why not allow us to roleplay and be a little more individual in how we dive and swim?
Couldn't we have had the option to control more aspects of our dives such as prepping air supplies, utilising pressure, or selecting suitable dive points based on a range of conditions? Any of this would have improved things. Why just give us a simple dolphin kick and send us on our way like this? Moving around underwater can be a majestic and magical thing, an otherworldly experience that games like Subnautica and Abzu capture so very well. The ocean's alien aura, the unknowable abyss, is hypnotic, and there's lots of space to roam and swim and spin. Unless you're experiencing it in Endless Ocean: Luminous, that is, where it's just sort of big and empty and you can't do anything more than move in straight lines at a speed best described as "a bit safe but at least it won't wake granddad."
Given that this is first and foremost an online experience, it's a nice surprise to see a story mode at all, and it does do a reasonable job of showing you how to complete tasks, but it also lays bare just how shallow (genuinely didn't mean that one) and repetitive the core gameplay loop is. Give yourself over completely to it, to its environmental message — the story has you scan fish to save the World Tree — or to learning everything it's got to teach you and you may get a few hours of limited fun, but not much more.
The main meat here, the group diving mode that allows for up to 30 players simultaneously exploring, is where we expected all of these disappointments to shake loose, where the game would drop its guard and get going properly, but unfortunately it's just more of the bland same. You can tag items for other divers to pick up, communicate via emoji, and work together to complete simple scanning tasks, but that's really about the height of it. It's very much a 'vibes' affair, and we're just not really digging this particular groove at all.
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The more time you spend with Endless Ocean: Luminous, the more it begins to annoy, too. Why award us a gold medal for teamwork after a dive that we did solo? There's already very little to grasp at for comfort, so seeing that this stuff is meaningless really knocks the remaining wind out of it all. It's these irks and issues that add up to the overall suspicion that, aside from the chill atmosphere, there is nothing much of anything going on behind the scenes, and that what you've actually got here is just a big old empty video game ocean with some randomly spawning stuff floating about to scan, and not a whole lot more.
Conclusion
Endless Ocean: Luminous attempts to revive a niche Wii franchise as an online exploration experience, and fails miserably in the process. In comparison to the likes of Subnautica, this is an empty, cold, and boring ocean space to explore, devoid of any real reason to play beyond its generally relaxing ambience and the opportunity to learn some facts about underwater animals. Even taken on those terms, it's weak, its online play is basic and bland, and its story does little to engage beyond teaching you the ropes. It didn't need to be this boring, but it is.
Comments 195
Fish people sponsored fisticuffs
Doesn't deter me. I just wanna swim around. Only thing I was interested about were the technical aspects. Unfortunately there's not much about it in the review? Gonna take a look at the video.
That’s a big oof
Oh boy. I wasn’t sure about this but I’ll steer clear. Thanks
Well, crap... although I enjoyed the first game and the way this review reads, I think it might still be what I was expecting.
I will probably play it eventually.
@64andGCwerePrime
You might like to check out Abzu in the meantime.
https://www.nintendolife.com/reviews/switch-eshop/abzu
Sounds like the game I expected. I think as a completionist, who is interested in aquatic life, I should have a good and relaxed time.
Still very much looking foward to it.
uff... not a good year for nintendo so far... most of their games flopped... from another code to this to princess peach...
Dang, that sucks
Welp, that’s a shame. The ocean is anything but dull. It’s disappointing when a game turns out to be disappointing, but the way I see it, it saves me money and it’s one less game on my backlog!
Lol. Glad I have no interest in this game and won't have to waste time with it.
@RupeeClock Thanks, I've played that as well as Subnautica (; I just like the ocean and water as a setting for a game. Don't really need much action besides that. Still excited for EO.
Endless Ocean: Snap!
I never played the first game but I did enjoy the second. If I recall correctly, which is admittedly a rarity for me these days, there was a speargun we needed to ward off sharks, and we had to hide from alligators and or crocodiles in fallen trees in a river to avoid being eaten. There was also a decent story akin to Nathan Drake looking for a lost relic or something in an ancient civilization. And I enjoyed all of it, including the cataloging of the fish.
Also, is there no voice chat among the 30 online people? Is that b/c they forget to add the Wii Speak device in the box? 😂 Pass.
So it's a very simple underwater exploration collection type game? Honestly that is exactly what it set out to do, the 5/10 feels harsh because of it.
Another Nintendolife review where the reviewer doesn't understand the game. 1/10 review.
Will probably still enjoy it to an extent whenever I need a more relaxing game, but I wonder how it is in comparison to other Endless Oceans as several people liked those.
Hmm I was quite interested in this but I wasted 60$ on Another Code and hardly played it. I am not trying to do that again.
mmmm, have ordered it, and wiull enjoy just swimming., but had hoped for more of this... loved the first and especially the second game (and diving), and found abzu just 'not really dive-like'and subnautica just to survival focus to just enjoy... we'lkl see
Yeah, it did look a bit bland too me. Oh well; Paper Mario arrives in a few weeks time anyway and I'm still quite busy with Zelda so.. No foul, I guess!
Not gonna lie. This laid back, slow paced collectathon exploring sounds right up my alley
I was literally just expecting a laid back exploration collectathon and that’s exactly what it sounds like 😂😂
Disappointing. I knew it wasn't looking good when it seemed to be so online focused, and it's sad to see my fears realized.
@jojobar
Weren't Peach and Another Code relatively succesfull though? Fairly certain Peach is still selling quite well - and sales matter FAR more than reviews
Okay the shallow joke was kind of funny, probably won’t get this one
Paper Mario deserves to double this score
Why does this game look so much worse than Endless Ocean 2 on Wii?
Bit too much salt in this review for my tastes.
The highlight for me is that it looks and sounds great. Abzu was a disappointment in that regard. I'm looking forward to trying this out for myself in the hope of some chilled exploration.
@sanderev agree with you about the review? A 5? Lol. I’m curious to see what other reviews have to say
TTYD overshadows this so much
With that in mind: Which Should I play? Endless Ocean 1 or 2 on Wii?
"it's like taking an ocean cruise, only there's no boat and you don't actually go anywhere."
Bill the Frog
Well, I knew the gameplay will be only exploring the ocean, not much things you can do.
