Answer the call.

Call of the Sea is a first-person puzzle-adventure set on a mysterious island in the Pacific during the Pre-WWII era. This debut outing from Out of the Blue Studios puts you in the shoes of Norah, a woman plagued with a mysterious disease who is searching for her husband and his team on the aforementioned island. Landing on the eerily quiet shore, Norah embarks into the unknown, asking herself, “what happened to Henry and his crew?” and more importantly, “why does this island seem so familiar?”.

GRAPHICS 9/10

From the second Norah stepped off the rowboat, I knew I was in for a treat.

The first area takes place in a dense jungle with Polynesian Unu totems. While you can’t truly “go off the beaten path” in Call of the Sea, the areas you are able to explore are works of art in and of themselves. The art direction has a pulp noir aesthetic that perfectly compliments the mystery. Although there are only a couple of issues with water clipping through elements, this is only a minor gripe. In the later levels, the visuals create an atmosphere that drives the narrative along as you explore a much darker and weirder side of the island.

SOUND QUALITY 10/10

Call of the Sea’s sound design is very pleasing to the ear. The soundtrack draws you into Norah’s adventure with hopeful beats and fauna noises in the starting areas, and haunting motifs of the later areas. Where Call of the Sea truly excels is its voice acting. Cissy Jones (DarksidersIII, Destiny 2) and Yuri Lowenthal (Spider-Man PS4, Naruto: Shippuden) lend their vocal talents and extensive experience to the protagonist Norah and her husband Henry, respectively. Both performances are outstanding and harken back to classic radio dramas of the game’s 1930s setting. Check out the video below to get an inside look into the VO process of the game.

GAMEPLAY 9/10

When I started Call of the Sea, I expected the game to delve into horror jumpscares and fighting off monsters and the island's inhabitants (a la 2005’s King Kong). However, no scare came. No weapons were picked up. Subverting my expectations completely, Call of the Sea is strictly a puzzle/mystery that has more to do with Myst than Bioshock. The puzzles Norah needs to overcome are engaging and the game encourages you to explore every nook and cranny to fill out Norah’s journal. While also providing story elements, Norah’s meticulous notes help you solve each puzzle. This simplifies the arduous process of writing your own notes like you would need to do in the aforementioned Myst series.

CHARACTERS 10/10

I touched briefly on Cissy and Yuri’s performances in the sound section, but what I didn’t mention is that (until I saw the end credits) I didn’t know it was them! I’ve spent countless hours trading in bounties and doing strikes guided by Cissy’s character in Destiny 2. I didn’t even notice that the man I was looking for and listening to in audio-logs was Peter Parker!

Cissy and Yuri truly brought these characters to life and the game excels all the more for it. 

Norah’s narrations of the game’s events and her reflections on her relationship and past with Henry give you the most insight into her story. Henry’s character arc is told through a series of letters he has written to Norah as well as audio-logs and other notes scattered through the game's levels. It is through these items that the player also learns more about Henry’s crew and the hardships they endured prior to Norah’s arrival. In the spirit of avoiding spoilers, I encourage you to play through the game and discover these characters for yourself.

STORY 10/10

Call of the Sea is first and foremost a mystery. To best avoid spoilers, I won’t go into detail here. I will tell you that when I picked up this game just after Christmas, my wife and I were glued the story from the first clue to the last puzzle.

Norah’s journey is heartwarming and tragic, and like the gameplay, subverts expectations in all the best ways.

OVERALL 9.5/10

Call of the Sea is a refreshing take on the mystery game genre.

Its gameplay, clearly inspired by the Myst series, is engaging and challenging. The story is driven by beautiful art direction and fantastic character portrayals by some of the best voice actors in the business. This game simply needs to be experienced and is an amazing first outing for Out of the Blue Studios.

Call of the Sea was released on December 8th, 2020, and is available on PC, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X|S. The reviewer purchased the game at full retail price.