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Whats that coming out of the sea, is it a monster? No it's an ENDLESS OCEAN thread
Lave II
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
ENDLESS OCEAN aka FOREVER BLUE
For all the "there are no games for the Wii" comments a few (like Zak and Wiki) has slipped under the radar thanks to Galaxy. Very, very little has been said Endless Ocean, but it looks fantastic. Is it not out in the states yet or something?
What is it?
It's a game where you're are given a big bit of ocean to explore, looking at fish, visiting ship wrecks, finding treasure and so on. No violence, nothing. Quite Non-Gamey which will probably get a few people in a tizz.
Watch The Trailers to get an idea.
Famitsu scored the game 35/40 (10, 8, 9, and 8) , praising the open-ended exploration aspect of the game, the scale of the play area and its soundtrack. NGamer gave the japanese version 8.8 - read the glowing review here (also why are C&VG publishing Ngamer reviews? I'm confused).
and crucially:
(The Japanese version's aquarium was really bugged. I assume it's been fixed.)
PICTURES
As this game is about exploring, and seeing stuff, I'm going to spoiler them.
Hang out with a Whale:
Put him in your aquarium, that clearly doesn't fit in your boat:
Fill in your spotters book:
Zoom in on interesting bits:
Train a dolphin:
Explore underwater ruins:
More than one diver? (Online co-op dives):
Lave's Review of Endless Ocean after 2hr 39mins of swimming like a loon.
So, I managed to drop a few hours into EO this weekend. And it's going to be hard to explain, but as I seem to be the only person on the board with it (and without Mario), and there seem to be only one review on the web, I figure I should write up my inital views on it. I want to gush uncontrollably about how wonderful it is. But I also realise how unsuitable it will be to a lot of people, and thats it has a number of flaws. So here's a breakdown of my first thoughts with cons first to temper the love. Of which there is plenty.
Disclaimer/Boast/Credentials
I've been snorkling in Hawaii (get me!) and so I've seen a lot of these fish with my own eyes (through amazing prescription snorkling goggles no less). So I'm pretty qualified at comparing this to the real thing. I've even seen sea turtles swimming about. As is, I'm biased because I loved it so, so, much, and I'm far to poor to ever do it again. Hence this game fits a specific need of mine.
Also: It's not a budget game
Graphics:
Firstly, the flaws, everything above water is a little ropy, with stiff animation. This isn't a problem though as everything above water is little more than a menu system. They do the job nicely though, and are much better at keeping you 'in' the game than an actual menu. Underwater the main structures are made from coral which unfortuantly seem to be made from 1 uniform texture. Which is a bit dissapointing, and throws the immersion a little. Also, I've only uncovered a quater of the map and if it stays that way it could get a little repetitive.
HOWEVER! The clearly haven't focused on the basic structures because they've spent all their time on the sea life. The plant/coral/weird stuff clinging to the big coral structures are beautifully realised, and all can be zoomed in on, for really well done close up views. These are the same for each basic type but really work well. The fish are again brilliantly modelled. The fish I have seen in real life (Parretfish, blue tangs, yellow tangs, and so on) compare extremely well to the models and are animated realistically as well. They look beautiful. A lot of effort has been put into recreating the fish. There are nice shafts of light that illuminate places, Night swimming attracks a fish to swim in your beam of light and follow you arround. When you get to a new landmark it does a lovely little pass through it. It really has a sense of place.
The structure of the game
It's actually a lot more structured than I thought. I've uncovered maybe a 1/4 of the map in 2hr 39mins, but that doesn't mean I've finished with that area at all. It breaks down that you basically have a friend who stays on the boat, and guides you in what to do. You also get emails that ask you to do 'quests' as it were. Basically the more you play the more it unlocks, and it gives you little reasons to swim around, like guided swims, and photography missions. And just gave me a hint about a secret tunnel. If you think it sounds content light then read this spoiler where I detail everything I did in the first 2hr and 39mins.
So yeah there is plenty to do. I quite like the way it means I'm getting to be able to identify fish, I feel when I next going snorkling I'll actually be able to spot them a lot better. There are a number of different seasons, and day and night swims, and different fish to see in each season.