Glad I still have Go Vacation on Wii & Switch for Scuba Diving and other Activities like Wii Sports Resort.
@sanderev btw I just read a 9/10 review 🤣🤣
The reviewer seems like he expected this to be SubNautica, and not like the other two quiet, relaxing entries in the series.
Wow I usually love diving games like this, I guess for this genre the indies did it better with Abzu, Subnautica, and Dusk Diver. Kinda a shame too since I use to like playing EverBlue and the first Endless Ocean from Arika.
This looked pretty meh in the reveal so I'm not too surprised by this. Looks like this is gonna be a backlog gaming year for me; there's not much new stuff I'm clamoring for.
Sounds pretty much like what I expected; I imagine existing fans of EO1+2 are going to have a fine time with Luminous regardless as its basically more of the same with a new coat of paint, though I don't think I can see it bringing in any new fans whatsoever (which just makes me wonder why they didn't pull a Pikmin and release a collection of the first two beforehand).
As a tangentially-related aside, EO Luminous really highlights how frustrating Nintendo's marketing has been for their 2024 releases so far. With the exception of Mario vs Donkey Kong, the most marketing the majority of their games have gotten is a single overview trailer less than a month before release (with Another Code and Endless Ocean being prime examples). It's absolutely maddening given how little we know about future releases as is and it makes it really hard to get excited for what's next as a result.
This to me, after watching the review, just looks so boring - I'm going to have to return my pre-order (more fool me)
@sanderev Judging by the video review and its price tag ... if anything, 5/10 is way too generous. Especially when you can get games like Abzu and Subnautica for more than half less.
@gcunit You think this looks and sounds better than Abzu?
I'm genuinely bewildered. What part of Abzu's visuals fell flat for you? What about Austin Wintory's meditative score didn't land?
And how does Luminous succeed on both fronts relative to Abzu?
Wasn't sure what to make about this one so was waiting for reviews before deciding either way and definitely passing on it now after glancing through its reviews so far. Seems like another one of those games that is trying to just get away with doing the bare minimum and for full retail price, no thanks.
Hmm...looking at the reviews over on Metacritic, this seems to either be a love it or hate it title. If you want a relaxing, endless, ocean exploration it seems to be your thing. If you want excitement or scares or combat, stay away? Then again, that's exactly what I was expecting from this, so I am still excited to download it and dive in.
The reviewer completely missed the point. Endless Ocean 1&2 could be played with a single hand. It has never been about exciting stuff.
@RootsGenoa It does read a bit like the reviewer was enjoying the opportunity to stick the boot in, doesn't it.
@jojobar Princess Peach Showtime did really well.
@Zaruboggan I've not yet commented on how Endless Ocean Luminous looks and/or sounds because I haven't tried it yet.
I have tried Abzu and found it a flat experience. It failed to sufficiently convey the immersion I was hoping for of being underwater. It felt simplified and lacking in visual and sound effects. I don't remember anything about the score.
Normally a 5/10 would throw me off of a game, but the review makes it sound like Luminous is very much like the first Endless Ocean, for better or worse. I liked that game and its sequel even if both could be boring.
@PJOReilly, I know you touched on it a bit in your review, but is Luminous worse than the prior entries or more of the same?
Edit: Just saw that the game is procedurally-generated. That may kill it for me.
@Maubari
You as a consumer do not have much of sales except of that the company can make more games and we don't have to worry in that regard...
No I was talking about the quality of the games and they all disappointed in my opinion...
@Jireland92
I guess the sales have been ok, but if the game was better and it would have sold a lot more...
Anyways I was more talking about the quality anyways an Peach was mediocre not great.
This review seems a little harsh to me. The game is meant to be about relaxing. The first game even let you input your own music, so I think this is definitely made to be a podcast, or youtube-in-background game where you can just vibe out.
Game seems like it's exactly what it says on the tin and I think maybe the reviewer expected something different without any disrespect to them.
I'm still looking forward to getting this at some point.
I don't mean any offense, but it sounds like you were the wrong person for this review. My #1 question was "how does this compare to the previously well-reviewed entries in the series?" And this sounds like a reviewer who never played those and if they did, they wouldn't like them anyways.
This makes the article borderline useless.
Ouch. I had not expected a 5/10 review here. More like a 7/10. It seems that the game is maybe a bit too niche? I'm glad we got a new entry and this would be my first. But now I'm back on the fence again. Guess I'll see if I can get it cheap sometime later this year.
@Solomon_Rambling tech radars review says “ Thankfully, while these maps are procedurally generated, there does seem to be some intelligence to it; I found that newly generated maps always featured sea creatures, biomes, treasures, and mysteries that I hadn’t previously encountered.”
Did anyone here actually play Abzu? It was super boring, you just slowly swam straight for hours.
Finally I've been looking for a game that feels safe enough to not wake grandad! Thank you NL!
So basically more of Endless Ocean, Abzu and Deep Sea Adventures? I'd somewhat expect a fanbloid article ho-humming at such a package if the market was saturated with its ilk (first-world as such an issue is to have in regards to fiction works anyway), but I just practically listed the bulk of this subgenre above. And demanding all of the new ones to spruce things up like Subnautica did is not unlike questioning the viability of modern throwback linear platformers just because the medium has long developed metroidvanias. There's enough room for relatively simplistic experiences (all the moreso within a franchise that codified them), and being average isn't automatically synonymous with blandness.
...but since I had to earn the article a click to write all this, the author's condescension probably proved effective for the site's purposes anyway. ¯(ツ)/¯
@BookhouseBoy yeah, I can't imagine the abstinence agony of the people who are already done with the many hundreds of quality experiences already in this generation's library.
@Serpenterror uh, Dusk Diver is damn worthwhile in itself, but hardly the game to compare to Endless Ocean in terms of gameplay.😅 Or did you mean to write something like Dave the Diver?
Oh, blimey. It didn't occur to me that this is coming out in only two days!
And has PJ played earlier games in the series? It seems odd that this would get such a scathing review if it really isn't all that different to the last two games. All I'm after here is an interactive documentary-style experience.
It's ridiculous to punish an underwater exploration game for not being an action-packed romp tailored to the types whose overly-stimulated brains have been weathered by 13 too many Fast & Furious movies.
