I remember the first time I descended into those glowing waters, my AI companion's calm voice guiding me through what promised to be an extraordinary underwater adventure. The initial moments felt magical - schools of luminescent fish creating living constellations in the dark waters, their bioluminescence painting the ocean with otherworldly light. But as I progressed through what the game calls its "story missions," I couldn't shake the feeling that something was missing from this beautifully rendered underwater world. The narrative elements felt surprisingly thin, almost like an afterthought in what otherwise presents itself as a story-driven diving experience.
The structure itself puzzled me - these story missions are surprisingly brief, sometimes lasting no more than five to seven minutes each. On at least three separate occasions, I found myself genuinely surprised when a mission concluded, thinking I was merely in the introductory phase. The missions often function more like extended tutorials than substantial narrative experiences, which makes the requirement of accumulating significant free-roaming playtime to unlock them feel particularly strange. Why gate what essentially amounts to basic instruction behind hours of exploration? It creates this odd disconnect where you're essentially grinding through random dives just to access what feels like training content.
Then there's Daniel, the supposedly brash fellow diver who joins you occasionally. The game tries to present him as this bold, adventurous character, but he consistently reveals himself to be surprisingly timid when faced with any actual underwater challenges. While this character contrast could have been interesting, it never really develops beyond this single personality trait. He shows up, makes some boastful comments, then panics at the first sign of anything unusual. After the third iteration of this pattern, his appearances became predictable rather than engaging.
What truly baffled me was the mission that turned out to be just a cutscene - nearly three minutes of passive watching with no diving gameplay whatsoever. In a game centered around the joy of underwater exploration, removing the interactive element from what's supposed to be a key story moment feels like a fundamental design misstep. It's especially disappointing considering how beautifully rendered the underwater environments are - you want to be swimming through them, not watching them like a movie.
The occasional bright spots do shine through, just not frequently enough. I'll never forget encountering the massive phantom whale - a creature so enormous and beautifully designed that it genuinely took my breath away. Similarly, discovering the crystal jellyfish forest with its intricate, glowing formations created one of those magical gaming moments that stays with you. But these highlights are separated by hours of relatively mundane diving where you're essentially just checking off objectives. I'd estimate only about 15-20% of the story content delivers these memorable experiences.
The meta-story involving the ancient relic with its 99 slots feels particularly underwhelming as a narrative device. You're essentially collecting artifacts scattered randomly throughout your dives or completing achievement objectives to fill these slots, but it never evolves beyond feeling like a completionist's checklist. There's no emotional weight or compelling reason to pursue these collectibles beyond the simple satisfaction of checking boxes. After filling about 47 slots myself, I realized I was engaging with this system more out of habit than genuine interest.
What's frustrating is that the foundation for something truly special exists here. The diving mechanics feel smooth and intuitive, the underwater environments are visually stunning, and the concept of exploring mysterious oceanic phenomena has incredible potential. But the narrative elements never rise to match the quality of the core gameplay. The story missions needed more substantial content - proper character development, meaningful plot progression, and more frequent encounters with the fantastical marine life that makes the world so compelling.
I found myself wishing the developers had either committed to a more substantial narrative experience or embraced the free-roaming exploration more fully. The current hybrid approach satisfies neither completely, leaving the story feeling underdeveloped while simultaneously restricting the pure joy of exploration. There's a great game here waiting to emerge, but it's buried beneath inconsistent design choices and missed opportunities. For now, it remains a beautiful diving simulator with narrative ambitions that never quite find their depth.
