Even the Ocean

Ultimately, Even The Ocean becomes a story about the cycles of history, and the way that our inaction often brings upon failure. Many games would treat this cynically, ruminating on the futility of human effort, but Even The Ocean presents this cycle as an opportunity to pass on our stories with the hope that they'll allow future generations to learn from, and correct, our mistakes.

Even the Ocean is a game I can commend for the sheer amount of accessibility options and being able to configure the game to pretty much any playstyle you like: whether you’re a reader, a player, a puzzler, a speedrunner, this game has the options to help make things a breeze, which is something I honestly wish more games in general would do.

Even the Ocean sits unfortunately between an early indie hit and a decade defining classic. It is the studio’s most technically accomplished game to date but lacks the emotional heft of its siblings; a delight in itself that falls shy of the incredibly high bar Analgesic have set for themselves. But as a transitional piece it is one of the best modern examples we have of thematic development across games, made more interesting through Anodyne 2's parallels.

Even the Ocean offers in its adventure to help our world a mix between platforms, puzzles and narrative adventure. The mix works and is also supported by beautiful 2D graphics and sound work, to remind us of past times, in a game with a clear current touch. It does not fly to great heights but it does get a very decent and worthy of attention, as well as fun in its approach, which could have been a little more out of it.

Starting a new job is never easy. But for Aliph, a freshly-qualified power plant technician, the pressure is taken to a whole other level when her colleague Cassidy is killed in a tragic accident on her first day. With her protective armour damaged beyond repair, and no working radio to call for help, she is forced to manually balance the light and dark energies of the world within herself and navigate through the dangerous Fay Rouge power plant alone in order to repair its circuits and restore its power to the city of Whiteforge.

Even the Ocean is a recommendable adventure, but exclusively for those looking for a good narrative and don't mind hours of dialogue. The simple gameplay does not erase the story of Aliph, who strives for balance in Whiteforge and leaves interesting messages. In the end, even if unbalanced, the game is able to captivate in its own narrative way - to prove that good stories do not belong only to literary novels.

Overall, I enjoyed my time with Even the Ocean. I liked the flow and feel of the puzzle platform segments but sometimes the heavy emphasis on story slowed things down too much for me. If you are looking for a casual puzzle platformer with a deep story you most certainly should check out Even the Ocean.

Even the Ocean is a combination between a visual novel and platformer that tells a compelling story, while doing justice to both genres.

Even The Ocean is one of those titles you’ll either love or hate. It’s more of an experience than a game at times and that could be its detriment to some

This is one of those titles where I'm torn...