Below The Ocean

[h2] If you want a pocket sized platform puzzler that you can complete in an evening I would recommend this one. [/h2] Although it is a short game, I quite liked that. It never overstays its welcome and it has a lot of different mechanics that keep gameplay fresh and you motivated to get to the end. I wouldn't say it was the most difficult puzzle game I have played but if you want to get the achievements then it definitely will have a lot of challenge because collecting all the diamonds in a level is very difficult. I wish there were separate achievements for getting each diamond because it is a bit disheartening missing out on one diamond and not getting the achievement. It is also quite difficult to find the diamond on some levels and mechanics can push you off screen and not be able to return to get the diamond which felt frustrating too. I thought the puzzles were imaginative. I have never seen a tether used like this in a puzzle game before. I enjoyed the different ways you could use your airline like swinging around under the water, making it shorter or longer by wrapping it around blocks to reach precision places; using it to press buttons by swinging around blocks so the line tightened and kept the button pressed; and electrifying your line so that it can kill enemies. There are also bubbles which you can ride; cannons that you can shoot out of; and fragments need to be collected to open doors whilst avoiding spikes and enemies in the water. There are blocks you can pull to reach higher places or press buttons, and air pockets where you come off your air line and free dive under a timer and must reach other air pockets. In each of the four chapters new mechanics are introduced and considering it is such a short game, there are a lot of different elements packed in. https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3661865536 The main mechanic is finding oxygen, and O2 cannisters act as a series of checkpoints when you reach them. Some save your progress and others extend your air line so that you can travel further. Using the mechanics above it is your goal to travel between these air checkpoints and escape the level where you are rewarded with a lost treasure from the deep. In each level your time and number of diamonds are recorded so you can repeat levels and try and beat your time and diamond count but there are no leader boards to compete against. The underwater motion feels realistic, especially the way the air line bobbles about in the water and I liked the visuals and sound. [h1]🍳Conclusion🍳[/h1] [quote][h2][b] Below the Ocean [/b] is an original concept, which although is short at around two hours, manages to cram a lot of different elements within the journey which makes the puzzling enjoyable. I think it's perfect for a short burst of original and interesting puzzles that you can complete in one sitting. [/h2][/quote] [quote]Thank you for reading my review. If you enjoyed it, please leave a like and follow[url=https://store.steampowered.com/curator/32732116-IndieGems/] [b]IndieGems[/b] [/url] for more reviews like this one. We also have a [url=https://www.youtube.com/@IndieGems2][b]YouTube channel[/b][/url] if you would rather see game play footage with reviews. [/quote]