@Yodalovesu : Yeah, I bought the physical edition on a whim, and I found it hard to play through for more than 10 minutes at a time (and the game is already really short as it is). It has its moments, but I'm not a fan of the more stylised visuals, or its linearity. Endless Ocean looks more up my alley.
@jojobar it’s a Princess Peach game, it was only going to sell so much. It did better than I was expecting.
@Highlar Well, I was excited for the same sort of relaxing experience, and I thought Endless Ocean 2 was ok, this is just really weak.
This genre has definitely changed in the last fourteen years. A "swimming sim" was cool on the Wii but the gameplay has evolved in ways this game apparently hasn't caught up with. Shame.
Some people seem to be in denial. I'm a huge Endless Ocean fan but this feels like a big let down after Endless Ocean 2
No unique handcrafted areas, no gadgets like the Pulsar Gun or Multi-Sensor, less mission variety and a much weaker, shallow story mode compared to 1 or 2, the gear is cosmetic and doesn't affect your depth dive or air tank capacity, no NPC's to interact with, no on-land exploration like EO2, no customisable home base like EO2, no aquarium, no dolphin pals to train, and on and on the list of omissions goes
I was ready and willing to pay full price for this, and to support the franchise, but seeing as this is a disappointing and overly simplified downgrade in every way bar the graphics, I won't bother now.
Ill definitely get this once i can get it for $30.
@Folkloner I for one have never played an endless ocean game before and just want to play it for what it is rather that what it isn’t. Don’t know how that means that someone is in denial
TOO MUCH WATER !!!
While the review itself is obviously horrible, I can't deny the fact that the game is too expensive for what it offers
@razza1987 Good for you, but if you have a Wii, i'd recommend playing 2 instead of rewarding poor efforts like this one.
Speak for yourself all you want, but some of us have played Endless Ocean games, and we are justifiably sad that this new entry removes so much of what made the series special.
Tried Abzu, I have no urge to continue playing it...and I'm someone who enjoys calm/relaxing games.
Will wait for more reviews and videos as well since the reviewer seemed a bit too negative in this review.
If it(the game) truly is a flop then so be it but this review is not good.
Nintendo Life, where is your review of Another Crab's Treasure?
@Jireland92
Good for you. But still the game was pretty mediocre. The Metascore is at 74, this is far below what Nintendo usually targets... and that happened to alle their games so far this year...
Another code: 73
Mario Vs Donkey Kong: 76
Endless Ocean: 66
and we are already about to com into the 5th month of the year... and except of two remasters, there is NOTHING on the horizon...
@Folkloner cant play console. I rely solely on handheld gaming which is why I have a switch lite rather than a switch. Which is also why I’ve never played the originals as I didn’t own a Wii. I’m in bed all day due to 14 medical conditions and can’t sit up to play games. Hence I’m looking forward to trying this one
@gcunit My bad, I misconstrued "The highlight for me is that it looks and sounds great." as your opinion.
Clearly, Abzu's a case of different strokes for different folks, which is a surprise for me, as I thought it was the only game in modern memory that came close to capturing the vibes of scuba/snorkel, and would have figured it would be a treat for anyone even remotely interested in the water.
I'm sorry to hear it wasn't what you're looking for, and hope that EO:L is the perfect match!
Did you like the originals or even play them bro!?
Abzu is alright but is more alien adventure than seeing the biological wonder of our own planet.
I'd guess you'd rate the originals badly as well, but since you don't say, we'll have just assume that.
People want to know if this game is like the originals, your review fails.
I'd give your review a 2/10 and recommend Nintendolife remove it and have someone else write it, or that you go back and play the originals, and if you hate them just as much, then share that at the beginning so we can know to ignore what you're saying just like I'd ignore someone who writes a review of a Mario game if they openly hate Mario games.
People will still say Nintendo Life's reviews are biased in favor of first-party games.
After reading this, my takeaway is "PJ didn't like it." That's valid, but the review felt more like a rant than a review. Did the game camera give you trouble? How were the loading times? Was text difficult to read in handheld mode? How many hours did you put into it? Is the music memorable? I'll have to find another review.
@jojobar that doesn’t mean the game was a flop. A flop implies the game was a failure which it wasn’t. It reviewed and sold decently. If you don’t like it fair enough but it wasn’t a flop.
If anyone still has an itch for an underwater exploration game, but aren't really feeling Endless Ocean, I'm going to echo what others have said and recommend Abzu, and especially the Subnautica games. (Especially 1.) Abzu is very short and very linear, but it never feels like there's ever a dull moment. The game throws you from one beautiful set-piece into another. It honestly felt like being thrown into one of those "Blue Planet" documentaries. Such a tranquil game, a great stress reliever. If you're looking for something with more of a bite, then I highly recommend Subnautica. It's a survival game that does a great job at standing out amidst the countless others of it's kind. Gorgeous biomes, creatures that range from cute to terrifying, there's even a scanning system that adds new lore to your compendium, almost like Metroid Prime. Come to think of it, there's a lot of things in that game that give me Metroid Prime vibes. So if that sounds at all like it interests you, I'm giving it my stamp of approval. (The first one anyway, I've heard not quite as good things about Below Zero, but I haven't played it yet.)
@razza1987
Thanks for the info! And O’Reilly commented elsewhere that he preferred the second one. Looks like I’ll have to dig through several reviews before I snag this one.
Well people are really throwing a hissy fit over this review.
@Solomon_Rambling you’re welcome! I’ve been reading a lot of reviews on metacritic to get a better understanding of the game. Reviews are also saying for most part it runs fantastic in both docked and handheld but can slow down a bit when 30 people are playing at once
Dang, I was hoping it would’ve at least been good. Oh well, looks like I’ll be saving $50 this week.
@jojobar That's because Nintendo's getting ready to ditch the Switch.
Oh ouch, this one stings, was really looking forward to this one being good.
@Jireland92
If something is a flop or not comes down to the expectation. Imagine Tears of the Kingdom would only have gotten a 82 on Metascore. It would be kinda of a flop.
When it comes to sales it's the same, when an Indie sells 200k units its great, if Square Enix sells 200k units of Final Fantasy 7 rebirth, it's a flop.
I expected (and pretty sure most Nintendo players) that Princess Peach, Another Code, Endless Ocean and Mario vs Donkey Kong are better games than what they are.