What it's like to Swim about.
You swim by pointing and pressing B. You can select expert controls that mean you can swim upside down, or use the basic controls that fix your axis to an extent. you can do the whole thing in 1st or 3rd person, I find 1st person, alot nicer once i've found a nice area, as it lets you see the fish better. You focus on a fish with A, then you'll automatically follow them swimming around in 1st person. You can prod and stroke them, which are mearly gestures, and they don't react incredibly to it. But it does unlock their names, allows them to be in your aquarium, and increasing levels of info about them. You can also feed them, which makes everything swarm over to you.
When you swim over the "plants" your controller occasionally 'rings' and the pointer changes, this means there is something small to see if you zoom in. Things like seahorses or clown fish hiding in anemones Which makes 'sweaping' the areas rewarding. This doesn't stop you zooming in on anything you like though, it just speeds up finding stuff.
TL; DR/Super important conclusion
It's a great game, but it won't be for everyone. If you are happy just trying to 'catch em all' and swim around, then it's great. It's defintly grown on me over the last hour or so. And I can't see myself stopping until I've at least uncovered the whole map, and found the secret places. So it's got at least 10hours play time in it. Which for me is a lot longer than usual.
I can also see it being used as a 'screen saver' over xmas, just putting it on in the background and focusing it on a fish, then people can pick it up and have a quick explore in the natural 'lulls.'
If your the kind of "gamer" who has opinions on what a "proper" game is then it's not for you (and you need to readdress your priorities in life :P) It's really calming, and lovely, and there's nothing like it out now. It's at a budget price, but I don't feel it's a budget game at all.
Phew, that was a long rant.[/QUOTE]
For all the "there are no games for the Wii" comments a few (like Zak and Wiki) has slipped under the radar thanks to Galaxy. Very, very little has been said Endless Ocean, but it looks fantastic. Is it not out in the states yet or something?
What is it?
It's a game where you're are given a big bit of ocean to explore, looking at fish, visiting ship wrecks, finding treasure and so on. No violence, nothing. Quite Non-Gamey which will probably get a few people in a tizz.
Watch The Trailers to get an idea.
Famitsu scored the game 35/40 (10, 8, 9, and 8) , praising the open-ended exploration aspect of the game, the scale of the play area and its soundtrack. NGamer gave the japanese version 8.8 - read the glowing review here (also why are C&VG publishing Ngamer reviews? I'm confused).
...In the early parts of the game, the aim is simply to explore the reef and learn about the fish. There are around 200 species to discover, with loads of different ones in each area. When you see one that looks new, you tickle it with the Wii remote and it's added to your log book back on the boat.
The undersea landscapes are stunning. Sites of special interest are dotted around the ocean, and the camera takes a dreamy tour through their towering coral spires and into dizzyingly deep trenches whenever you chance upon one during a dive...
Moving the boat from place to place, diving in the limited range allowed and uncovering the map, is addictive in itself, but there are tasks to be performed. The boat is hooked up with email, through which other characters get in touch and arrange meetings. You'll get to go on torch-lit night dives, search for treasure and explore sunken ruins.
There's never a feeling of danger, even when a huge shark appears and the reef drops away into a black abyss. It gave us a bizarre feeling of vertigo, like hitting turbulence in a plane but without the sense of impending death. It's completely unlike any other game, with the possible exception of soaring on the hang-glider in Pilotwings 64....
and crucially:
teaming up with a Wi-Fi dive buddy and watching penguins shooting through the water, leaving trails of bubbles exactly like we've only ever seen in wildlife documentaries, well, that's sufficient incentive to keep us away from the buggy aquarium.
(The Japanese version's aquarium was really bugged. I assume it's been fixed.)
PICTURES
As this game is about exploring, and seeing stuff, I'm going to spoiler them.
Hang out with a Whale:
Put him in your aquarium, that clearly doesn't fit in your boat:
Fill in your spotters book:
Zoom in on interesting bits:
Train a dolphin:
Explore underwater ruins:
More than one diver? (Online co-op dives):
Lave's Review of Endless Ocean after 2hr 39mins of swimming like a loon.
