Code provided by Thunderful. Screenshots are from the press package this time

Wavetale is a game I had heard about quite some time ago when it was originally announced for Stadia (R.I.P.). It looked interesting, but the fact it was exclusive to a platform that I had long lost interest in was a non-starter for me, so I moved on. Fast-forward to PAX West 2022 and I was able to get my hands on a demo for the game as Thunderful was promoting its launch on other platforms. What I experienced was a beautiful mesh of sound and movement that left me genuinely shocked about how well worked. Now having played the full title, the question is: How well does that demo translate to a full game experience?

My Answer: Pretty well.

Wavetale is a game that follows Sigrid, a character that, with the help of a shadowy water creature and the people of her town, must deal with the environmental fallout of a war that took place before she was born. The game does its best to stay relatively simple. The story is straightforward, there are only a few controls, and the game overall is pretty short. I think that acts as a double-edged sword for this game. While for the most part I really enjoyed the simplicity, there were several moments where I yearned for a little more depth in certain aspects.

As I mentioned at the top of this review, one of the stars of the show was the movement. It was incredibly fluid and fast, and never at any point got stale. I am not being hyperbolic when I said the movement in Wavetale consistently gave me flashes of my time in Spiderman (2018). I was consistently lulled into a state of pure enjoyment. Just getting lost in the motion of the game. The main traversal mechanic is a water surfing ability that you use to get around the open world. During your travels, you’ll consistently come across canons and slides that will launch you into the air and give you a much-welcomed speed and air boost. Your movements are seamless and you’ll constantly find yourself diving and flipping in the air without losing any momentum. It’s hard to get movement mechanics in games down, and the Thunderful team hit it out of the park with this. It’s clear they were thinking about movement and traversal during the entire design process and never let it slip to the wayside.

The other star was the incredible soundtrack that keeps you company every step of the way. It’s hard to put in words just how well the music of this game fits the theme and gameplay. The composer, Joel Billie, went in. It’s one of those soundtracks that just forcibly pull emotion out of you as you listen. Even though the music is not often overly dramatic or epic, it finds a way to accent the events of the game at any given moment. There is also the added bonus of getting a sound not often found in games, thanks to the use of some uncommon instruments like the flugelhorn. Even if you don’t play this game I highly recommend checking out the soundtrack.

The rest of the components of the game are just garnishes in my opinion. The story and art design are nice touches that complement the other elements of the game rather than do anything to meaningfully propel it forward. I thought the overall meaning and shape of the story were pretty touching but predictable. I thought the voice acting that was included was awesome, but unfortunately, there’s not a ton of it. None of the components that make up this game are necessarily bad, but many are pretty generic and lack excitement.

Some aspects of the game I actually wished were improved were the combat and side missions. The combat might be the most barebones mechanic in this entire game. There are maybe four total enemies titles that are pretty much all the same, and you have three combat moves to deal with them that are pretty much all the same. That makes combat more of a roadblock than an enjoyable part of the game. Luckily, combat sections are rather light throughout and they’re all pretty easy. The main problem I have with this is that there was such a missed opportunity to add the same fluidity we see in the movement to the combat.

As for the side missions, they were a little too vague and inconsequential to me. The few that I did do I didn’t get much satisfaction from, as you are only awarded this currency that is literally everywhere in the open world. The others that I didn’t do seemed pretty hard to track. If I missed some side mission marker system that’s totally on me but it seemed like I was tasked to find certain items in the huge open world, which seemed like a big waste of time to me.

Overall I’d say Wavetale was enjoyable from start to finish. The only issue I really have with the game is that aside from the movement and music it plays things very safe. There’s not much innovation that will have you feeling like you’ve just played something completely unique. Instead, I would categorize this as a relaxing and cathartic experience with a pretty great message. It’s not one that I would recommend to any and everyone, but if what you’ve read in this review or seen in the trailers has interested you, I think you’ll probably end up enjoying what Wavetale has to offer.