Abzû Review

 









An Aquatic Art piece-An Abzû Review

This week I decided to take a look at an older game I played back when it came out in 2016 to see if it still holds up. Abzû is the first title released from Giant Squid, a company comprised of some very talented developers as well as a few people from the Journey development team, from which Abzû is inspired. 

Smooth, Simple, and Elegant

Abzû, like Journey and Flower, more of a visual and musical experience than a typical example of a videogame. Based around merely swimming and exploring, Abzû is a game where you merely take in what's occurring around you as the incredible choirs and instrumentals fill your headspace.

What sets Abzû apart is its setting, the vast and diverse environments of underwater life. While I won't spoil all of its surprises here, I was insanely impressed with what Giant Squid were able to accomplish with a genuine care for Marine Biology and what kind of fish inhabit these environments. As someone who used to study in this field, it was wondrous seeing the attention to detail present within Abzû. 


Abzû also contains a very fine tuned sense of flow within its controls. As a testament to the underwater setting, swimming through schools of fish with rhythmic strokes was nothing less than a joy to input. You even have the ability to ride larger creatures who all control differently depending on their size, weight, and anatomy. A ton of polish and care clearly went into this, and it shows in spades when compared to the numerous underwater sections of other games. 


In terms of raw gameplay and puzzles, however, I found Abzû quite bland. I cannot count how many times the game threw the same "activate two switches to open the door" puzzle at you. In my first playthrough back on release I was so engrossed in the visual and sound design I didn't notice, but in replaying Abzû it really stuck out. 

However, I was pleasantly surprised with how long Abzû felt compared to other "walking simulators" despite not actually being lengthy. Each environment was so visually distinct that I had a great time exploring each area and the aquatic life that inhabit them. Just when I think they had all bases of the ocean covered, Giant Squid threw another surprise my way. Combine this with some mild exploration in terms of finding all the hidden shells and you can find somewhere between 2-4 hours of heavily immersive gameplay in Abzû. While that may read short on paper, Abzû set up enough vivid set pieces alongside wild orchestral songs to keep you locked in the whole time. It also means that Abzû doesn't overstay its welcome, ending at just the right moment to keep you satisfied with it as a whole. 

Verdict

If you're looking for an experience that stacks right up with Flower and Journey, you can't go wrong with Abzû. What Giant Squid have created is an audiovisual masterpiece worthy of being shown in a museum alongside fine art. An absolute masterclass. 

9.8/10-An Underwater Symphony

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