Submerging ourselves in virtual underwater worlds: Exploring Abzû, Endless Ocean, and Beyond Blue
Diving is something I have always dreamed of doing, but never quite worked up the courage to try just yet. The ocean is beautiful but has some frightening elements about it that may detour some folks such as myself from jumping right in and exploring the world under its surface. However, that doesn’t stop our curiosity from running wild, eager to learn more about marine life and longing for that adventure. Video games have made this possible.
Of course, a game will never capture the true beauty of the real thing, but it is a good way for those who can not go themselves to simulate the experience and have an adventure. Whenever there is a new game that explores the ocean floors, I am absolutely on board. Throughout the years, three console games in particular caught my attention.
The first one (or should I say two as there are two games in the series) is Endless Ocean (and Endless Ocean 2: Blue World). I found these games by chance in my high school years and was immediately drawn in as this was my first diving simulation experience. The first game was fine and I beat it with ease, having a simple storyline and one large open-world area. The second game, however, was a much superior game, having an extensive story, multiple areas, mini-games galore, and a plethora of creatures to interact with.
Endless Ocean 2: Blue World
The next one was Abzû. I didn’t get this until much later down the line when I finally got my PS4 sometime after I graduated college. Abzû was similar, and yet so different. The colors were bright and saturated with a stylized cell-shaded world that was simply stunning. Though the game took me less than two hours to beat, the twenty-dollar price of the game was justified. The experience itself was cinematic and had me immersed even though there was not a single drop of dialogue.
The last game is the most recent one: Beyond Blue. The stunning realistic graphics of this game pulled me in when I first saw the trailer. The animals in this game are beautiful! Based on the Blue Planet II documentary series it’s the most realistic of the bunch, though it does have a few sci-fi-like elements, even if they are more grounded than the others.
I would dare say these three games would be the definitive diving experience video games — but take that with a grain of salt as, as I said, I am no professional diver. Still, I say this because each of these games hit the key elements of what marine life nerds like myself would be interested in. I am going to be breaking down these elements, exploring the good and bad elements of each game, and discussing potential improvements in future ocean voyager games.
Tales of the Sea: Overarching Plots
Each game has a different story, but they all have admittedly similar elements with enough distinction to easily identify which events happened in what game. Let’s break down each game a bit, and while I will try to stay away from major spoilers (and will mark it thusly if I need to make mention), be warned that a few minor ones may arise throughout the course of the article.
In Endless Ocean 2: Blue World, you are a diver who joins L&L Diving to pursue the mysterious “Song of the Dragons.” After a mysterious incident while on your first dive with your new partner, Oceana, your crew members begin to question and aid you in your search for clues to solve this ancient riddle. Along the way, the player encounters new characters, creatures, and areas to explore, each unlocking more secrets about the rumored treasure as well as the past.
Abzû is very unique in terms of story. There is no dialogue and leaves room for many different interpretations of what is going on. To put it as best as I can, you are a diver who awakens in the sea. Upon exploring, guided by a Great White Shark, the diver discovers wells that help restore the ocean life and protect it from the strange pyramids found in the sea.
Abzû
Lastly, Beyond Blue is about a small team of marine researchers. You take the role of Marai, a young woman with a deep connection with a particular pod of sperm whales. You explore the regions, scanning and tagging animals for research when you find out some shady things are going on in the depths. The safety of the beloved pod is at stake and Marai is out to find out why.
Each game hosts some sort of adventure all centralized on a mystery of the deep. The ocean is generally known for it’s perplexing nature, so it makes for the perfect environment for these types of games. Most of these puzzles tie into the very nature of the ocean itself or its creatures.
Just not the same without it: Key elements and moments
In each game, I could not help but noticed certain moments that echoed each other, not because they were copying one another, but because they are so iconic to marine research and are certain to be recognized by the viewers. It’s not only moments, though, but the scenery, choice of animals to feature, and story themes.
Let’s start with something simple: the open ocean. The open ocean is where there is nothing but blue waters surrounding you, no structures in sight and the grounds could be anywhere from a few hundred feet to thousands of miles below you. These areas are where larger creatures are generally found, such as whales, sharks, dolphins, and sunfish. These are probably the least interesting areas to explore in terms of scenery, but when you find the right creature, it is a sight to behold.
