“Saltsea Chronicles is a poignant nautical adventure about the distances between us and what we gain from crossing them.”
Pros
Vibrant artwork model
Rich world
Endearing characters
Thoughtful dialogue methods
Cons
Dialogue can really feel tedious
Lacking significant interactions
The stakes are excessive. My misfit crew of sailors is halfway by means of an island-trotting quest to search out their lacking captain. Rations are working low and there could also be extra disappearances to fret about. Yet, right here I’m partying on an island filled with crabs. I see it as a enjoyable reprieve from the stress of a water-logged post-apocalypse at first, however a crew member later posits that there’s one thing extra vital to celebrations than easy enjoyable: They’re an acknowledgment that all the pieces is impermanent and that we now have to honor what we now have whereas it’s nonetheless right here.
That bittersweet theme guides me by means of Saltsea Chronicles, a brand new narrative journey by the creators of 2019’s Seamas McNally award-winning Mutazione. I could also be exploring distant islands constructed on a flooded world, however my journey is something however tragic. I’m soaking in cultures, earnestly working to know and respect them. A darkish destiny could await my crew as soon as we lastly attain the tip of our thriller, however that doesn’t imply we will’t cease to have fun the miracles that encompass us.
So lengthy as you possibly can deal with a prolonged visible novel that requires loads of button urgent to skip by means of textual content, Saltsea Chronicles is one other transferring narrative sport from developer Die Gute Fabrik. An engrossing central thriller serves as a sturdy skeleton housing the journey’s actual coronary heart: an endearing solid of characters desperate to admire a densely detailed world with each other.
Sightseeing in a brand new world
Saltsea Chronicles is technically a post-apocalyptic sport, however that description makes it sound a lot grimmer than it’s. A little bit of historic desk setting tells gamers {that a} as soon as thriving world was destroyed as a consequence of local weather change exacerbated by mega-corporations. When the tides rose, society was pressured to rebuild on a collection of islands. Rather than coping with the instant fallout of that, the story takes place far sooner or later the place the world appears to be in concord.
Die Gute Fabrik
The journey takes gamers to a collection of colourful islands, every of which is painted in Die Gute Fabrik’s signature visible model. The 2D environments are each minimalistic and richly detailed, mixing strong splotches of shade with mild shapes that come collectively to create luscious flora wrapped round imperfect human constructions. It’s a collection of panorama work that strips every island right down to its fundamentals with out shedding its id. It’s the identical visible model that’s made Mutazione a relentless fixture in my mind since I performed it.
Even for those who didn’t know each video games have been by the identical developer on sight alone, it turns into clear when it begins worldbuilding. The journey begins with a easy thriller; a ship’s captain, Maja, has disappeared and the crew vows to trace them down. Players don’t management one character, however relatively the complete solid. While the aim is to search out some leads, the majority of the expertise is spent studying about every island and its particular tradition. One chapter takes me to an observatory perched on a cliff, the place I meet an island filled with curious researchers. Another takes me to a society of non secular guides referred to as dreamsailors who can each assist me discover a means ahead and assist heal any grief I’m carrying. I’m not studying in regards to the ruins of the previous world, however relatively the colourful one which’s sprung from it.
A hopeful story about these distances between us … and what we acquire by braving the gaps.
That studying course of totally occurs by means of dialogue, as Saltsea Chronicles is much more of a straight visible novel than Mutazione. Rather than freely strolling round islands, gamers merely click on on highlighted factors of curiosity to open dialogue exchanges that unfold in a screenplay-like construction, full with stage instructions between traces. That minimal gameplay circulate may be tiring contemplating there are not any voiced traces or auto-advance textual content choices.
The lack of interplay is a little bit of a step down from Mutazione, which expertly pushes gamers to study its lush world by means of freer exploration and a gardening element. I’m extra of a vacationer in Saltsea Chronicles, solely ever attending to work together with my environment by means of native card video games. That’s strengthened by a compendium filled with collectibles that logs all the pieces I’ve seen as a sticker on a web page however doesn’t give me a lot context on them. I’m a sightseer who yearns to be an explorer.
Closing the gap
While there’s a long way in its gameplay, there’s nonetheless sufficient to attract me in over 10 hours of story. Its central thriller is a powerful hook that dips out and in of magical realism. I’m additionally tasked with making some necessary decisions that may have a serious impression on how my story unfolds. Different selections will create ongoing “issues” with my crew that I must work to resolve by means of my dialogue decisions. If I invite a brand new crew member onto my ship, as an illustration, that would create some pressure with my shipmates. There are at all times penalties to my decisions, even when they don’t reveal themselves till a lot later.
What attracts me in additional than something is Saltsea Chronicles’ eclectic solid of characters. I turned invested in everybody’s story by the tip, from the reluctant chief Stew to the radio-obsessed Iris. These characters and their struggles aren’t alone with their issues, although, and developer Die Gute Fabrik emphasizes that with some refined gameplay methods. For one, I’m by no means controlling one character, however the full ensemble. When introduced with dialogue decisions, I’m not a lot given traces a personality will say verbatim as I’m emotional prompts for various characters. I’m extra shaping the interpersonal relationships between the crew as their journey unfolds.
Die Gute Fabrik
That concept is at its most impactful throughout island exploration. In every chapter, I’ve to decide on two characters to take ashore. That determination permits me to deal with resolving particular points between crew members or just be taught extra about every particular person by how they bounce off each other. The most significant second in my journey got here after I despatched Stew and Iris out on a mission collectively, discovering frequent floor between two completely totally different individuals bonded by loss.
Our world doesn’t exist in a vacuum; each individuals and cultures are formed by each other. Sometimes we could really feel like distant islands misplaced at sea, however we’re all collectively in the identical ocean. Saltsea Chronicles celebrates that concept with a hopeful story about these distances between us, whether or not they be bodily or emotional, and what we acquire by braving the gaps. Even if we all know the ocean will wash us all away with time, that doesn’t imply we must always ever cease crusing.
Saltsea Chronicles was examined on PC and Steam Deck.
Editors’ Recommendations