[quote]A review copy was provided by the developer.[/quote] [quote]Follow my Curator page, [url=https://store.steampowered.com/curator/41363546-Fruit-N-Doggie-Reviews/]Fruit N Doggie Reviews,[/url] so you can be updated whenever I post a new review.[/quote] [h1]Overall Rating - Seriously Flawed ★★☆☆☆[/h1] [h1]First Impressions[/h1] Below the Ocean (BO) is another game I waited to review because I wasn't convinced by how it looked on the store page. It has impeccable reviews, and pretty good clearance rates for its achievements, but I didn't really know what the gameplay was going to be like. Seemingly, the character would have to make it from one air tank to the next while platforming underwater, which are mechanics that could go horribly wrong. Thankfully, the worst elements weren't in this title, but I still didn't enjoy BO that much. [h1]Gameplay[/h1] To those who might worry about underwater platforming and making it from air tank to air tank, the controls are not horrific, making you fight currents or odd physics. Plus, although you'll occasionally have a time limit before dying, it's rarely that restrictive or difficult to reach the next safe haven. That doesn't mean I think the platforming mechanics were air-tight though. For example, when moving from place to place, you can't intuitively tell how long any given tether will be, and just have to move in one direction or another until it stops you from going further. It really makes me think of a dog on a chain, running around until it inevitably reaches the end, and gets jerked back suddenly, “So that's where the end is.” Additionally, even though different quests make use of a new mechanic or two, the platforming isn't that interesting or engaging. At most you make little jumps, climb up walls, fling around, and make use of electricity in a couple of ways. https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3661145891 [h1]Controls[/h1] The controls could have been a huge problem in this game, and a few mechanics took a bit of adapting in order to figure out how they worked. Unquestionably, one of the wonkiest controls was swinging around on the tether. It only really works if it's stretched taut from reaching the very end, which is sometimes harder to set up than expected. Even then, sometimes it seems to work best through momentum, while in other situations, merely aiming for where you want it to go suffices. I almost think it would benefit from another element, such as a spike you could intentionally use to create tension, providing that extra level of precision and control. [h1]Story[/h1] With the rest of this title basically being a micro-game broken into four small segments, the plot essentially follows suit. There's general references the main character makes to their sense of dissatisfaction with life, yet fascination with the depths of the ocean. Aside from these opening monologues to each adventure though, it never gets developed through any further text or images. I never even have a reason to care about the treasure I'm hunting for. Considering the subject and implied tone, it sounds rather somber and a little nihilistic, but the rest of the presentation doesn't really contribute to this dour mood. It's like the developer wanted to give a little zest of seriousness to their otherwise bright-looking game, but it doesn't really come off that well. https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3661146460 [h1]Visuals[/h1] Due to the way levels are designed, there's not much identity or matters of interest in the environment, despite exploring the ocean floor. Theoretically, you're diving to incredible depths, and as you interact with electric gates, it logically would mean the main character is exploring wrecked ships. However, even though these should be fascinating locations, there's nothing of interest in the backgrounds or your surroundings. At most you avoid some jellyfish and crabs that otherwise instantly kill you if you touch them. With the use of more detail, it could have developed a greater sense of identity in these generic looking spots. Maybe there could be signs that one of the sites was an older vessel, and you had to provide your own electricity, instead of tapping into decrepit batteries or engines. [h1]Sound Design[/h1] No matter which quest you've taken, or how far you've advanced through it, the same music plays throughout the entire game. It creates the same issue as the limited visuals, where there's nothing to distinguish one part of the experience from any other. I suppose its slow tempo, and the specific instrumentation used helps convey the sense of exploring the depths, but having a few key changes would certainly have been welcomed. There's a few sound effects in the game, such as when you come into contact with a source of electricity, and thankfully none of them were grating. https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3661146107 [h1]Pros[/h1] 🌟 Despite including a mode for speedrunners, there's no achievement for beating any section quickly. 🌟 The game tracks your best completions for each mini-adventure. [h1]Cons[/h1] ❌ Something I don't understand when you collect the treasure at the end of each quest is why you seem to be at the greatest depth, but not submerged in water. Where are we searching, exactly? ❌ It's pretty easy to make the wrong move and wind up getting stuck, having to take a forced death or reset. I find that to be pretty sloppy design in a platforming game. ❌ Assuming you don't care about achievements, the game is really short. Maybe 90 minutes, at most. [h1]Tips[/h1] 🔍 Making progress is easy as long as your routing follows the developer's intentions. If you're ever struggling to do something, reassess the path you're trying to follow. 🔍 This seemed most relevant in the first quest, but swinging along the edge of your tether is sometimes necessary to reach a checkpoint. [h1]Final Thoughts[/h1] Amongst all the other reviews, I'm surprised nobody had a complaint about a game that lasts well under two hours selling for $6. Surely there's other cheapskates like me around who quibbles over a few bucks. Conversely, they kept mentioning this notion that for a short game, it was jam-packed with different mechanics and types of puzzles, off-setting such a quick playthrough. I'd admit there's a handful of elements included, but nothing that would blow away an experienced gamer, “I can ride air currents in this bubble. If I electrify the chain, I can defeat enemies.” It'd have to be a pretty lame platformer for there to be only a single mechanic that never changed throughout the entire title, so I wouldn't call this inclusion a feature, just a bare minimum standard. In this case, I'd go against the current, and not recommend this game.'' [quote][url=https://store.steampowered.com/curator/32732116-IndieGems/]Follow our curator page: [b]IndieGems[/b] if you like and want to see more reviews like this one.[/url][/quote] [table] [tr] [th]PC Specs[/th] [th]Performance[/th] [/tr] [tr] [td]Ryzen 2700 RTX 2070 16GB RAM ADATA SSD 1920x1080 [/td] [td]The game ran without incident on default settings. 💖 - BO is healthy [/td] [/tr] [/table]

