Beyond Blue has finally launched for PC and console platforms, and it is a real treat for players to experience an immersive, beautiful underwater narrative adventure game. E-Line Media has partnered with BBC Studios and features videos from Blue Planet II and experts in the field to lend credibility to the material presented. Players are here to explore the complexity of the oceans through a scientific lens of real-world exploration, where elusive wildlife can be found and studied in a game that is one of the most impressive blends of education and entertainment ever made.
Dive On, Mirai
The core gameplay allows players to take control of Mirai, a woman with a lifelong passion for free diving and ocean life from her time spent with her grandmother, a world-renowned freediver.
From the beginning, we learn that Mirai has been given a special, new device that allows for breathing that is far less cumbersome than traditional diving equipment, allowing her to track down sea life, and then scan different inhabitants of the ocean to learn about behavior and communication, all under the framework of creating an informative podcast with characters André and Irina.
Immersive Edutainment
In no time at all, we were deep into the immersion of being underwater with fascinating creatures, from small fish to massive whales. As players progress in their tasks, the game works seamlessly to integrate familiar-looking documentary footage for those who have seen the BBC productions of Planet Earth and Blue Planet.
The blend of these two elements provides a constant stream of educational information, but it is so well blended into the core gameplay that it simply feels like useful exposition to build upon the world of the character, which in this case, is our world as well.
Episodic Diving, But Unfortunately, Not Open World
The game takes place over the course of eight principle dives. During this time players will have the opportunity to expand their collection of information about what lives in the ocean. Between dives places the player inside the main research station where the narrative can advance with the other characters, which is interesting, but ultimately not as fleshed out as it could have been relative to the main issues we are presented with during our dives, which generally deal with the realities facing our ocean ecosystems today and the struggles for the future.
Short, Great, And Well-Priced
In total, Beyond Blue takes around seven hours or so to complete, and potential buyers should know that if they are looking for a game with long-term potential, this is not it. Still, Beyond Blue is certainly worth replaying in the same way that such great documentaries like Planet Earth and Blue Planet are worth rewatching from time to time, because the blend of well-made narrative structure blended with great sound and great-looking environments is an experience that borders on the fantastic, giving us a glimpse into a part of the world most of us will never see in person.
With this framework, it would be outstanding to see additional content added, an open world, and mods for our own narrative adventures.
We’re not sure exactly what lies ahead following the release of Beyond Blue, but we do hope that more is done with the game, which in its current form could even be considered as a soft launching point. A logical step that would make this game far easier to recommend would be future DLC featuring additional dives and new stories, though nothing of the sort has been announced, it still seems like this is the direction that the game should take.
Next, this game could do well with a true sandbox mode and procedural generated maps, and since there is no real objective to speak of outside of the narrative-driven tasks from the main dives, this could simply be an opportunity to explore. Right now, players do have the opportunity to revisit any previous dives once the main story has been complete, but this feels more limited than it should.
Finally, and most exciting of all, could be the ability to mod one's own narrative adventures through the workshop. Since the game is available on several platforms this would only work on something like Steam, of course, but it would definitely provide a way for fans of the game to create their own stories and provide new content.
All of these points are to say that Beyond Blue was a great experience from beginning to end, but that end arrives far sooner than a game like this deserves, and it would be a shame to see a game that mixes entertainment and education so will lost to obscurity due to its short length and potentially no future plans to expand on its content.
Dive In And Enjoy The Adventure
Without a doubt, Beyond Blue sets out to blend immersion of the deep blue seas and real, high-quality documentary material to provide an unforgettable experience. It may be short, but it should not be missed. While it is also available on mobile devices, it is certainly best experienced on a PC or console with a nice, large screen and some headphones.
A review code for Beyond Blue was provided for the PC version of the game on Steam, and can be purchased now also on the Epic Games Store, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One, with a planned future release on the Nintendo Switch.
Beyond Blue