Mythwrecked: Ambrosia Island is a story journey set on a legendary island house to many alternative Greek Gods. Stranded on this enigmatic and long-forgotten place, Alex – a backpacker with a busy job who lastly bought a while off – has to assist the Gods bear in mind who they’re by forging friendships, fixing some mild puzzles, exploring the island, and resolving the thriller behind the Gods’ amnesia.
On the core of the sport is the so-called Ambrosidex, a mysterious gadget that provides you a map, lore, and all of your duties, serving to you relocate memorabilia tied to the varied Gods, maintaining monitor of the issues that you need to do, and even permitting the Gods to contact you immediately. This can be a sport that’s all about fetching quests and the tales it tells.
Developer: Polygon Treehouse
Writer: Whitethorn Video games
Style: Indie, Narrative Journey with puzzles and numerous exploration
Launch Date: December fifth, 2024
Reviewed on: PC
Out there on: PC, Change, XBS
Copy was supplied by the writer.
After you’re stranded on this island, you get to satisfy a unusual and vibrant forged of characters, starting from Gods not of their prime. Hermes has turn into anxious and doesn’t ship messages anymore, Aphrodite struggles with self-doubt, whereas Hephaistos and Athena are overworking themselves and discovering a tough steadiness between their self-care and their passions, simply to say a couple of of the tales informed.
Mythwrecked: Ambrosia Island is a sport about these tales. Moderately than embracing the overdone Greek myths as we all know them, the builders over at Polygon Treehouse forge their very own tales, recontextualizing the polytheist myths of Historical Greece and mixing them with fashionable components, which I discovered extremely attention-grabbing.
The sport touches on subjects like psychological well being, self-care and mindfulness. There are themes of doubt and discovering one’s function, reigniting one’s ardour for one’s craft, and in addition discovering new joys in life. The best way it touches on many alternative points like that’s compelling though I’d have needed to see extra depth at occasions.
The forged of characters you meet within the sport – when you’re making an attempt to unravel the thriller of Ambrosia Island and discover a means house – have misplaced religion in themselves, uncared for their duties after falling out with one another, and once they meet you, they’re initially very closed up and distrusting. Comprehensible. However maybe as a result of means the sport is made or due to Alex’ empathetic nature, they open up pretty quickly and mean you can assist them.
The favours they ask of you carry selection into the sport. You’re tasked with discovering memorabilia – objects related to the Gods – in a “getting hotter” model minigame stretched across the many alternative areas of the island to seek out these objects in all kinds of hidden nooks and crannies. On high of that, Hermes asks you to feed the seagulls, Zeus and Hera need you to make the island extra welcoming, whereas you’re guiding house spirits for Hades.
These minigames not solely offer you a purpose to discover the island however additionally they reward you immediately by permitting you to progress by the story. Full a bunch of duties for the varied Gods, and also you’re awarded their seal, permitting you passage by completely different doorways that now grant you much more areas to discover.
The best way through which you need to work out the place to go subsequent and what you possibly can and can’t do in the mean time is fairly enjoyable. I like exploration in video games and making an attempt to determine what instruments you want to discover that one message in a bottle, attain that crate that washed ashore, or to get to the subsequent space is simply… enjoyable.
Add to that, which you could swap the ambrosia fruit discovered in all places on the island for relics from completely different Gods, and you end up accumulating a bunch of various gadgets, from the sport’s soundtrack to furnishings on your lighthouse, to extra sensible gadgets like misplaced memorabilia, portal keys which can be used for fast-travel, and farms to not should forage for fruits anymore… and also you abruptly have a really well-rounded sport that’s all about fetch quests.
I’d think about that individuals would possibly discover themselves bored with the gameplay loop. It’s undoubtedly not everybody’s cup of tea, however as somebody who appreciates a laid-back and cozy-style sport that has you hurry from one place to a different, giving me the chance to min-max my routes, I really favored this so much, particularly because the day-night-cycle additionally paints the island in fairly actually a brand new mild because the day progresses.