So, I managed to drop a few hours into EO this weekend. And it's going to be hard to explain, but as I seem to be the only person on the board with it (and without Mario), and there seem to be only one review on the web, I figure I should write up my inital views on it. I want to gush uncontrollably about how wonderful it is. But I also realise how unsuitable it will be to a lot of people, and thats it has a number of flaws. So here's a breakdown of my first thoughts with cons first to temper the love. Of which there is plenty.
Disclaimer/Boast/Credentials
I've been snorkling in Hawaii (get me!) and so I've seen a lot of these fish with my own eyes (through amazing prescription snorkling goggles no less). So I'm pretty qualified at comparing this to the real thing. I've even seen sea turtles swimming about. As is, I'm biased because I loved it so, so, much, and I'm far to poor to ever do it again. Hence this game fits a specific need of mine.
Also: It's not a budget game
Graphics:
Firstly, the flaws, everything above water is a little ropy, with stiff animation. This isn't a problem though as everything above water is little more than a menu system. They do the job nicely though, and are much better at keeping you 'in' the game than an actual menu. Underwater the main structures are made from coral which unfortuantly seem to be made from 1 uniform texture. Which is a bit dissapointing, and throws the immersion a little. Also, I've only uncovered a quater of the map and if it stays that way it could get a little repetitive.
HOWEVER! The clearly haven't focused on the basic structures because they've spent all their time on the sea life. The plant/coral/weird stuff clinging to the big coral structures are beautifully realised, and all can be zoomed in on, for really well done close up views. These are the same for each basic type but really work well. The fish are again brilliantly modelled. The fish I have seen in real life (Parretfish, blue tangs, yellow tangs, and so on) compare extremely well to the models and are animated realistically as well. They look beautiful. A lot of effort has been put into recreating the fish. There are nice shafts of light that illuminate places, Night swimming attracks a fish to swim in your beam of light and follow you arround. When you get to a new landmark it does a lovely little pass through it. It really has a sense of place.
The structure of the game
It's actually a lot more structured than I thought. I've uncovered maybe a 1/4 of the map in 2hr 39mins, but that doesn't mean I've finished with that area at all. It breaks down that you basically have a friend who stays on the boat, and guides you in what to do. You also get emails that ask you to do 'quests' as it were. Basically the more you play the more it unlocks, and it gives you little reasons to swim around, like guided swims, and photography missions. And just gave me a hint about a secret tunnel. If you think it sounds content light then read this spoiler where I detail everything I did in the first 2hr and 39mins.
- Had a training swim,
- explored the lagoon area.
- Met a manta ray,
- explored a coral 'cave' and found some 'treasure',
- found another landmark,
- helped a lost dolphin,
- became it's friend, 'trained' him (which didn't make any sense, but I skipped the instructions, seems a bit rubbish though - oh and it appears you can get 3 partners so I don't know what the other two are),
- Gave a man a guided tour. - he wanted to see a specific fish, and the more you show him the happier he is.
- got given a pen that writes in space which will be good for co-op swims,
- got given a new wet suit for doing the tour well
- got the aquarium which can take any fish you've identified.
- got the night swimming light,
- Found a really deep trench that's scary and is too deep to explore at the moment.
- Got a camera that lets me take photo's
- Got a whistle that can call the Dolphin whenever I want.
- Got asked to take a photo of a specific fish.
- Got an email about how there are rumours of a hidden tunnel that leads to an sucken castle.
- Got an email about how hammer head sharks are spawning at specific cordinates.
What it's like to Swim about.
You swim by pointing and pressing B. You can select expert controls that mean you can swim upside down, or use the basic controls that fix your axis to an extent. you can do the whole thing in 1st or 3rd person, I find 1st person, alot nicer once i've found a nice area, as it lets you see the fish better. You focus on a fish with A, then you'll automatically follow them swimming around in 1st person. You can prod and stroke them, which are mearly gestures, and they don't react incredibly to it. But it does unlock their names, allows them to be in your aquarium, and increasing levels of info about them. You can also feed them, which makes everything swarm over to you.
