Ocean's Heart Reviews
Overall, Ocean’s Heart is a pleasant RPG adventure that will tickle the fancy of any Zelda fan. While there are minor navigation issues, these do not detract from the experience. The game is stuffed full of content, puzzles, dungeons, and quests, making for an expansive, well-balanced, and well-crafted experience that belies the fact that it’s from a small development crew. Through and through, this pixelated pirate adventure has found its true home on the Nintendo Switch console. So set sail: the heart awaits!
Ocean’s Heart is a flawed, but entertaining Zelda-like experience – minus the protagonist dressed in green, of course.
"Princess sister from another mother."
Review in Finnish | Read full review
Ocean’s Heart feels like a mixed bag for a number of reasons. It has great dialogue and side quests but features a lacklustre protagonist and a world brimming with unexplored potential. It riffs off of 2D Zelda combat but fails to execute it nearly as well. While it borrows elements from the classics, it doesn’t always stick to the landing. It feels so close yet so far to being a great top-down RPG, but overall leaves a lot to be desired.
Overall, I had an absolutely wonderful time with Ocean’s Heart and loved it the whole way through. With that old-school Legend of Zelda vibe in both gameplay and art style, add in some unique twists and takes, and couple it with an immersive world, and you really have a recipe for success. While there were a few technical problems and design choices that I didn’t agree with, most of the time it wasn’t a big enough issue to truly worry about for the most part. With tons of bonus quests, caves to explore, and a secret boss, Ocean’s Heart is sure to keep you well entertained!
Ocean's Heart is an entertaining and accessible Indie game, the only question is whether it is a useful marketing choice to make a comparison with the Zelda franchise. These games are not the least to be compared with, making it almost inevitable to come out as lesser. Nevertheless, you can spend quite a few hours in this game, and it is certainly a very suitable game in terms of price for the novice gamer who wants to get acquainted with the RPG puzzle-adventure genre.
Review in Dutch | Read full review
From start to finish, Ocean's Heart is an enjoyable, albeit short, adventure following the familiar 2D Zelda formula. Having a brand new world to explore, filled with various side quests, should be enough to get any fan of that classic top-down template excited. While the writing and dialogue feels subpar at times, the familiar, yet still-solid gameplay makes up for it. Ocean's Heart is undeniably a 2D Zelda game in all but name, but Tilia's adventure shows that a game doesn't always need to be groundbreaking to be a good time.
Is Ocean’s Heart worth playing? Absolutely. The low difficulty and complexity make it feel like Zelda for beginners, but that’s not necessarily a fault either. It might not reinvent the wheel, but Ocean’s Heart has just enough heart to make it worth it.
Still, Ocean's Heart is a tremendous experience even with some rough edges. It's evocative of the likes of Minish Cap in all the best ways and succeeds at being more organic and open than a lot of similar games. I'd love to see this game's foundation build and grow because the promise is immense, but even if this is the peak of Ocean's Heart's developer Max Mraz, it's still an enjoyable game.
Ocean’s Heart is a charming adventure, even if none of its ideas are new. I would have liked a bit more polish and consistency in the mechanics, but Ocean’s Heart’s sense of discovery and whimsical fun was enough that I enjoyed my playthrough.
The game's not perfect — its dungeons and combat are relatively mild and its main campaign is eclipsed by more engaging optional content — but it successfully channels the adventurous spirit of Nintendo's fan-favorite Zelda franchise, particularly in its overworld.
When you're looking to emulate a known quantity, especially when it's a Nintendo franchise on a Nintendo system, you know the risk you're taking...
As an action role-playing game that feels familiar even as it makes its own choices, Ocean’s Heart wears its influences proudly.
Ocean's Heart is a charmingly sassy action adventure RPG. There are pirates, mysterious ruins, exploration, and monsters along the way. It embraces the Zelda style for an engaging yet casual experience.
Ocean’s Heart is a colourful, quirky action-adventure game with some charm. It is pretty easy to play, but it can lead to a few frustrating moments as the controls aren’t always precise. It’s more a love letter to the top-down RPG adventure than a clone. If classic action-adventure games are your thing, give Ocean’s Heart a try.
Ocean's Heart is an excellent tribute to the Zelda era on SNES, but it also knows how to shine with its own light both in the pleasure of exploration and in the narrative tone.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Jumping in to the game to sail the seas searching for the next upgrade and for clues to what happened to Tilia’s family is an interconnected and wholesome endeavor, leaving the player plenty to enjoy and experience.
Ocean’s Heart is a well-crafted love letter to the 2D Legend of Zelda games on the NES and SNES featuring a charming setting, a short-but-sweet play length, and fun gameplay. I do wish the bosses were actually challenging and mentally stimulating, but the overall journey is more eventful than the destination.
Overall, despite not being a massive fan of its combat, Ocean’s Heart turned out to be quite a pleasant surprise. It can be as much of a soothing adventure as it can be challenging, as the peaceful exploration heavily contrasts with some of the boss encounters. It took me about 14 hours to complete the game, but I still have a couple of side-quests to finish. All in all, the game doesn’t overstay its welcome. It manages to stay and feel relatively fresh, by continuously introducing a few small mechanics throughout your adventure. In the end, this is an easy recommendation from me, especially if you’re a fan of games like Blossom Tales. I wouldn’t say that this is a MUST PLAY, as the game isn’t groundbreaking in any way, but it certainly can be fun, and that’s what matters in the end.
Ocean’s Heart is a love letter to its genre, and I feel like it’s one that does it justice. I really enjoyed this game and all it had to offer. The main story, as well as the side-quests, keep you interested and immersed in the world you’re exploring, the visuals are full of color and charm, and the gameplay, while basic, is elevated by constant puzzle-solving and exploration, making it harder to get bored. If you have it in you to ignore the clunky controls (which I did) then you will find a lot to enjoy about this game.