We can argue now what a flop exactly is but I'm very very sure you understand my point exactly and I'm on the other hand not sure why you argue against it. The first party year is a big disappointment so far.
Sounds like it should of stayed on the shelves lol. I appreciate Nintendo for trying to remain strong, releasing games while working on the next system but they really need to start kicking things into high gear with better releases.
Gotta love the NL comments section.
Game scored low? Reviewer hates this type of game and shouldn't have reviewed it.
Game scored high? NL are biased and the reviewer is a shill.
I knew it, i just knew it. A diving game has one of the biggest potentials ever. Its completely untapped in terms of the saturation of most genres and they ***** it good and propper.
@kevin74 Yes thats true but that is not a good excuse. the 3DS had in it's last month some great games (Metroid Samus Returns)
@SBandy1 Meanwhile, the Backlog invades the corners of the room!
Sounds like an Endless Ocean game (over 500 species to find!!). Great! I wish the review went into more of the technical aspects of the game though. But still sounds like a launch window purchase to me. I will check a few more reviews to be sure.
I'm still excited for this game, despite the review. The first two games in the series were really enjoyable, especially EO2 (although I felt the abyss in EO1 was much better (and bigger) than the abyss in EO2), despite their flaws.
I tried Abzu twice and just could not get into it. But one day, I'll give it another shot. And I played Subnautica for an hour or two, and it was just too tedious. But I'll attempt it again, too, some day.
@jojobar games performing poorly in terms of sales and you not liking them are two very different things so the term "flop" is not not appropriate. I think it was pretty clear that 2024 was going to be a transition year for Nintendo when we saw the original lineup, no one expected another code or princess peach to be huge hits. No big surprises here.
@Ryu_Niiyama “ There are definitely some performance drops when playing online, and I did notice the framerate (which usually targets 30fps) dip periodically in busier areas and when a number of other divers are around. Thankfully it’s not game-breaking at all, and connection quality throughout my session remained stable with no noticeable lag. Mileage may vary here post-launch, of course, especially if you’re playing with divers from across the globe.
I played Endless Ocean Luminous for approximately 20 hours on my Nintendo Switch OLED. This was enough time to fill out the majority of the creature and treasure catalogs in addition to roughly two-thirds of the Mystery Board’s objectives.
I played primarily in docked mode using the GameSir Nova Lite controller, with a handful of hours in handheld mode where I found performance to be comparable to docked play, albeit with a knock to resolution and overall image quality.”
Tech radar
@gojiguy Yeah, this is my entire thought too.
after seeing the review i will pass...
Disappointing! I enjoyed Endless Ocean 2 on the Wii, but it sounds like this one just doesn't live up to it. I had my worries when they said it was randomized...
@Nico85
Thats the reason I hate the comment section of websites. Here are all the nitpicky fans
Just finished (and started XD) Abzu yesterday, so I have my dose of underwater adventure, this can wait.
Having said that, to me this review read like so many snarky reviews back from magazines in the 90s, when you could see how the writer was trying so hard to seem snappy and 'on your face'. It was kinda nostalgic, but a little tedious by the end. I hope it doesn't become a trend.
I mean to be fair this is the first game in this series, an already niche series mind you, in over 10 years. I’m happy that we even got another game at all and I don’t really think it’s outrageous that this isn’t some balls to the wall super polished third installment. There is almost no incentive for them to spend the resources and time to make it really stand out as it’s a series that’s been dead for over a decade. The best outcome I can see for this is that this game is just testing the waters to see if EO can still catch on and be successful enough that it will pique some interest in a more polished and deeper entry akin to EO2:Blue World/Adventures of the Deep in the future. I’m not trying to defending a lack of depth or inconsistency between price and value to the player but let’s keep things in perspective here. This series went under the radar of many even in its heyday.
I have to ask the reviewer of this one, honestly... were you expecting more? Because if so, you were only disappointing yourself, as the trailers only ever said what this game was going to be. A zen-like, meditative game, 100% focused on swimming, exploration, and cataloging marine life. The trailers never built it up to be anything beyond that, so why would you put marks against it in the review as if they did? Why would you even compare it to Subnautica, an obviously different experience? Does a game HAVE to be more than just a calming, relaxing experience to be worth the full price tag, even if what it does offer still amounts to likely 60-80+ hours of gameplay (or more) to see everything?
"It's very much a 'vibes' affair, and we're just not really digging this particular groove at all."
Then perhaps you shouldn't be the one writing this review, if you are fully admitting that you are not its target audience. Instead of getting a written piece on the merits of the title and an encouragement to keep an open mind in why this could be a valuable experience, we get a short-sighted complaint that this game "isn't like Subnautica at all." This is like how Kotaku kept giving JRPG reviews to the one editor who openly despised the JRPG genre.
I didn't expect this kind of review from you guys, NintendoLife. This is disappointing.
Can the reviewer verify whether the "scan 2000 creatures to continue" goal is a typo, hyperbole, or fact? I find it hard to believe because there are ~600 creatures in the game. If the goal is "scan 200 creatures to continue", then that makes far more sense. Can the reviewer please verify this?
endless ocean has 35 reviews on metacritic with a 66 score ..
@64andGCwerePrime Yea This is a game Im looking forward to I like games where I can just enjoy the atmosphere at times. I honestly think Im still gonna get it at launch.
@PeterAndCompany Im still looking forward to it. But to be fair if the reviewer does not like this type of game they just dont like it. Maybe someone else could review it but hey idk lol. I think this is a divisive game. theres people like the reviewer who dont like it and theres people like us who enjoy this type of zen gameplay.
@PeterAndCompany you mean did not expect them to be honest about a game?
@jojobar why would I expect the games to be better based solely on who made it? Expectations should be set on what the game is trying to be. Every game you’ve listed got around a 7/10 on average, which by my accounts is good. And none of them looked like they were trying to be big groundbreaking titles with big expectations, they were smaller games that don’t try to be anything else than what they are. Granted the prices may say otherwise but that’s another discussion entirely.
And Nintendo is allowed to release such titles. They’ve been doing it for years. If they was a big title like a new mainline Mario or Zelda game then they would have bigger expectations on them.
And I get your point but your use of the word flop doesn’t help since it makes the games supposed failure seem worse than it actually is. A flop is defined as a failure on all levels, it’s not determined by individual tastes. It was just a poor choice of words.