When you swim over the "plants" your controller occasionally 'rings' and the pointer changes, this means there is something small to see if you zoom in. Things like seahorses or clown fish hiding in anemones Which makes 'sweaping' the areas rewarding. This doesn't stop you zooming in on anything you like though, it just speeds up finding stuff.
TL; DR/Super important conclusion
It's a great game, but it won't be for everyone. If you are happy just trying to 'catch em all' and swim around, then it's great. It's defintly grown on me over the last hour or so. And I can't see myself stopping until I've at least uncovered the whole map, and found the secret places. So it's got at least 10hours play time in it. Which for me is a lot longer than usual.
I can also see it being used as a 'screen saver' over xmas, just putting it on in the background and focusing it on a fish, then people can pick it up and have a quick explore in the natural 'lulls.'
If your the kind of "gamer" who has opinions on what a "proper" game is then it's not for you (and you need to readdress your priorities in life :P) It's really calming, and lovely, and there's nothing like it out now. It's at a budget price, but I don't feel it's a budget game at all.
Phew, that was a long rant.[/QUOTE]
It's a pleasure, I wouldn't like to sea it sink under the waves of Mario Galaxy as it were.
Oh I should point out some more flaws so I don't seem like Im pimping it too much.
One flaw is so far the fish don't seem to interact with each other much, just swimming around, not really doing anything. Now to be fair this is exactly what fish do when you actually go snorkling, so it's not unrealistic. But it would be nice to see them fighting, feeding etc. So yeah, that might get annoying (EDIT: certain events since I wrote this have really impressed me however.Cormarents diving into water with streams of bubbles behind them. I think the originality of seeing 200 odd species recreated extermely well makes up for the lack of things they do. Oh, and when it's night the fish 'hang' in the water which is what they do at night. It creates a really different feel. And also, on the flip side you can spot a puffer fish and poke it so it blows up into a ball. Or prob a fish so it rushes back into it's little hidey hole on the zoom in bits. Also some breeds travel in groups and what not. It creates a realistic feel thats for sure.
I really like it, at least partially because really like the subject matter. I don't want people to buy it and be disappointed, but at the price I think it's worth taking a chance on it, because it's so different.
Oh and I think it will be called Forever Blue in the states.
Lave II on
0
Posts
Still looks cool.
2009 is a year of Updates - one every Monday. Hopefully. xx
I think Europe has got it first - ho ho. I guess this is because it fits nicely with Nintendo's blue ocean (do you see what I did) strategy. And Europe picked up on that a lot more than the states, what with brain training and all.
And because it's a touch generation title it's RRP is only £19.99 (though a few places are trying to pretend otherwise, like they did with RE4:Wii). Apparently it will be $29.99 in the states.
The price difference between Wii and 360/PS3 games is rather staggering.
2009 is a year of Updates - one every Monday. Hopefully. xx
What about Ecco fro the Dreamcast? I'm willing to bet the majority of people never got past the first chapter and instead swam about looking at the fish and stuff.
I think arguably, you could just buy crysis, and when you get bored of the swimming in that, you actually have a proper game to play.
I'll back your ban on "famitsu scores" if we can ban the phrase "proper game." Jeaz.
I was lucky enough to get to go to hawaii for work. I went snorkling and it was awesome. Fell in love, lifetime hobbie awesome. But considering London isn't hawaii, this is a great chance for me to pretend to do more diving.
I'll be playing it over the weekend, and letting people no if it's any good.
2009 is a year of Updates - one every Monday. Hopefully. xx
The power is in your hands.
They should make another Pokemon Snap for the Wii, by the way. Or put the original on the Virtual Console. Or both.
OK! And I promise not to be biased that if I get you to buy it we could totally going diving together. Like totally gay best buds.
(No voice chat, but I do think you can write on stuff. )
I think it will come down to what kind of person you are. I used to own fish (I move to much nowdays) and I love snorkelling, so I'm going to be pretty biased.
But I've also recently got into Morrowind on the Xbox, not for the fighting, but just to wander round and explore. I think if you are a fan of that kind of thing. Or 'collecting' games like Animal Crossing then you'll probably like it.