Endless Ocean 2: Blue World
Speaking of creatures, each game features a variety of underwater animals, and each one prominently features a few key animals. The sperm whale, for instance, plays a significant role in two of the three games as they are the point of interest in Mirai’s quest in Beyond Blue and they become an essential plot point in navigating your way through the ocean depths in Endless Ocean. Abzu does feature the great whale, but they are not heavily focused on.
Abzu, however, features the most well-known shark, the great white, as it’s animal guide. Throughout our leads journey, the diver comes across the beast, not certain of its intentions. It is a fresh of breath air having the creature being more than just a mindless eating machine. In Endless Ocean, that is the exact role it features, the most notable one being the man-eater, Thanatos. It is a cliché, but it doesn’t make it any less thrilling. Unfortunately, due to this stereotype, it was left out of Beyond Blue — At least, that’s my assumption as it is a game in which you can not get hurt (trust me, I swam into a volcanic vent and it did literally nothing).
I’ll only highlight one more choice as this portion could go on forever if I picked more. The humpback whale can also be seen spanning throughout each game. It is probably the most well-known whale, it’s distinct appearance and beautiful songs being able to tell apart from the others. In Endless Ocean, a whale is often what marks the end of a level when the next clue is found. The humpback was the first, indicating that there was indeed a mystery to be solved. The humpbacks songs were also a minor part of Beyond Blue’s research subplot. In Abzu, however, they are present in one of the most iconic scenarios that all nature aficionados are certain to recognize and are also included in each one of these games.
I’m certain we’ve all seen it on Animal Planet or Discovery at one point or another — the feeding frenzy. It all starts with a bait ball (a massive swarm of small fish that have been gathered in a sphere-like formation) and a group of predators all take part in picking off the fish as an easy meal. It’s a spectacle for certain, and if you have not seen a video of an actual frenzy event, all three games have a wonderful example of this phenomenon. If I had to pick which game portrayed it best, I would say Endless Ocean 2. Not only does it have the most creatures involved, but it also has narration so the player knows what is going on and learns something new.
Beyond Blue
Another iconic region that all divers yearn to explore is the deepest depths of the ocean. The pitch-black trenches of the sea houses dozens of bizarre creatures that will be certain to keep players on the edge of their seats, including the elusive giant squid. Footage of this creature is scarce, so the game developers have fun with this animal by including it into the story in one way or another — usually involving some sort of epic battle with its eternal rival, the sperm whale.
Endless Ocean and Abzu boast something that Beyond Blue does not, but I still wanted to make mention because I do feel as though it is something players may find thrilling — legendary creatures. Whether you’re just a gamer who likes to see all the rare events or a researcher of myths, these games include rare creatures to stumble upon, whether they be extinct animals or ones who inspired legends such as Moby Dick.
Endless Ocean 2: Blue World
Beyond Blue felt the most grounded in reality, which made sense considering it was based on a documentary series, so I did not expect to see any bizarre creatures in the game. However, it did have some almost futuristic elements in terms of the technology they used to study the creatures or explore certain regions of the sea. All the games have technological advantages that we have not yet invented for one reason or another that allows our character to traverse the seas with ease. While there are some fantastical elements in Abzu and Endless Ocean respectively, it never goes as far as to break emersion. Someone should definitely get on a diving simulator game starring a mermaid, though, I would not be opposed to that at all.
Lastly, a theme that has drastically been covered in each game is ocean conservation. In some way, shape, or form, the current state of the ocean and how we can help is present in all three games. In Endless Ocean, it is not part of the main quest, but when learning about new creatures, especially significant ones, the facts are all laid out straight for you. In Beyond Blue, the game basically revolves around scientific research, from live-streaming your whale research to uncovering some mysterious man-made disruptions on the ocean floor. As mentioned previously, this title is the most grounded in reality and you can clearly tell that it was heavily influenced by the marine biologists who worked on Blue Planet II. Abzu is an interesting case. It has no dialogue and doesn’t tell you what happened to this worlds oceans, but each level ends with the restoration of an area. It’s done through fantastical means, but the message is prominent: we are bringing the oceans back to life.
