Saltsea Chronicles review: poignant nautical adventure explo…

the stakes are high. My misfit crew of sailors is in the midst of an island-hopping quest to find their missing captain. Rations are running low and the worry is that more people may go missing. Yet, here I am, partying on an island full of crabs. At first I see it as a fun escape from the post-apocalyptic stress of waterlogging, but later a crew member admits that there’s something more important to the festivities than simple entertainment: They There is an acceptance that everything is impermanent and we have to respect what we have while it is still here.

That sweet and sour theme guides me Saltsea ChroniclesA new narrative adventure from the 2019 Seamus McNally Award-winning creators mutation, I may be exploring remote islands built on a flooded world, but my journey has been nothing but tragic. I’m immersing myself in cultures, working honestly to understand and appreciate them. A dark fate may await my crew once we finally reach the end of our mystery, but that doesn’t mean we can’t stop celebrating the miracles that surround us.

As long as you can handle a long visual novel that requires pressing a lot of buttons to skip to text, Salty Chronicles is another dynamic narrative game from developer Die Gute Fabrik. An engrossing central mystery serves as a strong skeleton that houses the real heart of the adventure: a charming group of characters who are eager to appreciate the densely detailed world they inhabit with each other.

Sightseeing in a New World

Saltsea Chronicles Technically it’s a post-apocalyptic game, but the description makes it seem even more grim than it is. A small part of the historical table setting tells players that a once thriving world was destroyed due to climate change fueled by mega-corporations. When the tide rose, the society was forced to rebuild on a series of islands. Rather than dealing with its immediate consequences, the story takes place far into the future where the world appears to be in harmony.

The adventure takes players to a series of colorful islands, each painted in Die Gute Fabrik’s distinctive visual style. The 2D environments are both minimalistic and richly detailed, mixing solid splashes of color with soft shapes that come together to form luscious flora wrapped around imperfect human structures. It is a series of landscape paintings that capture the essence of each island without losing its identity. This is the same visual style that is created mutation It’s been a constant in my mind ever since I played it.

Even if you don’t notice that both games are made by the same developer, it becomes clear once the world building begins. The adventure begins with a simple mystery; The captain of a boat, Maja, has disappeared and the crew vow to find them. Players do not control a single character, but an entire team. While the goal is to find some clues, the bulk of the experience is spent learning about each island and its distinct culture. Chapter one takes me to a cliffside observatory, where I meet an island full of curious researchers. The second leads me to a society of spiritual guides called Dreamsellers who can help me find a way forward and help heal any of my hurts. I’m not learning about the ruins of an old world, but about the vibrant world that emerged from it.

That learning process occurs entirely through communication, e.g. Saltsea Chronicles is a more straightforward visual novel than mutation, Instead of moving freely around the islands, players simply click on highlighted points of interest to open dialogue exchanges that appear in a screenplay-like structure, with stage directions between the lines. Are complete. The minimal gameplay flow can be tiring, as there are no voiced lines or auto-advance text options.

lack of conversation is a step down mutation, which inspires players to learn about its rich world through independent exploration and a gardening component. i’m more of a tourist Saltsea Chronicles, get a chance to interact with your surroundings only through local card games. This is reinforced by an archive full of collectibles that logs what I’ve seen as stickers on a page but doesn’t give me much context on them. I am a tourist who aspires to be an explorer.

close the distance

Although there are some gaps in its gameplay, there is still enough to draw me into the story for over 10 hours. Its central mystery is a strong hook that dips in and out of magical realism. I’m also tasked with making some important choices that can have a big impact on how my story progresses. Various decisions will create ongoing “issues” with my crew that I need to work to resolve through my communication options. For example, if I invite a new crew member onto my ship, this may cause some tension with my shipmates. My choices always have consequences, even if they don’t reveal themselves until much later.

The thing that attracts me more than anything else Saltsea Chronicles‘A diverse group of characters. From reluctant leader Stu to radio-obsessed Iris, I became invested in everyone’s story by the end. However, these characters and their struggles are not alone with their problems, and developer Die Gute Fabrik emphasizes this with some subtle gameplay systems. For one thing, I’m never controlling one character, but the entire group. When presented with dialogue options, I’m not given so many lines that a character can say verbatim, because I’m the emotional cue for the different characters. As their journey progresses, I’m seeing more and more of the interpersonal relationships between the crew taking shape.

This idea is most impressive when exploring the island. In each chapter, I have to choose two characters to take to the shore. This decision allows me to focus on solving specific issues between crew members or learning more about each person and how they interact with each other. The most meaningful moment in my adventure came when I sent Stu and Iris on a mission together, and found common ground between two completely different people bound by loss.

Our world does not exist in a vacuum; Both people and cultures are shaped by each other. Sometimes we may feel like distant islands lost in the ocean, but we are all together in the same ocean. Saltsea Chronicles celebrates that idea with a hopeful story about the distances between us, whether physical or emotional, and what we gain from overcoming those distances. Even though we know that over time the sea will sweep us all away, that doesn’t mean we should ever stop sailing.

Saltsea Chronicles Testing was done on PC and Steam Deck.