@Arcata I'm fully supportive of a reviewer simply not liking a game and being honest about it, but this time it really feels like this would benefit from a "second opinion" review to balance it out, from an editor who gives the game its proper shake. This would be like someone giving Power Wash Simulator a low score because you don't shoot enemies in a first-person game.
The problem arises from the fact that oftentimes with websites like this, a reviewer's opinion on a game becomes the final verdict and gets adopted by the website as a whole (i.e. for future articles regarding updates to the game, they'll link back to this review with a reminder that "for those still playing this game, even though it kinda sucks," etc. etc.). This is the type of situation where second opinion reviews should be warranted.
@JungleATK I don't disagree with you, per se, but I'm disappointed whenever a franchise's future feels like it's held hostage by a bad installment.
Testing the waters with an underwhelming product can only achieve one result.
RIP Chibi-Robo
@cchhaasseerr Which are entirely different kinds of games. Set out to do different things. Only similarity is that they are underwater games.
@rainbowtick for the record this is the second lowest scored review online at the moment lol only above IGN
This reviewer completely missed the point, as evidenced by the repeated comparing and contrasting of an Endless Ocean game with Subnautica, which belongs to an entirely different genre. Also, he left out important details and features.
I highly recommend people check out the range of other reviews on Metacritic. As is the case for many chill, relaxing games, the reviews are split between those who enjoy those types of games (and are the target audience) versus those who can't stand anything that lacks action/scares (who aren't the target audience).
In the end, after reading quite a few reviews, my takeaway is that this game is exactly as advertised. The game centers around incredibly relaxing exploration, scanning fish, completing mini-missions that give a bit of structure to each dive, participating in online dives and special events, and leveling up your rank to unlock some visual customizations, emotes, and more diving companions. If you want a relaxing experience and enjoy underwater environments or chill "collectathons," you'll probably like this game. If you need action, adrenaline, and a super long list of missions (or if your favorite part of the previous EO game was the disruption of your relaxation by the occasional aggressive animal), this won't be for you.
Either way, definitely check out some other reviews. This one just leaves too much out.
@razza1987 4 gave it a 50 score 1 a 55 a bunch gave it a 60..
This makes me wish game rentals were still common*: this game sounds dull from the review, but I can't really be certain whether it's the kind of dullness I'd actually find enjoyably relaxing when I'm in the right mood or the kind of dullness where there truly is very little actually there. I'm curious to find out, but not $50 worth of curious.
*I know Gamefly exists, but I don't want to rent often enough to be worth a subscription.
@johnedwin what’s your point? 55 and 60 are above 5/10 🤣 6 reviews also gave it 8/10 and one gave it 9/10
It's disappointing to see such misinformation in the article the "collect 2000 fish" goal, and bogus fish names. I guess it's trying to poke fun at the game? As @Sraosha says this is a pretty important point to make clear and not cause confusion. You know, the sort of thing a review should excel at.
It's also surprising that there's such clamour for realistic games, and then as soon as a realistic games comes along it's panned ...for not being unreal enough.
@razza1987 princess peach showtime a 74 metacritic score 5 game it 90 or even higher lol for a ok game.. fact is endless ocean has a 66 metacritic score.. so it is not a very good game..
the reviewer was correct there has to be some danger like running put of air or being attacked by fish what is the point of just swimming underwater going from point a to point b with no risk at all?
The reviewer has confirmed the 2000 number is real. I am canceling my preorder. Wtf. There are only 600 creatures. It's not relaxing to scan the same creatures over and over again. Wtf
@johnedwin 🤣🤣 the fact you’re calling it “not a very good game” when it’s not even out yet is hilarious to me
@Sraosha did you play legends arceus? Lol
@Sraosha It might actually be accurate. I don't know for sure, but I've read in other reviews that you can scan groups of creatures quickly. So if that 2,000 is a cumulative number of animals scanned over multiple dives, I don't actually think it would take as long as it sounds. Especially if you find a few coral reefs with lots of little animals hanging out in the crevices.
But hey, I could be wrong. I'm still excited for the game, but I also know it won't be for everyone. I'd still recommend reading some of the other reviews out there atm. Some of the ones I found via Metacritic gave way more information.
@gingerbeardman I verified the number is real. The reviewer was neither exaggerating nor making typos. I immediately canceled my preorder. This is my biggest disappointment this year. It's not relaxing to me to scan the same creatures at least 3-4 times. What an absolutely ridiculous goal. I'll replay the first two again instead.
Fair enough and thank you for the review, PJ! I've heard enough to know this game probably isn't worth a full-price purchase for me.
For me, the allure of diving is exploring the perilous depths and seeing what is down there. Sure, encountering and cataloging creatures is satisfying, but without a permanent, explorable map that opens up as you gain skill, tools, and experience, with creatures appearing in proper habitats logically (not in an abstract/ randomized manner), I would hang up my flippers quickly.
You could use procedurally-generated maps for quick online sessions, and save the hand-crafted map for single or local co-op.
I guess what I hoped for was a game, with risk and reward, not a bland virtual aquarium.
But this is coming from somebody who loved Subnautica!
I suppose PJ feels the same way. Or maybe he wanted a better aquarium experience than the old Wii games, and was disappointed there, too. Either way, he's entitled to his opinion - it's his review!
Wasn't expecting too much from this game, maybe a VR with Labo was a miss.
Still interested, maybe I'll wait for a price drop.
Third picture down looks like a Humboldt squid, which can sometimes be quite interested in people diving, to the extent that divers are often recommended to keep their distance. Seems a curious decision to just let people swim right by all of these creatures without having to worry about them at all.
I have played the game literally dozens of hours (due to covering it for an outlet elsewhere, which you'll just have to take my word for) and the review here just is mostly correct.
Luminous makes a very nice looking virtual aquarium and if that's what you want, go for it - but there's just barely any game in it and what is there, gets repetitive really fast.
About the "scan 2000 fishes" thing, that's actually only one of the earlier requirements to unlock story chapters - it does go up to 8000, thankfully at least cumulative.
But the game does a poor job explaining (actually, it never really does) what counts as a valid scan, so you'll end up scanning a huge amount more that just that number.