Beyond Blue
Getting your feet wet: Gameplay
So the movement of each game is relatively the same down at its core — you’re a diver, so you swim. Surprisingly, the controls aren’t inverted like they are in most platformers and other adventure games, which is definitely appreciated. You move relatively slow since you’re underwater, but each game allows a quicker method of transportation. In Beyond Blue and Abzu, you are given the option to swim faster or boost. I personally believe Endless Ocean 2 has the best solution to this dilemma by allowing you to not only fast travel to certain key areas but after a certain point in the game (rather early I might add), you can swim with a dolphin partner. Your dolphin pal will let you hitch a ride and you can steer wherever you want them to go! The best part is that there are very few restrictions for where they can go, so you can glide across the sea with ease!
The one thing I can’t seem to understand about these games, though, is whenever you’re on land (if only for a short portion in between levels at minimum), your characters take so long to walk! Why is it that they can swim just fine, but when they get on land they move at a snail’s pace? Granted, as mentioned, these moments don’t last too long, but it can be frustrating when exploring areas like the aquarium in Endless Ocean 2.
Each game boasts unique features that differentiate themselves from the others. Abzû is the simplest, only really needed to swim and occasionally press a single button to solve a few aquatic puzzles. There is also a meditation feature that simply allows you to watch the aquatic life surrounding you. Like Endless Ocean, you are able to ride the larger animals — and not even just the really big ones! Though they’re on the smaller side, Goliath groupers, for instance, are able to be ridden (I say that like they’re not the size of a grown adult). These “smaller” animals are able to be steered — somewhat. They are wild animals and will sometimes just want to do their own thing. The big animals, such as the humpback whale, won’t budge when you steer them, though. On the bright side, all of them will spin gracefully at your command if you so wish it.
Abzû
Beyond Blue doesn’t have much in terms of gameplay. You basically go around scanning all the things — no, seriously, there’s a trophy for this game even titled “scan all the things.” You go to a buoy, listen for the animals, find the animals, scan them, rinse, and repeat. You can’t even ride the animals! It’s a video game, dangit, and I want to ride the whales (which, yes, you should never do in real life). It’s not exactly the most thrilling game in terms of play, but it certainly has its highlights.
Endless Ocean 2 offers the most in terms of gameplay. You’re equipped with an entire tool belt of items you can use: the multisensor for finding treasures, the pulsar for calming berserk or sick animals, and the underwater camera for taking photo requests just to name a few. Then there are all the things you can do: take customers on diving tours, train your dolphins for shows, help build an aquarium, discover special events, catalog creatures, collect special coins, and, of course, play the main story! I’ve invested so many hours into this game, it’s insane.
Endless Ocean 2 definitely allows the most playtime and while Abzû was short, it had a lot to offer. The only game I did not care for in terms of gameplay was Beyond Blue. Yes, there is only so much you can do in a diving game, but in a world as beautiful as the one created for this game, there should be allowed a lot more interactions with the world as well as a lot more creatures to fill it — but more on that later.
Beyond Blue
Sights and sounds: Music and atmosphere
Each game does a wonderful job portraying life under the sea. I always felt immersed when playing any of these titles, feeling as if I were actually there. Each game generally chooses an overall orchestrated score of sorts to exemplify the majesty of the sea — with a few exceptions, of course. Overall, though, each game exudes a peaceful nature throughout the majority of the game. Suspense is also greatly felt during moments of panic, which every game has at one point or another as well.
Beyond Blue
Beyond Blue has the most limited environments, most of the maps being repeats of each other at just different points of the day. Having a day or night option is great as different animals are usually encountered at different points in the day, but the maps themselves are not all that big either. That being said, though, the scenery is still gorgeous to look at and the animals’ movements are so lifelike and didn’t feel as though they were on a cycled animation. This game, out of all of them, definitely had the most realistic depiction of the animals.
The music for this game was mostly reserved for bigger moments, and it wasn’t a grand scale orchestra but more subtle strings most of the time. Most of the time you were diving in silence, which can be a good and bad thing. Sometimes the natural sounds of the ocean are calming and all you really need, but after too much silence, a paranoid person like me is expecting something to pop out at any moment without the relaxing music to give me tonal guidance. Then you go onto the sub and get really weird pop music that blasts while you get ready for your next dive. A different song each time, but all are equally as jarring. Strange decision.
Abzû was probably the world I was most immersed in. The vivid color schemes each representative of the season and the areas in which you were exploring stood out beautifully. There were certain points in the game where the score would really pick up as you were having a special moment, whether it be swimming with a pod of orcas, joining a group of blue whales on a hunting dive, or reuniting with an old friend. The emotion you were meant to feel during these moments were amplified by the amazing soundtrack. The interactivity in this world was solid as well. The seaweed moves with you, the animals go about their business until interacted with; just details like that make a huge difference.
