If I were to level one criticism at this game, it is that I wish they had been brave and ditched the combat entirely. As a half narrative focused walking Sim, and half platformer, this game is exceptional. The combat sections were a barrier I had to get past to enjoy the bits I did like. I can’t help feeling the combat was added to appease the “it’s not a game“ people. Everything else about this game is incredible. Artistically it is 10 out of 10 beyond question. Fantastic art style and environments, wonderful soundtrack, and every single one of the storylines hit hard. It is unmissable but with the caveat that this may not appeal to the typical “gamer“ for whom the combat will not be up to par or a high enough percentage of the game.
I'm playing on PSVR2 and this is a killer app in my view. Graphics are incredible and gameplay strikes a good balance between simulation and mass market accessibility. I think too many people want a hard-core sim tuned for those who have built a cockpit in their basement, when in reality this is an excellent game for the typical player using typical peripherals. The only weaknesses are that the tutorials are practically non-existent, and what tutorials there are, are very weak. Also, I have no interest in playing online against the basement sim rig brigade (as their specialist equipment will give them an unfair advantage), and only wish to play single player. In that regard, I feel they do need to release some expansion packs with a large number of addition story missions. I’d happily pay for some single player expansion packs, so I hope they can make that happen.
The walking sim genre is more "marmite" than any other, so this game is not for those who don't like the genre. As walking sims go, this is one of the greats, although not quite a contender for "greatest" due to some issues. It hits all the right notes for a walking sim. Brilliant recreation of a mid-70's North Sea oil rig (albeit not sure about the VHS tapes?), that is fun just to walk around and examine the assets. Excellent writing, characters and voice acting that emotionally invest you in the story. The ending certainly hit the spot too and successfully delivered the developers intended effect on this player. The negatives would be some clumsy feeling platforming moments, bugs that resulted in me having to reload from a checkpoint on 3 separate occasions, and some stealth sections that I personally don't find fun. I was playing on the standard difficulty and there is an easier story mode in fairness. If you are a fan of Everybody's Gone to the Rapture, Soma, Edith Finch, Ethan Carter, Gone Home etc etc, you will thoroughly enjoy this and it is a must-purchase/Gamepass sub. I think all of those games do something slightly better than Still Wakes the Deep, but it also does some things where it betters them. On balance it earns its right to be mentioned in the same sentence as those classics and is well deserving of an 8.5/10 if I were scoring it. A game you will remember for a long time.