And he didn't mention (probably didn't make it that fare, lucky him) the requirement for the final story chapter which I won't spoil here, but that basically amounts to doing stuff that will take you dozens of hours and does need a fair amount of luck to get the right circumstances with the procedural generation so some things might happen when you need them.
I'd love to eventually see some stats of how many people will have reached thee end of the story and how long it took them - I'd take bets the former number will be extremely low and the later absurdly high.
This seems like something where I'd probably really not enjoy it at all even if it were done well, so that it's not is a hard, hard pass.
I mean, the original was a WiiWare game, so we should've seen this coming...
Not true. But previous Endless Oceans were regular retail releases worldwide.
@64andGCwerePrime Same, I have a feeling that I will really enjoy this 😊
(Just as well, really, as my copy has been dispatched today)
@StAmbrosius 10/10 reference!
@jojobar maybe it’s a common theme for you for a reason… just saying. But what i actually meant is “ oh no, Nintendo is DOOOOOMED”
This game has a seal wearing a crown in it, and you're giving it 5/10?
A SEAL. WEARING. A CROWN.
Shut up and take my money Arika.
@Weblaus, that sounds like an unbearable slog. They messed up this game even more than Rune Factory 5. Two big disappointments.
They should have just stuck close to the formula of Endless Ocean 2: Blue World. I don't understand how they can mess up a game this badly, design wise.
@jojobar The last month that the 3DS was supported by 1st party releases was Jan 2019, whereas Samus Returns came out in 2017.
@jojobar what are you talking about? I don't think they were counting on another code to be a huge hit, and peach was a huge hit
@GreyFenyx that's my impression and I'm baffled at all the people who expected the main appeal of this game to be some kind of very gamey challenge. It's obviously primarily about exploration.
It does sound like even fans of previous endless ocean entries are a bit disappointed by stuff like the procedurally generated environments, but still. The reviews that actually seem to understand that this isn't supposed to be a gamey game are much higher and fairer
Seems like a fine enough game for people who like exploring the ocean. “Story chapters locked behind crap objectives” sounds a bit harsh and hostile for an “average” game.
@PeterAndCompany 👏👏👏👏👏 that's all i have to say to you
@Folkloner see, your feedback is actually meaningful here, as you are someone who clearly appreciates what this game is actually supposed to be. You saying this game is disappointing actually means something, as opposed to this reviewer who's mad that this isn't a survival game or whatever.
@64andGCwerePrime Me neither. I preordered it the day it went on the eshop and I’m not regretting it. Sounds like it’s just not the reviewer’s type of game which is fine, but yes, they’ve skipped over how it runs, graphics and sound, etc 🙄
So it's an Endless Ocean game. Maybe temper those expectations based on historical content and realize not every game is made for every player. And ease up on the clumsy attempts at humor while knocking down the target audience.
The shallow gameplay of the Wii original is why I got it late in the Wii's life. You kind of know what you are getting when you buy a game like this. Cheers of the review and one for the bargain basement.
“ Story chapters locked behind crap objectives”
There had to be a more professional way to phrase this 💀
Disappointing; I was looking forward to this game but I appreciate the review. I guess I'll just have to shudder actually play my backlog instead. 😝
Games like this make me a little sad Nintendo rarely has good sales; I would still be interested in trying this out someday, but the game doesn't sound good enough to pay the standard sale price of 30% off of $50.
It seems like if I am really looking for a chill vibe, with literally nothing much else to do, then this achieves that goal with aplomb. In terms of saying something positive, it sounds like the only way I could really enjoy this game is if I have absolutely nothing else to play and I'm truly trying to go down beat all the way. As a result I will leave it in the depths (sorry) of my GameFly queue for now.
@FishyS
Well, may I suggest you with scuba diving game alternative?
Try Go Vacation on Switch.
@demacho I agree. I've read quite a few reviews today, and I think while the game could be better, it's far from being bad. As a fan of the series since the original, the only thing I think I'll miss is some of the out-of-water stuff, and the dolphin training thing we saw in EO2. I know the latter was a gimmick, but it was a gimmick I enjoyed and wouldn't have minded seeing again. I'd also love to see a customizable aquarium feature, but it's really not a big deal (plus, we never know what might be added later).
As far as the maps go, it sounds like the story maps are hand-crafted. The free dive maps (solo and community) are the only ones that are randomly generated, and even for those we have the ability to re-enter the same map over and over again if we want to explore the whole thing. We also get the ability to share codes for any really cool maps we find, or maps that have a particularly rare creature or piece of treasure, which could be fun and should make hunting down those last few things much easier. I'm kind of glad the random maps exist, since I feel like it extends the playtime (alongside community events). That said, I also wouldn't mind having more hand-crafted levels. Those are always great.
The other thing I hear a lot of people complaining about is the amount of grinding it takes to unlock the final part of the story. But the second game included something similar, where you needed to put in quite a bit if time/effort to fully unlock the final area. Maybe the devs could have handled it a bit better this time around - perhaps labeling it as an "extended ending" or "unlockable extra story chapter" would have made people less upset - but either way the end result requires lots of effort to see it all. I'm just glad to see so much to work towards in the game.
The score seems a bit hard. But I don't give all too much weight into review scores from NL.
Sometimes games get too high scores(yeah, the ridiculous 10/10 on Metroid Dread) or sometimes too low.
Sounds like an awesome $10 game, but not worth the price tag.
So this is why the review round up article only showed low scoring reviews and none of the high scoring ones for Endless Ocean. It was to justify THIS review.
@Ability-King-KK The average of the roundup review scores they showed was the same (actually slightly higher) than the metacritic score for the game, so seems like they chose a typical set of reviews. You say 'higher ones' but metacritic lists only one single review score of 9/10 and the NintendoLife article had multiple 8/10s. So, again, it seems like they just showed us a fairly typical assortment of scores.
Their own score of 5/10 is indeed below the metacritic score of 6.4/10, but the roundup article scores averaged 6.5/10.
Just one question, how does the Endless Ocean/Forever Blue series (and yes, that's including Luminous) compare to the Everblue series, the preceeding series also made by Arika?
I haven't played a game on either series, and I almost had a chance to get the original Endless Ocean, but it was a little expensive for what I'm willing to pay for a Wii game in 2024.