Now, right here’s one thing I didn’t like… The Mild Home. Initially, it was house to your very first save level however, over time, as I added furnishings, I needed it to turn into extra than simply one other save location. I needed it to turn into our precise house. However for that, it lacks performance.
Sure, you add furnishings and decorations to it, however there is no such thing as a customization, no small gimmicks and issues to work together with. It’s simply an (ultimately much less) empty room and it feels chilly and lonely. It’s not alive. If it was a spot we really lived at, maybe we’d have one thing on the range or some small vegetation to are likely to. I do know it is a nitpick however I really feel like it could have added so much, personally, even when it was quite simple.
Outdoors of that, I didn’t just like the “voice appearing”, largely grunts and singular phrases. That form of model is a bit overdone and I don’t even know if the sport wanted it essentially. I shortly turned the voice sounds off due to how annoying the grunts, noises and singular phrases get.
In that regard, I’m glad it’s an choice. Once more, being nitpicky right here nevertheless it genuinely bothered me. I’d suggest going into the choices and turning off the voice sounds if you happen to’re additionally bothered by it.
One other factor right here is one thing in regards to the characters you meet. I actually just like the extra fashionable strategy to the character designs.
Ares is a punk. Zeus and Hera are hipsters. It’s kinda humorous, and provides numerous quirkiness and color to an in any other case stale and, frankly, critical and problematic pantheon, ? It’s neat. I’m positive there are many individuals on the market who is not going to like seeing these designs however I feel they’re becoming, even when Hephaistos is a bit pale, though it is sensible since he doesn’t depart the home a lot, I suppose.
However the characters simply stand there within the numerous areas and when it’s their time of day to go away their properties, they only teleport over, even with their lack of powers. Look, I feel it could have been significantly better if the individuals did really do issues right here and there or in the event that they at the very least walked over to their spots, and stuff.
It’s good that Cerberus is sleeping all day and it’s nice which you could pet him, however what does Hades do all day? I’d have beloved to see them do actually something, even when it’s desk work.
Hephaistos is my favorite God right here btw. Make him tinker on some contraption and roll his wheelchair all the way down to his forge. Ares and Aphrodite might have a tendency their respective passions, Zeus and Hera might snuggle whereas at house and simply chat whereas out and about, Hermes could possibly be seen fishing, Poseidon could possibly be seen stress-free, Athena could possibly be studying… and, and, and. You get what I imply.
Because it stands, the characters are simply ready so that you can discuss to them which breaks the immersion a bit for me. It might add so much to creating the world really feel extra alive if the sport featured that form of consideration to element, and I’m optimistic that the builders might very a lot add one thing alongside these traces. If to not this sport, then maybe to their subsequent one.
General, although, I discovered Mythwrecked: Ambrosia Island to be an extremely attention-grabbing sport that rewards you for the exploration you do, both with progress within the story, cool gadgets and options, or shortcuts to areas you’ve been to already, connecting the island as you join the Gods with one another once more.
It recontextualizes the Gods of Greek Mythology and manages to retell their tales however in a brand new mild that I discover pleasing and never all that removed from the tales we all know.
Sure, the characters might have the aforementioned difficulty however when it comes to their personalities and tales, they actually grew on me, and after beating the sport fully in eight hours (as a result of I simply couldn’t cease enjoying), I used to be genuinely unhappy to see the top to the sport. It was unhappy to see the credit roll. I’d have beloved to play extra of the sport even when I felt glad with its size and the content material this sport supplied.
Mythwrecked: Ambrosia Island is a story journey with puzzle components that cosy players who must take their thoughts off of issues will certainly get pleasure from. If you happen to’re accustomed to the myths of Greek Mythology, you’ll discover cool easter eggs and numerous consideration to element. I’m a fan.
I like to recommend testing the sport your self and am eagerly wanting ahead to enjoying Polygon Treehouse’s future video games, particularly after their work on Röki and this title right here.
This submit was initially written by Dan Dicere from Indiecator.
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