Under The Waves review - alone in the abyss

Review info

Platform reviewed: PC
Available on: PC, PS5, Xbox Series X|S
Release date: August 29, 2023

Under The Waves is an awe-inspiring story-rich adventure into the ocean's dark depths and one man’s psyche. While the grand ocean canyons are glorious, soon you'll realize that this underwater world is somewhat empty.

However, follow the story through completing the various missions, and you’ll find a story which is just as fulfilling as it is sad. The meat here is slowly learning about the main character's past and what drove him to venture deep into the depths.

You’ll follow protagonist Stan into the North Sea as he works for a company that becomes more sinister the closer you look. Throughout your time monitoring their submarine facilities and repairing broken machinery, you appreciate not only the beauty of the sea but also the ugly nature of what humanity is doing to it as you clean up plastic and cover up oil spills. In this solitary confinement, Stan also has no choice but to reflect on the recent passing of his daughter. This experience makes for some truly insightful and heart-wrenching experiences that’ll resonate with you long after you close down the game.

Don’t look too close

Under The Waves is a stunning single-player game with forgotten rocky crevices and vast open water sections that house all sorts of magnificent creatures. Exploring the map in your trusty submarine nicknamed Moon is all sorts of fun. I loved racing through schools of fish or watching from afar as a gigantic whale made its way slowly across my screen. If you’re a fan of the lonely adventures in the dark bottom of the ocean, then Under The Waves has a lot to offer.

There are also several structures to enjoy on the ocean bed, each with its own distinct ambience. Having the cozy and safe structure of the base was a welcome change from drifting around in the cold and harsh sea. While activities were limited in here, crafting supplies, making a coffee, or even just staring out your porthole from a warm and soft bed gave me some much-needed respite from the otherwise emotionally taxing story.

Best bit

My favorite part of Under The Waves had to be the sinister dream sequences. These nightmares were a psychedelic trip underwater, filled with broken memories, ominous sounds, and frightening visuals. Travelling through these distorted oceanic locations made me feel smaller than I had ever felt before.

There are also several structures to enjoy on the ocean bed, each with its own distinct ambience. Having the cozy and safe structure of the base was a welcome change from drifting around in the cold and harsh sea. While activities were limited in here, crafting supplies, making a coffee, or even just staring out your porthole from a warm and soft bed gave me some much-needed respite from the otherwise emotionally taxing story.

On the other hand, you have the decaying corporate structures scattered across the map, such as The Terminal. This emits an entirely different atmosphere from your warm deep sea base. Swimming around the dark, or ominously glowing red hallways made my imagination run wild. While this certainly isn’t a horror game, I couldn’t help but feel on edge at almost every moment in these claustrophobic corridors.

Unfortunately, as soon as you look a little closer at Under The Waves, the atmosphere crumbles under the weight of  various glitches and bugs. At moments when I would be travelling across a seriously strange and awe-inspiring dreamscape I’d at times accidentally turn the camera so I could see the character’s face while talking. Instead of focusing on the glorious landscape or heartfelt words all I could see was Stan’s mouth garbelling at random as he desperately tried to keep up with the words leaving his mouth.

There’s also very little in the way of crafting and action. While there are a few adrenaline-filled moments, you're mostly guided through this story with convenient item drops, which meant I had to spend very little time crafting or searching for materials.

These small quirks plagued my time in Under The Waves. Whether it was my character jankily repositioning himself to get through small entrances or accidentally phasing through one particularly happy and friendly seal. While this doesn’t mean that this story rich game is unplayable, it does put a damper on what would otherwise be a terrific emotional experience.

The sound of the sea

However, there are so many more elements of Under The Waves that round this title off beautifully. One of my favorite elements had to be the soundscaping and music that accompanied my dangerous endeavors.

As previously established, the story at the centre of Under The Waves is more than just a little emotional; while the fantastic voice work ensures that you feel the main character’s pain in every way, the soundtrack was the nail in the tissue-filled coffin for me. Traversing through strange dreamscapes or seeing an image of your daughter again is always paired with heart-wrenching music or ethereal sounds, which make the emotional impact all the more devastating.

On the other hand, I also enjoyed how quiet Under The Waves was while you’re traversing through the open desolate ocean. The quiet and distant bellows of sea creatures, along with the reliable hum of your submarine, permeates the vacuum-like ocean floor, making me feel smaller than I ever had before. It’s a feeling that you can’t get from many games, and one that I greatly enjoy, in a twisted sense.

While Under The Waves does lack some final polish, it delivers an emotionally thoughtful story, beautiful landscapes and an equally brilliant accompanying soundtrack. If you’re a fan of narrative-driven adventures and don’t mind an adventure game that’s on the easier side, then Under The Waves is just the tale for you.

Accessibility

Accessibility features for Under The Waves are solid for a game of its size. You can toggle subtitles and change their size as well as the background to suit your needs best. There's also options to change the HUD color as well as its radar size and objectives size. Finally, there is the possibility to change button mash interactions as well as enable or disable camera sway and vibrations.

How we reviewed

It took me about seven hours to complete the main story of Under The Water, while I tried exploring for a bit which added some more time. On top of this, I soon found myself out of ideas and ways to explore the ocean floor. While there were some constant glitches for both the main character and the wider landscape, these never felt as if they impacted my experience to a massive extent while in the story-driven game.

If you're a fan of expansive landscapes and thoughtful tales, be sure to check out these best story games that are available to play right now.