@FishyS There are other comments on the round up article also questioning why NL ignored the higher score reviews. This review just feels like someone didn't want to review this in the first place and based their review on the low score reviews from other sites.
I'm not too sure the reviewer understood the game or what it supposed to offer...
It’s nice when a review echoes your hopes and thus one can spend with confidence. This comment section shows why some reviewers are happier echoing people’s hopes rather than sharing their own feeling.
I dare say that pointing to a review with a high (probably the hightest) score might not be such a good idea when in that one the reviewer clearly states that he willfully ignored a major aspect of the game (multiplayer) in order to avoid having to possibly change his pre-set impressions. So basically doing the thing critics of the review here accouse PJ of doing.
Edited to add: The review on SiliconEra is near-perfect in expressing the issues of the game and that writer clearly went into the experience with a very positive mindset.
The reviewer must have expected different things from what this game is supposed to offer. That much is obvious.
@Weblaus Yeah, I have a feeling once people get their hands on it any high scores will become much more suspect than my giving it a 5.
The fanatics who defend anything Nintendo releases, even if it's clearly substandard like this, really make me chuckle sometimes.
Abzu is a much better bet, so get that instead.
I read the whole review looking for the part that compares the experience to the first two games, and I’m forced to conclude that the reviewer has never played them before. If we loved the originals will we like this? I have no idea.
I can tell that the author hates the concept of the series and that’s perfectly fine (I’m sure plenty of people will agree, they certainly did back in 2008) but I kinda want to know how it turned out if you were a fan of the first two. Is it a regression? More of the same? Any new elements? Is it poorly executed if you’re actually looking for a sequel to the originals?
@chefgon You might want to look at SiliconEras review for exactly that kind of viewpoint. Which is yes, kind of but lesser, not really and yes.
@chefgon Check metacritic. There are a pretty wide variety of critic reviews there, and some of the higher ones are from long time fans of the series (ie, the target audience for this game).
To answer your questions based on what I've read: If what you enjoyed most about the first two games was the relaxing experience of swimming through different environments, discovering cool new species, being surprised or in awe when running into a huge whale or other large creature, etc, you'll love this game. If you need a super strong story that you can play through all at once (rather than in shorter bursts), or if you need above ground interactions or the adrenaline rush of aggressive creatures, the fear of running out of air, etc, this won't be for you.
I think most fans of the series play it for the relaxing aspects I mentioned first, and that's what this game delivers. A lot of video game reviewers can't stand a game that doesn't offer more action or an adrenaline rush of some sort, which is why you're seeing the more negative reviews from people who can't help but compare this to Subnautica despite the two games belonging to very different genres.
That said, even the negative reviews like this one almost always include a bit about how people looking for a relaxing experience will enjoy this game, so if that's you then you likely have your answer. If not... maybe wait and watch some gameplay footage after release?
I'd be interested in how this compares to the first two games, both of which i loved. Unlike this reviewer I certainly wouldn't have wanted to have been messing around with technicalities of oxygen tanks and weight belts would much prefer to dive in and look at the pretty fishies....which was pretty much all the previous 2 games entailed so really curious if people think this game is genuinely worse. As someone that loved the first two games I will be getting this and probablyu enjoying it a lot.
Would the reviewer like the Wii Endless Ocean games? I doubt it, the Wii games we slow and didn't have any real excitement so you have to put it into context for what it is. I have mine pre-ordered and have no doubts that I will be happy with it
They should have just remastered Endless Ocean 2: Blue World.
Yeah games like this I find difficult to know what to say. I think a 5 is fair and many points I went hmm they are struggling to say anything about it as there isn't much to say at all.
Scanning and underwater exploration or particular objectives being pretty general is tough but I mean Metroid Prime even if we take the combat aspect out the gear, the scanning telling the story and the doors/abilities in the level design is just fun even besides the interesting locations. That's what some games need. Games even without a threat/combat system need some NPCs or even more exciting level design/goals or fun interactivity in the level design. Puzzle games don't need combat (even if it can be it's own puzzle) but they do a good job with level design (in 3D obstacle course ones like many of my favourites on PSP/Wii of Exit on PSP/DS or Cube on PSP or Practical Intellgience Quotient with it's colours, switches, lasers and more or the ball maze kind of one Mercury Meltdown (PSP/Wii), the Mercury physics an separation as a liquid is one thing for it's moveset which is just a challenge in itself but the level design, the doors, the colour changers, the different levels of interactivity makes a puzzle game fun).
If a game underwater doesn't have fun places of structures or animals or goals why bother you just have a location and a player and some things in it but it's not FUN what you do with them or where your going, why you find the urge to go to those places seeking something isn't fun or compelling then well you've lost the audience.
Graphics and online is one thing but to me even with open worlds if the missions are bland, repetitive or not contextually fun with the movesets or interactive just talking and doing the bare minimum is not fun. It's why I find many open worlds really boring. Sometimes even character wise the side missions are more the character than the story ones. XD
It not being a survival game like Subnauctia sure. But if Abzu can do it of an underwater adventure. Many other games with water levels and many tasks or places to go in and out of structures or caves of.
Many games need a mix of goals to be interesting.
Scanning is fine and an environmental message is fine.
But where is the picking up rubbish, where is the yes using different animals, crustaens or other seas life/plant life in interesting ways. To unlock areas, to learn a animal call, to find safes or other hidden collectibles. To maybe craft things.
To maybe deal with some threats or air pressure or gear differences.
They don't have to go full survival for it but just some consequences/focus.
Areas to go to.
Above and below maybe so it's not just all underwater but maybe you want to focus on an Animal Crossing like aspect to collect sea life/plants. Or you have a fish tank to fill?
A bunch of possibilities yet the bare minimum done is always sad to see.
I barely know enough about the series but if I could come up with a bunch of ideas for Crazy Taxi to give it many vehicles focused ideas and being fine with a silly spin on a vehicule open world. I think many other devs need to do the same. Think what can we do with the ocean, what is there, what spin on animals, plant life, recycling, collecting, etc. can you do to make it fun or interactively interesting even if IRL may be mundane.
Gameplay matters yet for some reason devs go for the worlds or have no idea what to do with them and think oh the personality is there when it really isn't at least for players wanting a bit more to the world.
