Have you guys ever seen a video game cover and immediately had a song pop in your head? Experienced a synesthesia-type effect wherein a pure image sprouted some instant cranial medley? Well when I first saw the cover for ABZÛ, such a phenomena happened, the lucky track in this case being the first few notes from Amiss Abyss’s melody. For those unaware, it’s a tune that plays during certain aquatic levels of Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze, a motif that more than befit ABZÛ’s premise of underwater extravaganza….or so I thought. Unfortunately, those preliminary aural vibes didn’t represent the game’s actual composition, that figure being a gorgeous door opening simulator.
I wish I was kidding, but that’s sadly the truth. ABZÛ gained fame early-on as a spiritual successor to Journey, and while I haven’t played that title yet as of the writing of this review, I’m under the impression its appeal rested on seamless exploration of a strange yet beautiful land. ABZÛ, to its credit, occupies a similar vein for about the first third of its runtime, but soon after forsakes that in favor of a repetitive gameplay loop involving your unnamed diver character (Abzû?) opening up gate after gate after gate.
If that weren’t bland enough, such monotony is “broken up” with two other repetitive beats: activating beacons and riding riptides, and while they’re all swaddled-up in a mesmerizing package, the reality is it doesn’t make for an enjoyable game. Visuals can only go so far, and even by walking sim standards, ABZÛ fails to live up to the myriad of titles that have blown up the genre beyond basic ambling: Firewatch gave us a thriller angle, Gone Home nostalgic paraphernalia, and even Layers of Fear had tragic undertones. ABZÛ, au contraire, is nothing but fish, machinery, and water wrapped around a vague tale reportedly inspired by Sumerian Mythology of which you’ll learn very little courtesy of the lack of dialogue. And yes, I get that Journey did the same schtick; however, a quick Wikipedia glance tells me Journey wasn’t interested in conveying some ancient culture’s folklore (that type of storytelling being intrinsically tied to words as much as imagery).
As such, I genuinely didn’t understand what ABZÛ was trying to say about its foreign heritage. Sure, I could glean the general story, but in terms of a deeper ancestral lineage or fable-esque moral, there wasn’t anything tangible to grasp minus basic environmentalism -- a shame considering how little Sumerian-inspired games there are out on the market.
I don’t mean to be too harsh as, graphically-speaking, ABZÛ is most-definitely a near-masterpiece. Like I said in the second paragraph, this is a strikingly-beautiful title ripe with eye candy galore for demersal enthusiasts out there. Because you’re underwater for 95% of the game, you don’t actually don’t get much in the way of liquid physics; however, where ABZÛ excels is in its assortment of marine fauna. It would’ve been very easy to do what the vast majority of games with thallasic settings implement- simply program an assortment of multicolored fish to paddle about as you traverse their habitats.
However, Giant Squid clearly had other plans in mind. You see, every single specimen you encounter in ABZÛ’s world is specially-chiseled: the way they look, the way they move, the way they turn. I went in expecting recycled animations ad nauseam and instead found myself staring in awe at the way different species twiddled their tails or swam upwards, and when we’re talking about HUNDREDS of wavy critters (including extinct ones!), that is a phenomenal achievement. I have to believe someone on Giant Squid’s team was an aspiring biologist in light of the heavy taxonomy on display here, from anglerfish to blue whales to archelon to of course Jaws himself.
Besides the animals, you’ll occasionally come across sunken temples adorned with painted tiles reminiscent of illuminated manuscript covers. They’ve been assembled into paintings, presumably representative of major tales from the Sumerian people, and while I would’ve liked to have seen more of them, what you have here is vivid enough. Other GFX additions I enjoyed were the spreading of oceanic dust whenever you whooshed over it, the parting of flora as you drifted through patches, and Abzu’s eyes turning to match your camera position.
In terms of hitches, my only real complaints would be, as mentioned earlier, the lack of genuine liquid physics for Abzu’s movements when gliding/emerging/submerging (i.e., limited splashing/stroking leaving you nothing but a generic stream), as well as the design for Abzu’s face. I don’t quite know why, but there was something inherently scary about her midnight countenance and slanted eyes -- it reminded me a lot of The Prince of Egypt, which, as amazing a film as it was, had similarly-offputting geometry for its ocular organs.
Sound-wise, ABZÛ is a very confused game. Keeping my ears open throughout, I genuinely got a sense the engineers didn’t know whether they wanted their SFX to have an underwater filter on them or not, this ambivalence leading to a lot of inconsistency. For example, the various turbines and sprawling hatches resound with hydroacoustic fervor; however, the closing of entryways, flow of subaqueous streams, and hum of electronic machinery reverberate as though you were on land. Other phenomena, like withdrawing anemones, animal noises, and waterfalls, are either mute or significantly diminished in sonoric quality. Don’t get me wrong, ABZÛ’s sound design isn’t distracting by any means (all of the above resonating well despite their flaws); however, I can’t say you’ll be as immersed as you should have been.
