Endless Ocean Blue World is an old favorite of mine which I recently replayed. The story is interesting, if not somewhat predictable. The mysteries it creates are both interesting and a lil bit stupid (the radio in Cavern of the Gods, the amnesiac diver from Fragments of Memory). By and large, the models hold up surprisingly well for a 2009 game, and I personally really like the look of the scenery and backgrounds in the game.

I think the biggest problem is the amount of grinding you have to do. Reopening the Cavern of the Gods costs 1,000,000 pelagos ($), but it's impossible to make more than 30,000 pelagos from repeatable treasure hauls. And then there's all of the Titles (achievements) you can earn. Attracting 1,000,000 visitors to the Aquarium is slow as hell. Dolphin training is slow as hell. One of the titles requires you to have traveled a distance of 600 mi, but by the time I had finished every quest (quests and treasure rumors, not titles) I hadn't even traveled 100 miles!

And a lot of the systems are arcane and hard to follow, like the rating system for photos (especially photos of landmarks) or some of the things aquarium audiences want to see.

But, to me there's so many beautiful and soothing things about this game that keeps me coming back. The light shining through the windows of the Underwater Gallery, the sound of the rain hitting the surface of the Cortica River above you, sitting by the campfire on Nineball Island, hearing the beautiful instrumental music or Celtic Woman's songs, seeing all the cetaceans gathered at the end of the game's story, and so much more.

I could complain about this game for many different things, but I love it for many more.

Blue World improves on its predessor in a multitude of ways. The different maps means that variety is constantly being added which was a major issue with the previous title. Also, this game just has a lot more to do in it. Coins, treasure hunting, legendary creatures, dolphin training, and sidequests are all great side options that keeps the gameplay from feeling too one note. It feels like an actual game this time around rather than a simple diving simulator like the previous title. This game just has so much MORE to it and I love it. The characters are also quite fun as well which wasn't something I expected. Oceana, Jean-Eric, G.G., and Hayako are all fun characters to have around and it makes the whole operation feel more like a team. There are also some pretty damn emotional story moments, particularly with the Abyss. While I think this game's Abyss is far weaker gameplaywise than the previous game's, I think the narrative of it is so damn compelling. I hadn't played this game in years and once I reached the Abyss, when Celtic Woman's "Last Rose of Summer" started playing, I was floored. The majesty of the soundtrack coupled with the story related reasons for why you're down there was so powerful. It genuinely moved me. Now, my issues with the game stem from the fact that some maps feel underdeveloped. Namely, the Zahhab Region, Cortica River, and North Coast of Canada. Half of Zahhab is pretty typical coral stuff with entrances to the Cavern of the Gods and the Abyss present, but the other half is the open ocean which on paper sounds pretty neat. But it's just... Nothingness. There are some neat stuff like Leviathan, the Orcas, and Cameroceras, but other than that I felt like it could have had much more. North Coast of Canada just feels so uninteresting and undeveloped in comparison to Weddell Sea which is up there as one of the best maps in the game next to Ciceros Strait. It's just so tiny and there aren't any vertical structures that make exploration interesting. I get that the environments of the poles are drastically different, but I think they could have made this area like an Alaskan kelp forest or something along those lines to distinguish it. Lastly, Cortica River being the only freshwater map in the series is pretty awesome but also it's just a linear path to a somewhat interesting ruin. I feel like they could've done a lot more with that at least. Regardless, this is certainly one of my favorite games ever made and I want a sequel so bad it hurts. Please give it a chance!