These additions, however, feel entirely superfluous and often do more to pull you out of the moment rather than appreciate it. The Director’s Cut adds features especially for the Switch, specifically designed for the purpose of taking it all in, with a new customizable photo mode and “gyroscopic integration” to make taking the perfect screenshot that much easier. Sea of Solitude strongly encourages you to take these moments. Probably better to fly away from the giant sea monster It’s a pleasure to just take a moment and look and listen to what’s going on. It’s complemented by an equally strong score: unique tracks for each chapter know when to be subtle, and when to add to the emotional weight of a scene. Voice acting is excellent throughout and manages to convey emotionally significant moments without being melodramatic. If these were weaknesses of the original version then they are not here. I haven’t played the original version of Sea of Solitude that came out in 2019, but the Director’s Cut promises “a rewritten script” and “a new cast of voice actors”. The sequences are never very difficult, and Sea of Solitude does not punish you too much for failing, but there were certainly times where a drawn-out monster encounter caused me to lose interest by the time it was over.įortunately, the strong storytelling was more than enough to motivate me to see Kay’s story through.
![sea of solitude seagulls sea of solitude seagulls](https://respawnfirst.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/12-1.jpg)
In one sequence you need to climb a tower, but it’s higher than it needed to be in another, you’ll have to collect some glowing orbs while avoiding foes, but there didn’t need to be so many orbs or so many foes. These sequences start interesting but can sometimes drag on a little too long. Each chapter is centered around one or more of these monsters, and ends with a boss fight of sorts, in which Kay will attempt to deal with the monster in one way or another. While the whole “metaphorical inner demon becomes literal outer demon” plot may sound a little cliché, Sea of Solitude does it well, and rarely feels heavy-handed. Let’s talk about the monsters, which you’ll quickly learn are representations of different people and problems in Kay’s life. On second thought, maybe I don’t need to explore over here It would have been nice, for instance, to have had the opportunity to learn more about the monsters themselves. But while messages in bottles add some nice additional context to the narrative, it feels like there could have been more going on in the sunken city. That’s not really a big deal in a game like this: it is primarily trying to tell a story, and that means that you won’t be able to deviate from the intended path. While there are some knickknacks to collect – messages in bottles are hidden around each area, and you can “shoo” seagulls away – Sea of Solitude typically has only one way of getting from point A to point B. Visuals are simple but compelling and make good use of lighting and weather effects to keep the settings looking fresh. In later chapters, the water levels rise and fall, exposing and hiding different areas that serve as the backdrop for each sequence. You can get off to explore, although there’s typically not a lot of ground to cover. At first, you’ll travel mostly by boat, with the sea levels covering most of the buildings, except for their roofs. The world itself is small, taking place around a sunken city, but it’s used in clever ways to add variety to different chapters of the story. You might recognize Quantic Dream as the studio associated with other narrative-focused games like Detroit: Become Human, Beyond: Two Souls, and Heavy Rain, and Sea of Solitude fits in quite well with these titles. Lost at Seaĭeveloped by Jo-Mei and published by Quantic Dream, Sea of Solitude is driven by its story, with some light exploration and platforming elements. You can find Sea of Solitude: Director’s Cut on PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch.
![sea of solitude seagulls sea of solitude seagulls](https://www.powerpyx.com/wp-content/uploads/sea-of-solitude-collectible-location-67-768x360.jpg)
It doesn’t last very long, but it’s memorable, and an experience worth having. Throughout this Director’s Cut of Sea of Solitude, you’ll guide her through her confrontations with these monsters, and try to figure out whether Kay herself should be counted among them. Protagonist Kay herself bears some striking similarities with the monsters she faces, a shadow of a person with glowing red eyes and a bright orange backpack.
![sea of solitude seagulls sea of solitude seagulls](https://www.powerpyx.com/wp-content/uploads/sea-of-solitude-collectible-location-7-1-768x368.jpg)
![sea of solitude seagulls sea of solitude seagulls](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/OT-8axm4S_M/maxresdefault.jpg)
They take the form of sea creatures, ravens, wolves, and chameleons, among others, and it’s not always clear which are friends and which are foes, whether they need to be defeated or saved. Some try to devour you, some run away from you, and some refuse to acknowledge your existence. Sea of Solitude is a game about monsters.