The newest installment within the Demagog Studio post-apocalyptic prolonged universe, Highwater is a hauntingly stunning and provocative recreation that expands on the ravaged world launched in Golf Membership Wasteland and The Cub. This recreation takes place within the last moments earlier than (a few of) humanity managed to flee their ruined homeland to Mars.
A extra story-driven recreation than the others within the collection, Highwater follows Nikos and his ragtag group of associates as they try to discover a means onboard the rocket headed for Mars. Nikos lives on his rubber dinghy, crusing between the few remaining scraps of land in a world decimated by floods. The gameplay is cut up into navigating across the drowned map and turn-based fight between you and people who stand in the way in which of the assets your neighborhood must survive.
The worldbuilding in Highwater echoes the opposite video games within the collection. You piece collectively the total story of how the world turned so devastated by means of off-hand feedback made by radio presenters enjoying by means of the story, in addition to newspapers and books you discover scattered all over the world. Via the narrative, you give attention to Nikos and the folks he encounters.
You meet all kinds of people who’ve all reacted to the apocalypse in a different way. The elites of Alphaville have given up on the mess made from planet Earth. Insurgents are livid that the Alphavillians would abandon the planet and so many individuals left stranded, and incite battles for vengeance. Small teams and even lone people exist in their very own little worlds, with their very own distinctive method to surviving.
There is a gigantic neighborhood of healthful, hopeful folks round Nikos. They assist one another by sharing info and assets. Regardless of the final understanding that the planet is doomed, they resiliently get on with their everyday lives, elevating a brand new technology to adapt.
You spend a quick period of time with every particular person, getting sufficient of a glimpse into their life-style to grasp their response to the world. They’re all extremely attention-grabbing and believably written, with distinct, memorable personalities. The brief stretches with new folks really feel such as you’re solely scratching the floor of the true depth of the Highwater recreation world. It’s straightforward to be left desirous to discover extra of the totally different paths folks have taken—to query which avenue you may take underneath comparable circumstances.
The fight is turn-based and requires you to creatively make the most of the abilities of the totally different characters journeying with you on the time of any given battle. You can even make use of assorted options of the atmosphere that add an additional ingredient to your technique. It’s pretty straightforward to establish how one can generate a bonus for your self in most battles, however they nonetheless present an honest quantity of problem.
Initially, the turn-based construction can really feel prefer it loses the urgency generated by the desperation of the narrative. Nonetheless, this fades fairly shortly. The several types of enemies you face, the number of environments wherein you end up, and the ever-shifting make-up of your staff leads to a genuinely absorbing expertise.
Between cutscenes and fight, you sail across the map, listening to the totally gorgeous radio soundtrack, chatting to whoever is touring with you, and watching Nikos mirror on his state of affairs. Highwater is an extremely introspective and provocative recreation. It questions the morality of selections you’re compelled to make when you’re determined. It immediately challenges the choices folks with energy and affect in the actual world make daily, and prophesies a terrifying future.
Highwater ends ambiguously. As you make your means in direction of your last purpose, there’s a looming sense of dread about whether or not it is going to really present Nikos with the “fortunately ever after” he goals of. He has left his associates behind in his bid for security. Whispers within the background forged doubts on the guarantees made by the highly effective. The story concludes nonetheless dripping with uncertainty.
The sport, and the parallels it attracts with actuality, are onerous to cease eager about.