Song of the deep will enchant you with it’s unique storytelling, thoughtful underwater world and it’s charm, despite a few missteps here and there.
Plot
The plot of Song of the Deep can be weak at times, but that doesn’t mean it’s bad. Merryn is a young girl who lives with her fisherman father. They enjoy a simple happy life – one where Merryn waits for her father to return from fishing every night…until one night he doesn’t. She waits all night for him, but his ship never returns. Merryn refuses to believe her dad is dead, instead building a submarine and setting off to rescue him from the depths of the ocean. Along her journey, she realizes that the stories her father told her of a golden city and at the bottom of the ocean were not just stories at all and she must be the one to uncover the mysteries. All in all, the plot isn’t bad but it can be flimsy at times. Much of that has to do with the fact that things tend to happen out of nowhere without any warning. Now, It does tell an intriguing backstory as you uncover the mysteries of the ocean, but I never quite felt as though all the ends were tied into a solid knot.
Writing
Song of the Deep takes a gamble on its writing. Instead of having characters talk like in regular games, the entire game is narrated like someone is reading from a story book. That means third person writing and it works amazingly well. It creates the illusion that you’re playing through a myth, or a legend, or perhaps even a children’s book. The writing style complements it perfectly– strong, without a word out of place reinforcing the story book feel even more. Unfortunately, the gamble doesn’t pay off completely. Since the entire story is in 3rd person, and Merryn is inside of a submarine, I never felt the connection with her that I was hoping for. Because I never grew to care for her whole heartedly, it lessened the impact of some of the more emotional spots in the story.
Voice Acting
I have no doubt that the writing would not work as well as it does without the brilliant performance of the narrator, Siobhan Hewlett. Her Scottish accent is perfect to set the mood throughout the whole game. She expertly narrates each line with enthusiasm and emotion. In a game where 99% of your voice acting is from a single voice actress, choosing the correct one is key, and Song of the Deep makes the best choice possible.
Immersion
You might think the bottom of the ocean is a cold, dark, desolate place, but Song of the Deep makes sure that’s not all it is. It’s vibrant, popping with life and imagination, and only accentuated by it’s charming art style. Part of the reason why it works so well is Song of the Deep fully commits to it’s ocean setting. You’ll go from the depths of the darkest pits of the ocean, to beautiful kelp forests, and everywhere in-between. Each area teeming with unique aquatic life to pull you into the world. The hand drawn cut scenes also work well to reinforce the storybook style feel. On top of that, Son of the deep doesn’t allow you to remember your playing a game – not even for a second. Everything in the game has a reason. You died? No, That’s just the magical ