Submerged Reviews
The title's biggest downfall, then, is not any one single thing, but rather its overwhelming ambition. And in the grand scheme of things, perhaps that's not the worst problem to have. Indeed, despite its admittedly frequent rough patches, it's very hard to not admire the way this humble indie game so earnestly reaches for the stars.
Submerged is a short but impactful experience, crafting sound and sight together to create something unique and different from the mold. It won't keep you coming back for days and weeks, but in its runtime it stands out as one of the most intimate and interesting interactive set pieces I've played this year.
I am here to say it isn't. A game so proud of its lack of combat needs something else. Otherwise it's simply a game with a great big hole in it.
It's a reasonably short game for £14 – perhaps an afternoon's stuff to do first time through. But it's so unrelentingly lovely, and such a rare pleasure to be experienced without constant worry about being shot in the back of the head, or eaten by a wolf, or running out of time, or any of the other ways games so desperately want to concern us.
Submerged feels like a concept rather than a complete game. What's here is so slight, the story so flimsy, that it left almost no impression on me.
Despite its interesting premise, Submerged never achieves more than mediocrity due to its repetitive gameplay, lacklustre execution, and unpolished world design.
After only ten minutes in the game you've already experienced everything that Submerged has to offer. It's a rather dull and shallow title in what could have been an exciting and scary world. There is no combat, no urgency, and no chance of failure. The gameplay is boring, the landmarks and scenery are mediocre, and the story is almost nonexistent. Submerged is a rapidly sinking ship that never even left the harbor.
As much as I wanted to fall in love with Submerged, it's standing proof that a game needs more than good looks and a unique angle to win me over. With the 'emotional' story-driven approach slowly receding from the frontline of gaming, I'm left craving fun and challenging experiences that have us do more than haplessly roam within the confines of a digital sandbox.
You're better off saving your money instead of sinking it on the titanic failure that is Submerged.
A short, sweet, melancholic exploration game that offers precious few hours of gameplay, but it's beautiful to look at, and highly enjoyable to play.
Set in a drowned city, this game of exploration lacks the substance or conviction to hold your attention.
Submerged attempts to replace tension with curiosity as a motivating force, and largely succeeds even though its environmental storytelling isn't as dense as it could've been. It's an unchallenging, occasionally beautiful experience that caters to our instinct to see what's on the other side of the mountain. In the moments where Submerged rewarded inquisitiveness, I loved it. When it occasionally stumbled in that responsibility, I found myself wishing for a more polished and complete world to explore.