Abzû
Like Abzû, Endless Ocean 2 has multiple regions to explore. Some are smaller than others, the Northern Arctic region in particular being rather tiny, but it is still so much fun to explore each new location and see all the animals and scenery it has to offer. Like Beyond Blue, you can also choose the time of day you’d like to dive in. It is not perfect, however. I can’t fault the game too much for this as it was likely limitations in hardware that some of the animals’ movements were a little stilted or stretched to the points where you could see individual pixels, occasionally taking you out of the experience.
My other issue with the immersion in this game is just like Beyond Blue where you get music at some points, usually when coming across a key location or special creature, but most diving time is spent in silence. This would happen in Endless Ocean 1 as well, but they actually gave you the option to turn on the games unlocked songs or allow you to download your own music to play while diving. In 2, they have such lovely new age classical songs that fit certain areas perfectly, mostly be provided by the Celtic Women, and inside areas like the Valka Castle where this music is being played on a loop, I feel it provides importance and, again, calms the nerves.
The big blue world: Characters and creatures
Each game is filled with critters to encounter (it would be kind of weird to have an ocean game without them). There are certain animals seen in each game, as mentioned earlier, a few more including orcas, whale sharks, parrotfish, and sunfish. As well as animals, there are sometimes other human beings to interact with as well!
Abzû
Abzû is the only game without any humans to interact with, however, their impact can still be felt. Through exploring the environments, you can clearly see which areas were affected by mankind and which were left untouched. However, its roster of animals exceeds expectations with one of its final area filled with an array of creatures you might not have expected. This game doesn’t require you to catalog — actually, it’s not even an option. As I mentioned before, though, there is a meditation option that just allows you to soak in the surroundings and watch the nature that surrounds you.
Endless Ocean 2, on the other hand, has multiple human characters to interact with. In fact, throughout the course of the game, your small diving company grows larger as you recruit new members to help solve the mystery of the “Song of the Dragons.” It pains me to admit that the game is a bit corny in terms of dialogue and characterizations, but it also kind of adds to the charm. The most memorable character to me would probably be Gaston Gray, or G.G., as he has a very big personality.
Endless Ocean 2: Blue World
As for the animals, there are TONS! This game has so many animals to come across, it’s like an ocean nerd’s paradise. With so many regions to explore, there are plenty of animals to discover there as well. There are even special locations to fine the extra small critters (as well as treasures). Then on top of that, there are legendary creatures to stumble across and new potential dolphin partners which are distinctly colored or patterned as an added bonus! You will not get bored critter hunting, I assure you.
Beyond Blue has the smallest catalog of animals, and it was rather disappointing considering how much time and effort they put into making these animals so lifelike. Granted, they chose some of the more popular animals to put into the game, but it still felt like a rather empty world compared to the other two games.
However, there are some other human characters. There are two other scientists you work with (who are usually bickering) and Mirai’s sister, Ren. You only interact with them digitally, speaking to them through telecommunications. Through these characters is where most of the story comes from. Admittedly some of their side plots should have been explored more as they were very interesting, but most of the plot overall was concluded off-screen anyway so what would it matter? (I’m a little bitter, can you tell?)
I do also have to give credit for Mirai though. She’s a little close to being a bit of a mary-sue, but she has an edge that gives her the right amount of humanization for the game she’s placed in. She’s also the only main diver that has a distinct personality instead of simply being a stand-in for the player.
Beyond Blue
A players perspective: My personal opinions
So while I tried to maintain fairness to share all the strengths and weaknesses of each game accordingly (emphasis on tried, I acknowledge my bias may have shown a teensy bit), here’s the segment where I get to be a bit more nit-picky to my personal tastes.
I definitely favor Abzû and Endless Ocean over Beyond Blue. Compared to the two, the game was a little lack-luster. Does this mean I hate it? Not at all. It was still very enjoyable for me. I just saw so much potential for this game and I feel like it fell short of those expectations. Seeing how much the previous two games had offered in 2016 [Abzu] and 2009 [Endless Ocean 2], I felt as though a game from 2020 should improve and build off of these two fantastic games.
