Endless Ocean sounds like a track from a Massive Attack album, and that's no bad thing in itself. According to Nintendo though, this Friday 9th November that will be the final title for their latest feature on the Wii - and you guessed it. It's educational. Endless Ocean is being billed as the best way to discover aquatic life and the marine underworld without getting your feet wet or your hair messed up.
But exactly how much fun is staring at a glorified fishtank anyway? Is there a game here? We look closer...
We're promised that players can do as much or as little as they like. The relaxed and calm atmosphere of the game gives divers the freedom to explore locations such as shipwrecks and underwater ruins, discover and interact with sea-life, complete fish logs or simply relax in the soothing environment. There's a deckchair on the diving boat in which you can sit and look at the sea, as well as play your own MP3s using the SD card slot.
The game features multiplayer via the WiFi, once you've swapped friend codes you can dive with a friend, accessing extra communication tools in doing so. We're not sure exactly how popular this is going to be, being that chilling out isn't usually something you go online to share, as that sort of interaction causes you to concentrate more and therefore experience stress.
Is there a storyline? We're promised one, but so far the only evidence of this is progressive discovery of fishes and locations, new equipment and customisation items for the diver. You might say where's the difference between that and what happens in a Zelda game, but the difference is simple - character interaction. At the moment, there's a diver to guide you at the start and we know you can befriend a dolphin, but that's it for now.
Also acting as a peaceful screensaver when the Wii is left alone, Endless Ocean definitely seems to be aiming for the chillout market. Singer Hayley Westenra from New Zealand provides the soundtrack, and we can see this going down with the female gamer very well. Probably not something to buy for the Halo fan in your life, but then again perhaps they'll need it most!
We'll have the full review as soon as possible, but for now it seems that goldfish bowls and snorkelling just went digital. If £30 seems fair to you for that much, then Friday is your diary date.
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