![Ocean’s Heart [Nintendo Switch] | REVIEW](https://i0.wp.com/www.useapotion.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/oceansheart-review.jpg?resize=1077%2C640&ssl=1)
The Legend of Zelda series has inspired plenty of games over the years, with some simply borrowing a handful of ideas from Nintendo’s famed franchise and others being a bit more on the nose and essentially embracing the entire blueprint. In many ways, Ocean’s Heart felt like the latter when I played it, with the game wearing its inspirations like a big badge of honour in almost every facet of its design. That isn’t a bad thing though, especially since the game is a whole lot of fun to play and does introduce some ideas of its own throughout the adventure – it’s just VERY clear what game it’s attempting to be like.
Check out a gallery of screenshots down below:
Ocean’s Heart tells the story of Tilia, a young lady whose home island is attacked by pirates, which sees her best friend Hazel getting kidnapped in the process. Tilia’s father sets out to rescue Hazel and bring the pirates down, but his expedition isn’t heard of again with his disappearance considered a mystery. You know what this means, right? Yep, Tilia decides to embark on her own adventure to rescue her father and Hazel, but who knows what dangers lie ahead of her…
The narrative of Ocean’s Heart is pretty fun. Whilst the whole ‘head on a rescue mission’ idea isn’t exactly screaming with originality, there are plenty of little side-stories woven in that help shape a grander adventure that brings with it even higher stakes as you progress on your journey. It has plenty of witty and funny moments throughout the story, and it just made discovering more of the world and its secrets all the more enjoyable.
When it comes to the gameplay, I expect players will feel a sense of familiarity almost immediately. A top-down action-adventure? Check. Plenty of dungeon-crawling with puzzle-solving? Check. Heart containers that represent your health? Check. An array of nifty tools to use to help solve puzzles or take out enemies? Check. A hero that lifts up and showcases any item they find in a chest? Check. Sure, it might sound like I’m listing some of the typical hallmarks of an action-adventure there, but the way that Ocean’s Heart delivers them is incredibly reminiscent of The Legend of Zelda series and it’ll be clear almost immediately that that’s where the game’s inspirations lie.
“This is a game that tries to capture the essence and quality of The Legend of Zelda series and it does a really good job of doing so, with some well-designed enemies, clever puzzles, and neat locales to explore that feel like they could have come straight out of Nintendo’s series.”
As mentioned, it’s not a bad thing at all… in fact, it was one of my favourite things about Ocean’s Heart. This is a game that tries to capture the essence and quality of The Legend of Zelda series and it does a really good job of doing so, with some well-designed enemies, clever puzzles, and neat locales to explore that feel like they could have come straight out of Nintendo’s series. Uncovering more of the islands and seeing where I’d venture across next always felt rewarding, even IF nothing ever felt too original from a gameplay perspective.
That’s not to say that Ocean’s Heart doesn’t have its own ideas or doesn’t try to modernise the traditional adventure format though. For one, the enemies bring a lot more variety here, with foes of different shapes and sizes causing havoc with their dangerous attacks. Whilst it’d be easy to simply try to mash sword attacks when taking them down, they often required players to use all of their weapons and tools in order to efficiently defeat them. It felt more challenging in some ways, but the greater sense of enemy variation also stood out as one of the game’s strong points. Oh, and the boss battles were creative in design and fun to tackle too, with each pushing your skills in different ways as you tried to outwit them and figure out how to exploit their attack patterns.
The game introduces other little ideas too, such as upgrading your weapons and armour in order to boost their effectiveness. It keeps things simpler than constantly changing gear all the time, whilst it also allows players to prioritise improving what’s most important to them. There’s also a crafting system in place where players can collect the ingredients they find in the world to make new items. It’s not a particularly deep system, especially when compared to similar action RPGs, but it will give players access to healing items or additional gear to dish out some hurt to foes.
“There’s a heck of a lot to uncover across the world too, with optional side quests and battles giving players PLENTY to do as they explore the luscious surroundings.”
It just all comes together to make for a genuinely fun adventure, with the enjoyable mix of exploration, puzzle solving, and combat ticking all the right boxes for me – I wouldn’t even call myself a huge Legend of Zelda fan, but the adventure had me completely hooked in. There’s a heck of a lot to uncover across the world too, with optional side quests and battles giving players PLENTY to do as they explore the luscious surroundings. These side quests don’t feel tacked on either, with some bringing their own little stories that don’t tie into the overall plot but feel meaningful nonetheless. It’s clear that a lot of care and effort went into building the world and its stories, and believe me, it helps make the adventure all the more enjoyable.
The only real flaw I found when playing was that the controls could feel a little bit stiff in places, especially when it came to quickly evading enemy attacks by rolling, but it’s something that feels easier the longer you play the game. There’s also the fact that the game doesn’t really offer anything at all that you wouldn’t have seen before, whilst it is a bit more condensed and smaller than the titles that inspired it. You’d easily think you’re playing a Legend of Zelda game, but it doesn’t quite hit the same heights.
Ocean’s Heart is a really pretty game, with some fantastic pixel art on show throughout that helps showcase a world that’s charming and full of colour. It feels lively and lived in, whilst the more magical elements of locations add intrigue to the surroundings. It’d be easy to think it’s all port towns and seaside environments to start off with, but there really is a lot of diversity to uncover across the world.
Ocean's Heart Review
If you like The Legend of Zelda, you’ll REALLY enjoy Ocean’s Heart (and I mean that in the best possible way, it’s a really fun game). Almost every facet of the gameplay was inspired by Nintendo’s hit franchise, from the enjoyable dungeon-exploration and puzzles to the engaging combat and attractive presentation. That doesn’t mean there isn’t room for its own ideas along the way though, even if there aren’t too many instances where Ocean’s Heart tries to innovate.
If you’re looking for an original experience that feels unlike anything else, you will NOT get that here. If you’re looking for something that’s fun, pretty to look at, and that wears its inspiration like a badge of honour though, you can’t go wrong with Ocean’s Heart’s entertaining adventure – even if it doesn’t quite hit the heights of the title’s that inspired it.
Developer: Max Mraz, Nordcurrent
Publisher: Nordcurrent
Platform(s): Nintendo Switch (Reviewed), PC
Website: https://www.nordcurrent.com/games/oceans-heart