But I'll give it a play and advise more later on. I think I'm probably the only guy going home to play this, this weekend and not Mario
2009 is a year of Updates - one every Monday. Hopefully. xx
Hi5!
Over Xmas I'll be sans internet, but in the new year totally.
I think I'm getting GHIII and Mario for chrimbo now. Which will be a hard wait.
2009 is a year of Updates - one every Monday. Hopefully. xx
I did that for a long time with Ecco on the Genesis, and really enjoyed it.
After I actually did get into the game, I pretty quickly said "What the fuck?" when
After that I went back to looking at the fish. It was pretty relaxing.
A friend of mine in Europe who already has it tells me it's a beautiful little gem, wonderfully calm and soothing.
My Ex-GF had it. I never even realised all that stuff happened. I just thought it was a Dolphin simulator. As with the originals as well.
And a brilliant one a that.
Man I need a dreamcast.
2009 is a year of Updates - one every Monday. Hopefully. xx
I find games like this so relaxing - back in the day I would spend hours with El-Fish - just watching and breeding the fish. I remember a friend coming over and getting pissed that Doom was running crappy on my computer because my autoexec.bat and config.sys files were optimized for Elfish instead!
Sold.
Hooooly shit. If they do night diving properly (like, how a real night dive is) this will be a must buy.
Granted, I'm going to buy it anyway to get my scuba fix at home, but oh man... night diving is amazing.
or Brawl. 4854.6102.3895 Name: NU..
And Brian888 if thats true I'm stoked :shock:. In a way I don't want to know though. I'm def spending a while just seeing what's there and when I bore check gamefaqs to see if I'm missing anything.
2009 is a year of Updates - one every Monday. Hopefully. xx
It's a tiny example of the life of an European. But rumours suggest January.
2009 is a year of Updates - one every Monday. Hopefully. xx
Zeboyd Games Development Blog
Steam ID : rwb36, Twitter : Werezompire, Facebook : Zeboyd Games
Nah, it was called Scuba Dive apparently.
And here's a map
He's a n independentgame developer and rather splendid all round dude, so that makes me happy.
2009 is a year of Updates - one every Monday. Hopefully. xx
Yup. He's a lovely bloke, but not having a PC I've no idea what his games are like.
2009 is a year of Updates - one every Monday. Hopefully. xx
Lave's Review of Endless Ocean after 2hr 39mins of swimming like a loon.
So, I managed to drop a few hours into EO this weekend. And it's going to be hard to explain, but as I seem to be the only person on the board with it (and without Mario), and there seem to be only one review on the web, I figure I should write up my inital views on it. I want to gush uncontrollably about how wonderful it is. But I also realise how unsuitable it will be to a lot of people, and thats it has a number of flaws. So here's a breakdown of my first thoughts with cons first to temper the love. Of which there is plenty.
Disclaimer/Boast/Credentials
I've been snorkling in Hawaii (get me!) and so I've seen a lot of these fish with my own eyes (through amazing prescription snorkling goggles no less). So I'm pretty qualified at comparing this to the real thing. I've even seen sea turtles swimming about. As is, I'm biased because I loved it so, so, much, and I'm far to poor to ever do it again. Hence this game fits a specific need of mine.
Also: It's not a budget game
Graphics:
Firstly, the flaws, everything above water is a little ropy, with stiff animation. This isn't a problem though as everything above water is little more than a menu system. They do the job nicely though, and are much better at keeping you 'in' the game than an actual menu. Underwater the main structures are made from coral which unfortuantly seem to be made from 1 uniform texture. Which is a bit dissapointing, and throws the immersion a little. Also, I've only uncovered a quater of the map and if it stays that way it could get a little repetitive.
HOWEVER! The clearly haven't focused on the basic structures because they've spent all their time on the sea life. The plant/coral/weird stuff clinging to the big coral structures are beautifully realised, and all can be zoomed in on, for really well done close up views. These are the same for each basic type but really work well. The fish are again brilliantly modelled. The fish I have seen in real life (Parretfish, blue tangs, yellow tangs, and so on) compare extremely well to the models and are animated realistically as well. They look beautiful. A lot of effort has been put into recreating the fish. There are nice shafts of light that illuminate places, Night swimming attracks a fish to swim in your beam of light and follow you arround. When you get to a new landmark it does a lovely little pass through it. It really has a sense of place.
