Posted on: November 1, 2020

BaaLMahdi
Verified ownerGames: 152 Reviews: 14
Joy and frustration in the deep...!
Short summary: First of all, you need to know that this is an insanely hard game. Oh, yes, you eat hard games for breakfast, but no... This is on another level, mate! The difficulty spikes are like the Marianna trench here, and even if the game tells you about the core mechanics, oh boy, it is brutally secretive about the real dynamics of its gameplay. You will be frustrated and angry and confused a lot, my lad! BUT! - Even with this, this title is one of the special ones... It needs time, patience, understanding, and love! Yes, it is flawed in so many ways, but also deeply and carefully crafted, like a whiskey made in a small, family manufactory. Some tips for you: - Start on easy mode! I know, I know, you are a tactical genius, you played through all the XCOM games with your foot, and you are such a fan of this genre that your whole life is basically turn-based, but still... Choose the easy mode, mate. The formula is this: Narrative mode is Easy, Easy mode is Hard, Normal mode is Brutal, and above that... I don't know... Absolute and total madness?! - Save spamming: The game uses an autosave feature, which might be fitting for this genre, but this one is so unfair and unclear, that you'll need the "Save and exit" + "Continue game" dual combo pretty often. Especially in the first half of the game. (otherwise, you could easily be stuck in a slow but inevitable death-loop.) Still in the end, with all its frustrations and balance issues, with all the downsides and f_ckups, this game is magic! It has a soul, it has an atmosphere, it has a great story, it understands the (pulp side of the) Lovecraftian mythos very well, and it has a pretty great dynamic between its main gameplay parts. In fact, it could be even super-addictive when you master it. A big nod for the developers (from a fellow dev), I really hope that they have plans for updating and expanding this game for a long time because under the filth, algae, and shells, a real pearl lies hidden.
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