Table of Contents
Introduction of Submerged:
Submerged is a non-combat exploration game set in a post-apocalyptic city that has been destroyed by some unspecified event leaving the city flooded and overgrown. You play as Miku, who has to search the town for supplies to help her injured brother Taku. There are 10 items to find at the top of large buildings across the city. As you find each one, you are rewarded with more details of the character’s backstory in the form of a pictographic storyboard.
Details of Submerged:
Firstly, this game looks fantastic. The environment’s design is incredibly well done, and the lighting effects are stunning, especially at sunset. It’s gorgeous; enough said. At the beginning of the game, I was a little frustrated by the number of cut scenes. It seemed to be cut-scene, walk a few meters, trigger cut-scene, walk a few meters, trigger cut-scene. Rinse and repeat. But this didn’t last for that long, and once this opening section is over, the game leaves you to it.
I found the controls were great for the climbing sections, but I struggled to control the boat pretty much all the time. I’m unsure if that’s an issue with the game or just an issue with me. I’ve never been good at driving games. I’m just glad you’re boat doesn’t take damage.
This game has no combat, so when I first encountered what I affectionately refer to as the ‘creepy dudes’, I was a little concerned about what direction this game was headed. I don’t want to spoil any of the plots, but this game isn’t scary; no need to be afraid of these guys. I will say no more.
My gaming experience of Submerged:
Whilst playing, I couldn’t help but be reminded of Shadow of the Colossus. Both games begin with your character carrying a person and placing them on a stone plinth. In both games, you climb a series of big things to reach a goal near the top, and each time you complete a stage, the process affects your character. But then I struggled to finish Shadow of the Colossus and found it rather stressful, so perhaps Submerged could be described as a stress-free version of that game.
You uncover the story of what happened to the city by finding collectibles. These are scattered across the vast map, and I only saw about half on my first play-through. I was able to get the gist of the story, I think, and I love how it’s just told through pictures. If you’re a completionist,n you will love this game aspect. I was able to complete the game in about two hours, but because of all the secrets to find, I think it has a lot of replayability.
Conclusion:
The total price of £15 might be a little steep for the length of the content, but I think it is still a delightful experience that I would recommend for unwinding with. However, when my anxiety was at its worst, I think the ‘creepy dudes’ would have been a bit too much for me to handle, and I probably would have stopped playing once I came across them. If this sounds like you, then maybe give this one a miss until you’re up to it.
Because of this, I give submerged a chill-out rating of 3.5 and thank you so much for reading, and I will catch you in the following article.