Solo developer, indie developer, a husband and wife team… it sometimes sounds like a boxer who loses a fight and says they were injured beforehand: they’re the underdog; they have limited resources, they aren’t a triple-A studio. That’s all baloney. Credit due, where credit’s due, and Forgotten Seas is a game that’s better than so many similar titles that have an abundance of devs, artists, and alchemists at the helm.
Without naming and shaming, there are a ton of dynasty-like games that Forgotten Seas sort of emulates, but does so much better. Yes, first impressions might seem clunky, run-of-the-mill, and using AI voiceovers that are a little…poo. Nevertheless, if it weren’t for the fact that time isn’t a construct, and I have to stop, breathe, eat, and do life stuff, I’d happily invest an unhealthy amount of time into this open world experience.
Don’t assume this is a pirate game from the imagery. Well, it is a pirate game, though the narrative thread is that of the Bermuda Triangle and linking to real-life tales of pilots disappearing in 1945. Irrespective of whether you’re a conspiracy theorist, believe in the occult, or have breakfast that features a base layer of cereal (though people are the worst), it doesn’t matter, as that’s the premise.
After crash-landing in the tropics, you swim to an island almost starkers and without a basketball/volleyball – whatever Hanks had on him, and then have to fend for yourself. Multiple objectives plaster across the screen; some are tasks you’ve almost certainly done from all the other survival games you’ve played, but now you have to do them again to clear your screen space. That’s a bit annoying, but the depth and immersion of Forgotten Seas is not.
Fresh out of Early Access, this open world survival experience has you hacking down palm trees, spearing schools of fish, and taking down bearded folk with West Country accents. You could, in theory, stay on your little island, but if, like me, you’ve slapped a turtle, those fellas won’t forgive and will stalk you throughout. The next best thing? Build yourself a boat, or pull it out of a bottle.
Yes, the latter part is a bit weird, but you can ‘mount’ a slooper simply by throwing a bottle into the sea. Tool tips occasionally plague the world of Forgotten Seas, though you’ll soon forget, as that itch is ever-present to explore the cluster of islands, take down other ships, and more or less craft yourself a mighty pirate worthy of Threepwood.
The control system is intuitive, and after a couple of experiments or reading of in-game codecs, the crafting elements are quite excellent in that there are always marginal gains promoting new weapons, attire, or recipes that accommodate your need for nutrition, hydration, and energy. If you lack all the above, expect to spawn at your ship, or the last place you propped up some coconut trees you call ‘home’.
Forgotten Seas is yet another third-person survival experience is a sea <ahem> of titles. While it won’t stand out like a Hooters girl in a skimpy crop top mid-November, if you pause for a moment and take note of all the cool things you can do, perhaps this might be the blueprints for your next Libertatia on Steam.
