Sword of the Sea: Go with the Flow

Image courtesy of Giant Squid

When developer Giant Squid released their first game Abzû back in 2016, I readily dismissed it as a Journey wannabe. Made up mostly of former thatgamecompany employers, studio lead Matt Nava evidently set out to recapture that lightning-in-a-bottle artsy fartsy indie darling acclaim, only trading the vast desert for the deep ocean. Of course, this was a totally baseless assumption of mine, having never played it, nor the studio’s 2020 successor The Pathless. Needless to say, Sword of the Sea was not on my radar at all, let alone the GOTY potential of it all. It was only after I started seeing universal praise from critics pouring out ahead of its launch as a PS+ Extra offering that my interest was piqued. Like a total poser.

Well, egg on my face. I’m so glad I gave SotS a chance because, despite a few minor annoyances, this has turned out to be one of my favorite experiences of the year. Between screensaver-worthy vistas at every turn, a mesmerizing score from legendary composer Austin Wintory, and silky smooth movement mechanics, it feels like the culmination of everything Giant Squid has done before, playing to the absolute strengths of everyone on the team.

Image courtesy of Giant Squid

You play as a Wraith who is reawakened after a presumably lengthy period spent in sleep mode by a single drop of water deep inside a cave. Nothing is explicitly told to the player about the Wraith–is it an automaton? A statue? A scary third thing? As is typical for these types of games, most of the journey (pun semi-intended) is ambiguous by design, leaving the events that unfold up to the player’s interpretation. Secret stone pillars sprinkled throughout each chapter reveal pieces of background lore via cryptic poems, and cutscenes deftly deliver story beats without a single sentence uttered, not unlike the best Pixar shorts. The rest of the narrative is told through gameplay, ebbing and flowing between relaxed, meditative vibes before heightening the stakes with an emotional crescendo.

Back to where the story begins however, color is restored to the Wraith upon returning to life revealing a cloaked figure with glowing blue eyes wielding the eponymous sword–not to be used as a weapon, but as one of the most satisfying modes of traversal to ever grace our controllers. As soon as the Wraith hops on that bad boy, it’s instantly clear that you’re in for a good time. The game wastes no time getting you gliding through this cave, quickly introducing the bare essentials like double jumps and momentum mechanics, and giving you the obligatory “coming out of the cave” moment à la Breath of the Wild complete with a charming title card sequence to boot. It really shines once you’re let loose into its desolate world left to figure out what to do next, because SotS is just a goddamn pleasure to move around in.

Frictionless in every sense, leaping over undulating dunes and waves while building up incredible speed is easy, but never not exhilarating. I immediately felt completely in control, and the freedom of player expression felt nearly limitless. You’ll quickly unlock the ability to pull off higher jumps and perform badass tricks in the air, but unlike the extreme sports titles SotS is clearly influenced by, there’s no penalty for an awkward landing or an ill-timed trick. You’re not memorizing intricate combos either, simply holding L1 and pressing one of the face buttons will have you performing more 900s and 360° pop shuvits than the Birdman can shake a stick at. This deemphasis on complexity allows you to focus more on the gorgeous environments which elegantly guide you along to your next objectives without the need for waypoint markers or a compass crowding the HUD.

Speaking of, the Wraith’s journey bringing life back to a dead, barren world will take you from sand covered dunes, to snowy peaks, to fiery caverns, and dream-like planes of pure artistry. Each chapter is a visual feast offering awe-inspiring scenery that only intensifies once life is restored; the surrounding area bursts with color as sea creatures swell above and below the surface, bounceable jellyfish spring up to help you reach greater heights, and rusted old chains become rails ripe for grinding. Giant Squid’s technical and artistic prowess is on full display in these moments, however there were a few occasions where too many particle effects and overwhelming schools of fish would sink the otherwise buoyant framerate. It’s disappointing that its most impressive moments visually are often undercut by technical limitations, but the occasional dips in performance are so few and far between in an already short game.

I’d be remiss not to mention the PS5’s DualSense functionality, which goes a long way into putting you directly in the Wraith’s shoes (and sword). You can feel the roughness of the sand just as you can feel the motion (of the ocean) over bodies of water. The excellent sound design comes through both the controller and speakers, further creating a real joy to the senses.