The structure of the game
It's actually a lot more structured than I thought. I've uncovered maybe a 1/4 of the map in 2hr 39mins, but that doesn't mean I've finished with that area at all. It breaks down that you basically have a friend who stays on the boat, and guides you in what to do. You also get emails that ask you to do 'quests' as it were. Basically the more you play the more it unlocks, and it gives you little reasons to swim around, like guided swims, and photography missions. And just gave me a hint about a secret tunnel. If you think it sounds content light then read this spoiler where I detail everything I did in the first 2hr and 39mins.
What it's like to Swim about.
You swim by pointing and pressing B. You can select expert controls that mean you can swim upside down, or use the basic controls that fix your axis to an extent. you can do the whole thing in 1st or 3rd person, I find 1st person, alot nicer once i've found a nice area, as it lets you see the fish better. You focus on a fish with A, then you'll automatically follow them swimming around in 1st person. You can prod and stroke them, which are mearly gestures, and they don't react incredibly to it. But it does unlock their names, allows them to be in your aquarium, and increasing levels of info about them. You can also feed them, which makes everything swarm over to you.
When you swim over the "plants" your controller occasionally 'rings' and the pointer changes, this means there is something small to see if you zoom in. Things like seahorses or clown fish hiding in anemones Which makes 'sweaping' the areas rewarding. This doesn't stop you zooming in on anything you like though, it just speeds up finding stuff.
TL; DR/Super important conclusion
It's a great game, but it won't be for everyone. If you are happy just trying to 'catch em all' and swim around, then it's great. It's defintly grown on me over the last hour or so. And I can't see myself stopping until I've at least uncovered the whole map, and found the secret places. So it's got at least 10hours play time in it. Which for me is a lot longer than usual.
I can also see it being used as a 'screen saver' over xmas, just putting it on in the background and focusing it on a fish, then people can pick it up and have a quick explore in the natural 'lulls.'
If your the kind of "gamer" who has opinions on what a "proper" game is then it's not for you (and you need to readdress your priorities in life :P) It's really calming, and lovely, and there's nothing like it out now. It's at a budget price, but I don't feel it's a budget game at all.
Phew, that was a long rant.
2009 is a year of Updates - one every Monday. Hopefully. xx
RRP is £19.99 but you can get if about 3 quid cheaper if you shop around. But as I say, IMO it's a full game marketed at a price to get people to try it out, rather than a budget title to fleace the unsuspecting. I figure they know people will go "yeah but whats there to do?" so they've priced it so people will give it a chance.
That £20 doesn't taint it like those other £20 "bargins" the Wii has.
2009 is a year of Updates - one every Monday. Hopefully. xx
Music/sound?
This I'm confused by. I've currently 1 day time, and 1 night time song available along with Pray by the warbling woman. They are all very relaxing and lovely. I can read from my SD card on the boat, but the options greyed out underwater.
I suspect it might be an unlockable (to make you try the tranquil stuff before you rock out) or I've missunderstood.
I guess that new tracks are obtained (as I have a lot of ??? tracks to choose from during the load screen of the dive) by unlocking them. You can unlock new clothes and equipment so maybe you get songs too? I think they'll be gifts for good 'tours' given to people.
I like the music, and it's not normally my kind of thing, it works very well with the setting. As my SD card is full of HARD ROCK for use with Excite Truck I think I need to replace it with some Norah Jones or something for this game.
Also I really like the breathing effect, it's actually very soothing. It's the most relaxing game I've ever played, since Windwakers sailing (which I liked).
2009 is a year of Updates - one every Monday. Hopefully. xx
"Everyone who is capable of logical thought should be able to see why you shouldn't sell lifetime subscriptions to an MMO. Cell phone companies and drug dealers don't offer lifetime subscriptions either, guess why?" - Mugaaz
Anyway, I think I'll look into this.