Thankfully, the game more than makes-up for this with its OST, handled by Journeyman Austin Wintory. Wintory’s always been a Jack-of-all-Trades/Master-of-All type composer, and here he lets that dexterity truly shine via tossing-in a bunch of different beats -- you’ll hear his signature vocals, James Horner-esque orchestral overtures, and even harp-based harmonics throughout your odyssey, and what’s amazing is how well it all bends to the players’ playstyle. Reading the Wikipedia entry, I saw this was deliberately designed by Wintory due to the semi-freeroam nature of the game, and, having beaten it, I can gladly say he has absolutely nailed these cues to a tee: ABZÛ is a title that knows when to speed-up, slow-down, amplify, or downright shut-up as you float around its seascapes. It’s a grand score, my sole quandary being this uppity, pluck-based tune that sometimes played during excursions, its chords sounding out-of-place ala a Super Mario Galaxy track.
If the gameplay had been even half as good as its music ABZÛ would be an instant recommendation, yet you’ll find that isn’t the case, and what’s sad is it didn’t have to be this way: ABZÛ could’ve easily settled for being a swimming simulator within a vast ocean of spectacle; wherein the goal was to simply bathe in those Neptunian dreams we’ve witnessed in countless enterprises ala Avatar, Aquaman, or The Lost Empire. Unfortunately, not only do none of the game’s vistas stay with you, you’re also privy to some genuinely boring gameplay entailing the unlocking of mammothian gateways in order to access hidden shrines (the ultimate goal being to activate all of these shrines). Occasionally, the devs try and mix things up via tossing the diver down a roaring rapid, but, as I hinted at before, even this is mediocre in light of it essentially being on rails(+).
In addition, ABZÛ lacks basic features that would’ve gone a long way towards bestowing it extra value, including a toggle “run” function, as well as photo mode (I seriously don’t understand how that went missing during the development phase given the myriad of unique visual assets about you).
In light of all this, I ultimately was not a fan of the end product. Keep in mind, though, thousands of people out there genuinely enjoyed their time with ABZÛ, and you could very well be one of them -- just don’t forget the very real flaws that cloud this diamond’s shine.
NOTES
+You can technically move to hit these schools of flashing fish, but you’re not in any danger if you don’t touch the controls (plus I’m convinced they only put in this facet for achievements/trophies).
-There are two recurring leitmotifs in the official soundtrack I wish to highlight: first, a somber horn melody, and second, a choir-based harmony that brings to mind similar ones heard in Sinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas and The Fate of Atlantis DLC from Assassin’s Creed Odyssey (I have to wonder if it’s a just thing composers have consciously-decided to incorporate into seafaring compositions).
-You’ll encounter some fish and structures with glowing eyes/facades, and I have to praise Giant Squid for their quality bioluminescent lighting.
-There are collectables you can acquire, but I don’t see anyone being motivated enough to do so considering the lack of good rewards.
I wish I was kidding, but that’s sadly the truth. ABZÛ gained fame early-on as a spiritual successor to Journey, and while I haven’t played that title yet as of the writing of this review, I’m under the impression its appeal rested on seamless exploration of a strange yet beautiful land. ABZÛ, to its credit, occupies a similar vein for about the first third of its runtime, but soon after forsakes that in favor of a repetitive gameplay loop involving your unnamed diver character (Abzû?) opening up gate after gate after gate.
If that weren’t bland enough, such monotony is “broken up” with two other repetitive beats: activating beacons and riding riptides, and while they’re all swaddled-up in a mesmerizing package, the reality is it doesn’t make for an enjoyable game. Visuals can only go so far, and even by walking sim standards, ABZÛ fails to live up to the myriad of titles that have blown up the genre beyond basic ambling: Firewatch gave us a thriller angle, Gone Home nostalgic paraphernalia, and even Layers of Fear had tragic undertones. ABZÛ, au contraire, is nothing but fish, machinery, and water wrapped around a vague tale reportedly inspired by Sumerian Mythology of which you’ll learn very little courtesy of the lack of dialogue. And yes, I get that Journey did the same schtick; however, a quick Wikipedia glance tells me Journey wasn’t interested in conveying some ancient culture’s folklore (that type of storytelling being intrinsically tied to words as much as imagery).
As such, I genuinely didn’t understand what ABZÛ was trying to say about its foreign heritage. Sure, I could glean the general story, but in terms of a deeper ancestral lineage or fable-esque moral, there wasn’t anything tangible to grasp minus basic environmentalism -- a shame considering how little Sumerian-inspired games there are out on the market.
I don’t mean to be too harsh as, graphically-speaking, ABZÛ is most-definitely a near-masterpiece. Like I said in the second paragraph, this is a strikingly-beautiful title ripe with eye candy galore for demersal enthusiasts out there. Because you’re underwater for 95% of the game, you don’t actually don’t get much in the way of liquid physics; however, where ABZÛ excels is in its assortment of marine fauna. It would’ve been very easy to do what the vast majority of games with thallasic settings implement- simply program an assortment of multicolored fish to paddle about as you traverse their habitats.