A quick purchase while the Summer Sale was still on, spotted it in passing, saw in the trailer that it featured rope physics, and that was it, bought it and installed it straight away. I liked it, as you progress through the levels, it introduces new, simple, yet clever mechanics to keep things fresh, but it’s not too long either, just four levels, each lasting between 10 and 15 minutes. You can extend the experience if you want to find all the diamonds and complete it without dying. For the sale price, it’s more than worth it. [quote] [i] Check out [url=https://store.steampowered.com/curator/44959158-Critiques-Sans-Frontiers/] our curator page [/url] to discover more little interesting games. [/i] [/quote]

This is my favorite of this dev's three games. It's a platformer, with a bit of precision, and a bit of puzzle thrown in. It is not difficult, but it is not boring either, which are often the two categories of platformer we get these days. I like the look, I like the feel, I like the physics, I like the chapter names, and the minimal narration. I think this probably should get more love than it does. Try it out if you like Gato Roboto, Physics based puzzle platformers, or if celeste is a bit too hard for you.

This game is absolutely *not* bad by any means, its controls are fairly polished, its music pleasant, its mechanics relatively clever, but for some reason it never really "sparked" for me. The things that can be done with the tether are neat, and they *were* generally well-explored, but, as someone fairly experienced with action-puzzle games, almost no puzzle ever really felt like it made me *think* for more than a moment - and puzzles that required more complicated tether movements often require you to slowly (and often slightly awkwardly) backtrack to untangle your tether from the terrain. On the action side of things, I think the game's controls are too sluggish for action setpieces (of which it has several, especially in the final level) to feel especially good, which means that, for me, the game executes its two halves competently but without much spice. When you complete the fourth episode, the game just unceremoniously "stops," no real ending, which ultimately left me feeling like... sure, that was fine, I suppose.

Adorei esse jogo! É simples, mas muito bem feito. Os controles são bons, as mecânicas são criativas e fáceis de aprender e o nível de desafio é bem equilibrado. Cada uma das quatro fases tem algum elemento único e leva cerca de 10 minutos para completar na primeira vez. Fora isso, tem o desafio de completar a fase sem morrer e também coletar todos os diamantes (alguns muito bem escondidos). É um ótimo jogo para partidas curtas ou para servir de "jogo intervalo" entre títulos mais longos.

Charming and short platformer thats densely packed with cool ideas

Awesome pazzle-platforming game to play, strongly recommend! The last time I got so much pleasure from platforming - was the Celecte, and this one reminded me it. But it has totally different inertia (because we are under the water), but the same joy feeling from the hero controls. I like cables mechanic a lot. It's a short journey for a evening, filled with joy, I like it. Please support such projects! We need them. Thanks to developers and publishers!

XUnity.AutoTranslator-ReiPatcheで日本語に自動翻訳が可能だが文字は読みにくい。 呼吸用ホースがつながった潜水夫が主役の珍しいプラットフォーマー。水中なので動作には慣性が作用する。酸素タンクから次の酸素タンクまで辿り着く形式で、ホースを岩に引っかけてスイング出来たりもする。チェックポイントが多いので、死んでもすぐリスタート出来て快適。SteamDeckでも動作している。