But if the world is filled with nothing exciting who wants to play that. They'd rather get a virtual fireplace at that point or a fish tank app they offer the same amount of nothing going on but in some cases they can offer a lot.
Not Endless Ocean of this entry versus the past ones with probably more exciting to do in them that I can't comment on but people that have played the old entries know what they offered.
Isn't a leisurely dive the whole point of the game? Was the reviewer expecting Shinsekai levels of adventure and suspense?
I can't wait until this game is heavily discounted to 99p I will be 100% getting it, then!
yeah I cancelled. Maybe I'll get this far cheaper in a couple years
It’s a great game, I’d say it’s a 9
After reading this review and some more positive reviews, i felt like this review was maybe a bit harsh and that I would agree more with the positive reviews - that really appreciated the relaxing part of this game. Which Im all up for.
But after playing this game for 3 hours I have to say that I agree with every word in this review. This game is just missing something. It sounds like it does what it should, but it´s just not very fun. Even a relaxing game needs to have some hook or fun gameplay, and swimming around in boring random environments scanning a lot of random fish and picking up random shining objects on the ground is all there is. And it´s not fun.
I will try the game a bit more but it seems there just isn´t anything more to this game than this, and that is really disappointing.
I am curious to see the user reviews compared to the critic reviews. I am guessing it will be a big difference between people the game was targeted to (Players) vs not targeted to (Critics)
Oddly enough I think this review sold me on picking the game up.
I think games these days get too bogged down in options. I have a diving license and have been diving for almost 30 years. I dont have any interest in prepping my gear in a game, nor any of the other activities required each dive.
The idea of a game where i can just jump in and scan things sounds cathartic in a good way. I only worry about the amount of new things and the diversity of the dive sites.
Hmm, well I've played both Abzu and Subnautica and I prefer this game, goes to show how subjective an assessment can be, I suppose. Beyond the under water setting, I think they are quite different games by design. I recall I enjoyed the originals on Wii, and this game is pretty much as relaxed to play as the first one from my memory. I've even had fun with the online mode, and I never play games online. I think I'll be dipping in to play this game a fair bit.
Seems like they could have added more to the experience and it's missing some things that were in earlier games. However, it still looks like a chill relaxing game to play and multilayer sounds fun.
It’s a really enjoyable game that seems to be getting the short end of the stick. If you’re into laidback and chill gaming, this is an ideal entry to experience.
@Jhena , yes, I'd say that the review comes from a NL reviewer that doesn't appreciate scuba diving and the mechanic of scanning aquatic life. For those that do appreciate this, like myself and you, I'm sure it will be a nice game. I'd say that PJ O'Reilly is being openly biased.
@the4realpsych
Doing my fourth dive now. I think I love this game. So simple but fun and relaxing.
@Jhena , looks like I'll get it also; my sister, Jessica, was recently interviewed by the BBC for her work as a marine researcher in identifying new aquatic species in real life - so, I'm positive she'll get it also. Maybe you and I can exchange usernames to dive together.
https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-essex-68778028
@the4realpsych
Interesting article. Must have been great to discover new species.
I am doing a deep sea dive in the game. It is really exciting. I can only imagine how exciting and terrifying a real deep sea dive is.
I am not sure how the multiplayer works, but if you want, you can look up my Switch friend code, here in my Nintendo Life profile and add me. It would be cool to dive together someday.
@Jhena , let me get the game and then I'll add you; my sister really enjoys the opportunity of doing dives herself in real life, and when I told her about the game (she's a Switch fanatic) she was like, "That's really cool! I'll have to get it!" So, I'll set something up once I get the game. I'll have to see if Jess got it already.
@Jhena, just sent you a friend request.
@the4realpsych
Nice to be friends with you!
Hope to see you soon in the Veiled Sea.
@RupeeClock Never heard of it, but saw your comment, read the review, and for $4.99, even if I don't like it, it's not a big waste of money. I'll try to remember to let you know what I think. Thanks for mentioning it.
It must be a huge disappointment to see a Nintendo-published game get this score. I knew the online focus would make this experience noticeably different than previous installments, but not to that extent of affecting the overall gameplay. At least I can hope for a sequel to Blue World if this one sells to expectations, but with the conseus about the game being mostly this, I don't know...
There are too many comments to know if this was already quipped, but "so much for Nintendo's blue ocean strategy." 😆
@Nintendo4Sonic Metroid Dread is one of the most deserving 10/10s on the entire Switch library imo
@Jhena you are doing just solo dives then (looking at the time you're spending on just 3 dives/ amount of scans)....
am doing 2 1 hour dives a day approx... now finding 1/2 new species per dive...
love the game, but dissapointed in the story mode.. at 2000 scan you got a segment which lasted for like 2 minutes..
@romanista
The story mode feels like a tutorial. I am trying to find the 99 riddles now to proceed.
I am also loving the game. Finding every animal will test my patience.
@Jhena sure it does, but that's why it is so weird it is halten by the number of scans..after 2000 scans you don't need a tutorial anymore but are still only in chapter 3
@romanista
It is weird.
@JCLKaytwo that's maybe your opinion. But it's also one of the weaker Metroid games in total. I know there are others with the same opinion.
@Nintendo4Sonic And there are plenty others with the opinion that Dread is the best 2D Metroid ever made, so...
@BookhouseBoy Yep. It's pretty obvious that everything is being held back by the inevitable Switch 2 release.
All we get now this year are time filler releases and shovel ware.
Don`t listen to negative reviewers ! The game is as good as the 1st one on Wii , true , it`s a bit lifeless ( unlike 2nd one ) , but the whole point here is to relax and the game is relaxing as hell !
If You can buy it cheap - go for it !
@Kirbyo No, it was never on WiiWare.
I was looking forward to this game having enjoyed the Wii version but I was bitterly disappointed.
In the Wii game there were specific areas to explore with a level of predictability where the marine life would appear. This made it ideal for any completionist to go through the game.
This current version just doesn't make any sense. You're thrown into a randomly generated ocean, only set marine life generated each time. the marine life can be anywhere, and a limited time to explore. It just doesn't work.
From a completionist point of view this game is a nightmare and hard to play. They should have stuck to the original formula.
@PJOReilly
Can you use the switch app for voice chat when playing with friends?
It would seem a chill game to kinda play in the background while talking.
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