Beyond Blue
My problems with the title were that the gameplay was repetitive and the world was smaller than I expected, featuring fewer creatures than I had hoped. Not only that, but the story, which I was thoroughly enjoying, (BEYOND BLUE SPOILERS) was resolved with some off-screen dialogue. You didn’t get to hear the final conversations between Mirai and her Nana, what happened between Ren and Mirai after their argument, and the algae bloom that was killing the whales — just “fixed” a few years later. This was sloppy writing. Again, not saying the writing of Endless Ocean 2 is Shakespeare by any means, but at least the main conflicts were resolved as part of the adventure.
While we are on the topic of Endless Ocean 2’s dialogue, that could have been cleaned up as well. I love the story for what it is, but the characters were more or less standard stereotypes and didn’t have much depth. Did that stop it from being a fun game? Of course not. Again, the corniness of it all kind of added to the charm in some aspects. However, I would love a game with a little more refinement in the writing. Perhaps that’s why I have no complaints about Abzû in this respect — it doesn’t have any dialogue.
I love dialogue, but I have so much respect for a story that can be told without the use of words. Abzû did that beautifully. I’ll admit, from a gaming perspective, it did feel more like a movie with very few puzzles (if you can even call them that) and a very straightforward path. Still, it was an experience. It’s not a very long game at all, but I think the magic wouldn’t be there if it just kept going on and on. I think the developers knew when to wrap things up before it overstayed its welcome.
Abzû
Overall, though, I did like all of these games. In fact, Abzû and Endless Ocean I would gladly put on my top 10 list! I would not personally consider them “bad games.” I could easily see why certain people may or may not like these titles, but if you love oceanlife and have a knack for gaming (which I’m assuming you would, otherwise you probably would not be this far into the article), I would highly recommend giving these games a try. Perhaps Beyond Blue to ease you in and ending with Endless Ocean 2 as that is the only game where there are potential “threats.”
A vision for the future of diving games
I would love for there to be more diving games in the future, and I think each of these games we’ve gotten thus far have provided some helpful advice on how to create that perfect game. From having played all of these titles personally, here is what I believe future diving simulators need to hold up as a good game:
The ocean is a huge place. HUGE. It covers about 75% of the Earth’s surface, so I would want for there to be an open-world environment that reflects just how massive the underwater world is! Now I’m not saying to make a Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild sized map of just open ocean, no. That would suck. But large areas with multiple maps to explore, offering different regions with different creatures and landscapes (uh, waterscapes?) to match. Don’t think we don’t notice when the same patch of coral keeps popping up every two feet — biodiversity please! Let’s have the world filled with as many animals as we can! The blobfish has never been featured yet, let’s get on that!
Endless Ocean 2: Blue World
As all three of these games have exhibited, a strong plot to keep gamers invested is another must. Freediving is fun and all, and while I’m certain in the real ocean it would never get dull, in a video game… Yeah, it kind of loses its charm after a while. It’s at that point we the players start to notice loop cycles in animal animations or that the soundtrack has stopped playing and everything goes dead silent. An overarching plot is a must — one that resolves completely, might I add— but it also would not hurt to include other side activities such as Endless Ocean 2 does.
There’s no doubt that in any game centering on the seas, marine education is bound to happen. I don’t think that’s a bad thing. This might be the only way some people hear about what’s happening to our oceans and could inspire people to take action outside of the game. However, I think it’s important that this information is presented in a natural way and not crammed into the dialogue like an after school special (I’m looking at you, Endless Ocean.) The writing should be intellectual without speaking down to its audience. It can inform and be entertaining at the same time.
Lastly, and most importantly, it needs to be immersive. It needs to do something that drives the player to want to continue. Make a mystery. Set goals. Create a story — a reason to keep moving forward. Develop gameplay that is unique to its predecessors — don’t just swim. Interact. Build. Heal. Discover. Experience. There’s a lot more to do in the water than just swim.
When the next diving game comes out (probably in about five to ten years or so) you can bet I’ll buy it. Of course, there are bound to be certain moments that remind me of the three games I’ve reviewed today, but I will hope that they will also take inspiration and build off of it, creating a new and unique diving experience for us to submerge ourselves in. Will it ever be just as exciting as actually diving? Probably not. Definitely not. Still, to get lost in an underwater adventure, if only for a little while, is absolutely worthwhile.
Beyond Blue
Thank you for taking the time to check out my work!
This article is an adaptation of a blog post I wrote in 2020.