Below The Ocean is a precision platforming adventure developed by Ismael Rodriguez and published by Retro Casual LLC that builds its identity around movement mastery, environmental puzzles, and underwater exploration. Rather than relying on combat systems or large narrative sequences to drive engagement, the game focuses on a smaller collection of mechanics and develops them carefully throughout the experience. The result is a focused platformer that rewards patience, experimentation, and skill improvement while creating a journey that feels satisfying without becoming unnecessarily complicated. The game places players beneath the ocean surface in search of hidden treasures buried deep within dangerous underwater environments. Exploration becomes the foundation of progression, but reaching those discoveries requires understanding movement systems that operate differently from traditional platforming games. Instead of simply running and jumping through levels, players navigate the ocean using an oxygen tether mechanic that introduces a distinct layer of challenge and creativity to movement. The tether system quickly becomes the heart of the entire experience. Players swing between areas, build momentum, and gradually learn advanced movement techniques that expand possibilities for navigation. Mastering mechanics such as tether swings, bouncing maneuvers, and momentum-based movement creates a strong feeling of progression because improvement comes directly from player skill rather than artificial upgrades. Areas that initially appear difficult become manageable once movement systems fully click into place. This approach creates one of Below The Ocean's strongest qualities. Progress feels earned. Rather than unlocking power through equipment or statistics, players improve by understanding mechanics more deeply. Every successful movement sequence reinforces mastery, turning previously challenging sections into opportunities for precision execution. That learning process gives the game a rewarding rhythm where experimentation consistently leads to growth. The underwater setting strengthens the experience considerably. Ocean environments create an atmosphere that feels calm and dangerous at the same time. Exploration remains rewarding because levels encourage curiosity beyond simply reaching the next objective. Hidden treasures and optional collectibles reward players willing to search carefully through every corner of the environment. The game avoids treating exploration as filler and instead integrates it directly into progression and challenge. Puzzle design also contributes heavily to maintaining engagement. Environmental obstacles rarely depend entirely on reaction speed alone. Observation, planning, and mechanical understanding become equally important. New ideas appear steadily across progression, ensuring mechanics continue evolving rather than becoming repetitive. Each new section introduces variations that encourage adaptation while remaining consistent with the core movement philosophy. The game unfolds across multiple chapters that gradually increase complexity without overwhelming players immediately. New mechanics appear naturally throughout progression, allowing learning to develop at a comfortable pace. The design demonstrates restraint by avoiding unnecessary complexity while still providing enough variety to maintain momentum throughout the adventure. Optional challenges further strengthen replay value. Hidden collectibles scattered throughout levels create incentives for completion-focused players to revisit areas and refine movement execution. The movement systems also naturally support speedrunning approaches for players interested in optimization and mastery. Faster routes and cleaner execution become rewarding goals beyond simply finishing the campaign. Visually, Below The Ocean embraces a minimalist presentation style built around limited-color visuals that create a distinctive atmosphere without sacrificing gameplay clarity. The visual direction feels intentionally restrained rather than technologically limited. Environmental details remain readable during movement-heavy sections while maintaining a retro-inspired aesthetic that complements the focused gameplay design. Its smaller scope naturally creates limitations. Players expecting deep story development, extensive progression systems, or combat-heavy gameplay may find the experience more limited than larger platforming adventures. Below The Ocean remains highly focused on movement and exploration above all else. However, that narrow focus ultimately works in its favor because every element feels built to support the same central ideas. What makes the game memorable is how effectively it develops simple concepts into satisfying long-term engagement. The tether mechanic could easily have become repetitive in a less carefully designed experience. Instead, thoughtful level construction and gradually expanding challenges allow the movement systems to remain enjoyable throughout the journey. Below The Ocean succeeds because it understands that strong platforming design does not require excessive complexity. It takes a handful of well-designed ideas and builds an experience around refining them carefully. The result is a compact but rewarding adventure that respects player improvement while consistently encouraging exploration and mastery. Below The Ocean delivers an enjoyable underwater platforming experience supported by smart movement design, rewarding exploration, and carefully constructed challenges that make every improvement feel meaningful. Rating: 8/10