However, Giant Squid clearly had other plans in mind. You see, every single specimen you encounter in ABZÛ’s world is specially-chiseled: the way they look, the way they move, the way they turn. I went in expecting recycled animations ad nauseam and instead found myself staring in awe at the way different species twiddled their tails or swam upwards, and when we’re talking about HUNDREDS of wavy critters (including extinct ones!), that is a phenomenal achievement. I have to believe someone on Giant Squid’s team was an aspiring biologist in light of the heavy taxonomy on display here, from anglerfish to blue whales to archelon to of course Jaws himself.
Besides the animals, you’ll occasionally come across sunken temples adorned with painted tiles reminiscent of illuminated manuscript covers. They’ve been assembled into paintings, presumably representative of major tales from the Sumerian people, and while I would’ve liked to have seen more of them, what you have here is vivid enough. Other GFX additions I enjoyed were the spreading of oceanic dust whenever you whooshed over it, the parting of flora as you drifted through patches, and Abzu’s eyes turning to match your camera position.
In terms of hitches, my only real complaints would be, as mentioned earlier, the lack of genuine liquid physics for Abzu’s movements when gliding/emerging/submerging (i.e., limited splashing/stroking leaving you nothing but a generic stream), as well as the design for Abzu’s face. I don’t quite know why, but there was something inherently scary about her midnight countenance and slanted eyes -- it reminded me a lot of The Prince of Egypt, which, as amazing a film as it was, had similarly-offputting geometry for its ocular organs.
Sound-wise, ABZÛ is a very confused game. Keeping my ears open throughout, I genuinely got a sense the engineers didn’t know whether they wanted their SFX to have an underwater filter on them or not, this ambivalence leading to a lot of inconsistency. For example, the various turbines and sprawling hatches resound with hydroacoustic fervor; however, the closing of entryways, flow of subaqueous streams, and hum of electronic machinery reverberate as though you were on land. Other phenomena, like withdrawing anemones, animal noises, and waterfalls, are either mute or significantly diminished in sonoric quality. Don’t get me wrong, ABZÛ’s sound design isn’t distracting by any means (all of the above resonating well despite their flaws); however, I can’t say you’ll be as immersed as you should have been.
Thankfully, the game more than makes-up for this with its OST, handled by Journeyman Austin Wintory. Wintory’s always been a Jack-of-all-Trades/Master-of-All type composer, and here he lets that dexterity truly shine via tossing-in a bunch of different beats -- you’ll hear his signature vocals, James Horner-esque orchestral overtures, and even harp-based harmonics throughout your odyssey, and what’s amazing is how well it all bends to the players’ playstyle. Reading the Wikipedia entry, I saw this was deliberately designed by Wintory due to the semi-freeroam nature of the game, and, having beaten it, I can gladly say he has absolutely nailed these cues to a tee: ABZÛ is a title that knows when to speed-up, slow-down, amplify, or downright shut-up as you float around its seascapes. It’s a grand score, my sole quandary being this uppity, pluck-based tune that sometimes played during excursions, its chords sounding out-of-place ala a Super Mario Galaxy track.
If the gameplay had been even half as good as its music ABZÛ would be an instant recommendation, yet you’ll find that isn’t the case, and what’s sad is it didn’t have to be this way: ABZÛ could’ve easily settled for being a swimming simulator within a vast ocean of spectacle; wherein the goal was to simply bathe in those Neptunian dreams we’ve witnessed in countless enterprises ala Avatar, Aquaman, or The Lost Empire. Unfortunately, not only do none of the game’s vistas stay with you, you’re also privy to some genuinely boring gameplay entailing the unlocking of mammothian gateways in order to access hidden shrines (the ultimate goal being to activate all of these shrines). Occasionally, the devs try and mix things up via tossing the diver down a roaring rapid, but, as I hinted at before, even this is mediocre in light of it essentially being on rails(+).
In addition, ABZÛ lacks basic features that would’ve gone a long way towards bestowing it extra value, including a toggle “run” function, as well as photo mode (I seriously don’t understand how that went missing during the development phase given the myriad of unique visual assets about you).
In light of all this, I ultimately was not a fan of the end product. Keep in mind, though, thousands of people out there genuinely enjoyed their time with ABZÛ, and you could very well be one of them -- just don’t forget the very real flaws that cloud this diamond’s shine.
NOTES
+You can technically move to hit these schools of flashing fish, but you’re not in any danger if you don’t touch the controls (plus I’m convinced they only put in this facet for achievements/trophies).
-There are two recurring leitmotifs in the official soundtrack I wish to highlight: first, a somber horn melody, and second, a choir-based harmony that brings to mind similar ones heard in Sinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas and The Fate of Atlantis DLC from Assassin’s Creed Odyssey (I have to wonder if it’s a just thing composers have consciously-decided to incorporate into seafaring compositions).
-You’ll encounter some fish and structures with glowing eyes/facades, and I have to praise Giant Squid for their quality bioluminescent lighting.
-There are collectables you can acquire, but I don’t see anyone being motivated enough to do so considering the lack of good rewards.