As fun as SotS is to play already, Giant Squid keeps the pace from ever getting stale by giving the player an abundance of things to do within each chapter. You can find hidden collectibles that serve no purpose other than a shiny trophy, aforementioned steles that provide more context into the game’s world, and optional trick trials that briefly transform its pensive tone into something akin to a Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater or SSX–though your palms won’t get quite so sweaty as the score threshold to clear them is pretty forgiving. You’ll be rewarded for completing them with copious amounts of the game’s currency, tetra, which you can then use to spend at the game’s lone merchant to purchase new tricks, higher jumps, and more. Tetra is generally easy to come by, but each new ability demands an exponentially higher number, so you’re strongly encouraged to thoroughly explore each chapter and collect as many as possible.

I’m going to be vague because to avoid spoilers, but there are moments where the narrative dictates an unexpected deviation from the game’s formula which utterly delighted me. A few minutes later, you’ll be treated with the most beautiful imagery conceived by man as the camera switches to a side view and the Wraith glides over golden sun-soaked dunes against a striking backdrop while Austin Wintory’s pitch-perfect score practically lifts you off your seat. Are these moments unquestionably reminiscent of Journey? Absolutely. But they’re no less moving. Unfortunately, the larger story at play here doesn’t quite reach the same emotional catharsis, and leaves a lot to be desired. There’s probably some deeper meaning to it all that’s gone right over my head, but it never hit me nearly as hard as Journey’s themes of companionship and the cycle of life.

It took me around three hours to complete my first playthrough of SotS. Some gamers may scoff at such a paltry runtime, but it served me as the perfect palette cleanser between this year’s gargantuan 50+ hour heavy-hitters like Death Stranding 2: On The Beach and Hollow Knight: Silksong. The fact that Giant Squid opted to release it day one as a PS+ Extra perk for subscribers was a smart choice that made it a no-brainer for me, but it’s also available à la carte for $30 on Steam and PS5 which I also would’ve happily paid for.

After all, if you’re anything like me, the first playthrough is only scratching the surface. I snagged the platinum trophy after around 11 hours which required a few more playthroughs in new game+ including a speedrun, finding every last hidden sea shell, and cleaning up some of the miscellaneous trophies. A chapter select is also thankfully available, making it relatively painless to go back and get what you missed. Unfortunately, all these quality of life features and multiple runs through the game made its flaws stick out like a sore thumb. For example, there’s no way to skip cutscenes – a baffling omission that can make repeat playthroughs somewhat of a slog, especially for a game all about getting into that elusive flow state. 

That’s not to say the cutscenes aren’t beautifully animated or emotionally evocative–they are–but they tend to frustrate rather than inspire when you’ve seen them for the umpteenth time. Every time a puzzle is completed or a switch is activated, the game has to interrupt gameplay to show the player what just happened as a result. These disruptions are trivial at first, but they add up to make every subsequent playthrough a little less enjoyable.

On the same note, one particularly pesky trophy requires you to beat the final boss without taking damage, a feat that wouldn’t be so aggravating if only the game didn’t force you to watch the chapter’s beginning 3+ minute long cutscene before every attempt. The boss itself is a little half-baked and feels incongruent with the rest of the game’s mechanics, so getting hit felt like a crapshoot rather than something I was in full control of. 

Granted, these criticisms likely won’t apply to normal people who just want to spend an afternoon experiencing another notch in the “games as art” argument. It’ll certainly be a one-and-done for most people I imagine, but trophy sickos like me beware.

Don’t mistake SotS’s lack of challenge with a lack of depth. This is a game more concerned with giving the player the tools to carve elegant lines through a ruined world slowly coming back to life, not testing reflexes or outsmarting you with complicated puzzles. Sure, the flow is occasionally broken up by a few design oversights and a clunky boss encounter, but those stumbles are easy to forgive when everything else is this well-realized.

Whether you’re in it for the immensely gratifying gameplay, the immaculate vibes, or the minimalistic-yet-effective story, Sword of the Sea is a triumphant evolution of Giant Squid’s signature style. So much more than just a spiritual successor to Journey, it’s a confident work of art that earns its place firmly alongside the giants.

Final Score: 9/10