Endless Ocean for Wii: Sink or Swim?

I'm_Chris_Hansen

I'm sure most people don't know about this game (I myself stumbled upon it while looking for the release date of Brawl) so here are some links that basically sum it up in a nutshell:

8/10 Review:
http://www.jolt.co.uk/index.php?articleid=10271

6/10 Review:
http://www.eurogamer.net/article.php?article_id=88101

So what are your thoughts on the game? Personally I wouldn't pay the normal $60 for it, but I do plan on picking it up when it gets closer to $20.

Both it's praise and criticism comes from it's deviation from the standard structure and flow of a video game. I'm sure the shelves will be packed with them and the price will drop quickly, but I still think the game holds some merit in it's approach to the platform and should prove to be an enjoyable experience.

Alfred J. Kwak

Hm, we already have a thread for this game.

By any chance I'll receive my copy by mail today or tomorrow, so if you want I can post some impressions later on.

I'm_Chris_Hansen

Alfred J. Kwak wrote: »

Hm, we already have a thread for this game.

By any chance I'll receive my copy by mail today or tomorrow, so if you want I can post some impressions later on.

Yeah I saw that one but I figured that since that one was buried a month ago I'd start a new one.

Yeah I'd like to hear especially from people who've tried the game.

Mr_Grinch

I loved it but haven't had much time to play.

I believe Lave is really quite in to this game though

Xagarath

Consider Aquaria.
The two have a certain amount in common.

Viscountalpha

Some of these no violence games are quite enjoyable. I will have to check this out.

bombcar

A decent number of people at Neogaf have it and seem to love it.

http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=204226

Tonberry King

I've heard more good impressions for this game than bad. Plus the concept of the game is generally appealing to me. I like that I will be able to customize the music. I'm looking forward to making the ultimate water ambiance arrangement.

Day one purchase.

lowlylowlycook

Well it's starting at $30 dollars in the US so it is already bargain priced here.

slash000

Oh, well starting at $30, that's reasonable.


Also,

Personally I wouldn't pay the normal $60 for it

$60 isn't normal for Wii games though.... $50 is..

Regardless, it's apparently being released at $30 which is just about spot-on

Viscountalpha

I am going to bump this since I just purchased it.

The bad:
I don't like the loading times but overall, I can see my self enjoying this. This game NEEDS fresh mp3's I just wish I could get rid of the ship music. There is muzak and then there is bad muzak The customization thing is really weak

The good:
I can see myself getting into this though. Especially with adding my own music selection. Very neat idea of a more sandbox type game. I need more play time to really delve into the good.

slash000

From what I've come to understand about this, it's not so much a "game" in that you don't have preset goals and you're not putting your handeye coordination or timing to the test, and there's no competition. You don't 'lose.' It's not a 'game' in that sense.

It's more like a thing to pop in that you can relax and explore and set your own pace and goals and whatever you want.


Tycho described his opinion of it on the front page recently. Sounds interesting.


Plus it's only $30.

MJ

If I didn't have to buy a ton of textbooks I would be all over this.
Does the game run on mp3s like someone said above or is it using the photo channel 1.1's music format now?

edit: oh hello answer, (mp3 only)
so uh, *blue dotted*

Dartboy

This game sounds a lot like Noctis, in that it's just an open-ended exploration sim. I'll have to pick this up, especially if it's going to be $30.

urahonky

I got this and No More Heroes. Both are great games. This one is obviously less awesome, and more relaxing. I really do dig this game.

Deviant Hands

They should make Noctis for the Wii. Randomly chosen start location in a universe with randomly generated planets with randomly generated creatures and civilizations to explore and track.

ChewyWaffles

I picked this up today, but have been playing too much Burnout Paradise to crack it open. $30 and positive reviews piqued my interest. Also, why can't we search on this forum anymore? Says search has been disabled, or I would have tried to find this thread a while ago.

Graviija

Oh man, I didn't know it was $30. I'll be picking it up with No More Heroes tomorrow.

Deviant Hands

ChewyWaffles wrote: »

I picked this up today, but have been playing too much Burnout Paradise to crack it open. $30 and positive reviews piqued my interest. Also, why can't we search on this forum anymore? Says search has been disabled, or I would have tried to find this thread a while ago.

We can't have nice things.

Randall_Flagg

can I play coöp?

urahonky

Online co-op only I think.

Sheep

So what are your thoughts on the game? Personally I wouldn't pay the normal $60 for it, but I do plan on picking it up when it gets closer to $20.

It's published by Nintendo, so don't hold your breath.

SwashbucklerXX

Sleep wrote: »

So what are your thoughts on the game? Personally I wouldn't pay the normal $60 for it, but I do plan on picking it up when it gets closer to $20.

It's published by Nintendo, so don't hold your breath.

It's $30 new, and Amazon.com is already showing used games starting at $23.

bruin

I almost picked this up at Best Buy but I already had Advance Wars and No More Heroes in my hands. I probably will when I'm done with those though, it's hard to resist for $30.

Vangu Vegro

I wanted to get this as my last game of 2007, but since they didn't have it in stock, I got Metroid Prime 3 instead. I don't regret getting that, but I still can't find Endless Ocean anywhere in any of the nearby shops. Well, at least I've got dibs on a copy when they get restocked. (Heh, whaddayaknow, a few hours after I posted I got the email saying it's back in stock!)

Oh, and last night I dreamt there was a Pokémon mod for this, featuring Misty and all the Water Pokémon you could think of (well, at least those that you'd find in the sea, at least).

...And then I woke up, realized that it doesn't exist, and was quite sad.

wildhalcyon

Its been a pretty good experience for me. Think Animal Crossing in terms of what there is to actually do in the game. You mostly just swim around and pet animals. On the other hand, its some damn relaxing swimming around, and the exploration is fun to boot. Even with such a low-stress game, they could have added a bit more in the way of goal-oriented play.

Although its throughly enmeshed in the casual genre, its not shovelware. Its finely crafted art.

Quick List

Pros: Great graphics, large environment, custom music on the SD card, lots of fish

Cons: No plot, can't swim very far from the boat, no same-console co-op/wi-fi only.

Alfred J. Kwak

wildhalcyon wrote: »

Quick List

Pros: Great graphics, large environment, custom music on the SD card, lots of fish

Cons: No plot, can't swim very far from the boat, no same-console co-op/wi-fi only.

I wouldn't call the graphics exactly great, but I really love the excellent animations of all the sea creatures. And actually, there is a story, but it only starts to unfold a few hours into the game.

For a game with seamingly no goal, I've already managed to sink 12+ hours into it, and I would've played even more if the TV wasn't occupied all the time. It's really just a calm and relaxive game where you can explore the underwater world and watch the fish like in a gigantic aquarium, and I very much appreciate it for this

apotheos

I just am not man enough to buy this game I think.

Sir Carcass

I picked this up today. Played it for about 4 hours before I knew what hit me.

I really liked

the Abyss.

That was definitely one of the coolest parts so far.

I can see a few areas that could use a little polish (character animations, mp3 system), but overall it's a very enjoyable and relaxing game. We'll see if it's still as enjoyable 10 or 15 hours in, but I'd say it's definitely worth the $30.