Through a world of monsters and fantasy, Sea of Solitude tells a story about real problems that never get enough attention, especially in video games. It's like looking into the soul of another person.
This game has taught me so much of letting things go that have affected me in the past good and bad, and that no matter what happens, we should always follow the light to lead us to the end of the tunnel. We shouldn’t look back just face for it. Thank you so much Ea for making this game possible. Forever will Sea Of Solitude be one of my favorite games.
While Kay's emotional journey of self-discovery does not pull punches as she learns why she has become a lonely monster, Sea of Solitude struggles to stay afloat at times due to unimaginative gameplay that struggles to evolve beyond the opening moments of the game.
Sea of Solitude tries to tackle more dark and sensitive problems of family relations and depression but fails ultimately to deliver by generalising its story thematic. It still manages to deliver the message it wants to, but completely underestimating player’s intelligence and degrading him into childish storytelling it tries to tell.
So much of the game feels only slightly more cohesive than someone scribbling the word “depression” over, say, a picture of a person being eaten by a shark.
This game is worth everyone's time, especially if they've dealt/are dealing with depression. At $20, it's quality > quantity & is worth every penny. It doesn't overstay its welcome & is one of those rare, truly special games that every gamer (or fan of well-crafted narrative story in general) should experience at least once - not unlike 'What Remains of Edith Finch' - for originality alone. This one will stick with you - SOLID 10/10
Sea of Solitude
Don’t play this on the PS5
I loved Sea of Solitude, this is a game that touches on depression, anxiety, and loss… you play as Kay, shes a monster, in a sea of monsters that all represent somebody from her real life..
And first things first… don’t play this on the playstation 5, its completely unplayable, that isn’t an exaggeration, this broken, 0/10 there… so I had to dust off the ole PS4 for this one… Sea of Solitude is a 3 hour long game that can be thrown onto the same family tree of like an ico game.. its that kind of feeling.. obviously nowhere near as complex, but I just found myself in a trance like state, following this light around, cleansing areas, defeating that sections boss, learning your lesson, and unlocking the next area… youre free to explore as much or as little as youd like, collecting pittles and shooing seguls.. but there isn’t much to explore as again this is a very tiny game, but it was a nice bite size.. It ended right on time.. not feeling too long or too short… this really was a nice story focused unique experience…
I love these types of games that don’t hit you over the head with puzzles and fighting, youre just exploring, interacting with the things you gotta interact with, no searching, no stress… just getting lost in the world and enjoying the ride…
Though admittedly some will find experiences like this to be lacking, I however love every once in a while just taking a break and going through a game like this that isn’t so game heavy..
I nice pallet cleanser in between other stuff.
I also found the story telling to be touching and thought provoking, so there is definitely some substance here.
I give Sea of Solitude
a 7/10
This game is undoubtedly something special. I picked this game up after reading about how it dealt directly with mental health as a main theme - and it certainly does - but the way the game fumbled its way through the topic ended up letting me down. That being said, there are still some 10/10 moments throughout the game in terms of writing and gameplay cohering into compelling (and often frightening) sequences. In terms of art and music design, this game shines beautifully. But I think the game's themes were so overwritten and hamfisted that it spoiled the greatness that the rest of this game has.
Sea of Solitude is a game that means well but ultimately fails in most aspects. It tries to tell a deeper and emotional story but it fails due to laughable writing and amateur voice acting. The gameplay is far too basic and simple to impress and that really only leaves a cool vibe and art style to do all the heavy lifting.
If the concept is handled by a more capable studio and the plot is rewritten by actual writers and performed by professional voice actors Sea of Solitude could turn into a pretty interesting game but what we have here seems more like a proof of concept demo rather than an actual finished product.
Gorgeous visuals and a **** soundtrack highlight an otherwise subpar game. The story tries to be thought provoking and meaningful, but suffers from translation errors, poor voice acting, and writing that ranges from passable to downright laughably bad. The characters are shallow and unlikable, and monsters/NPCs have annoying audio loops that repeat ad nauseum. The gameplay is equally shallow and unlikable, consisting of very basic mechanics that never truly develop into anything special, or unique, or, frankly, even anything fun over the course of the 4 to 5 hours that it will take to beat the game. When you're not simply running from point A to point B to advance the story, you're often kiting monsters repeatedly and running into colored orbs again and again while listening to some grating dialogue. There are some collectibles to find in certain, more open areas, but the game has no way to track what you've picked up, making postgame cleanup tedious.
While all these negatives detract heavily from the game as a whole, the game does have a bit of charm with the aforementioned visuals and soundtrack. Playing through the game was a somewhat relaxing experience when it wasn't being annoying or tedious, so overall I didn't entirely despise my time with the game. I would only recommend playing if you find the game for less than $5 and you have absolutely nothing better to do for a few hours.
SummaryWhen humans get too lonely, they turn into monsters
Sea of Solitude takes you on a personal journey of a young woman's loneliness. Set sail across a beautiful and evolving world, where nothing is quite what it seems. Meet fantastical creatures and monsters, learn their stories, and solve challenges. Explore a flooded city, either by ...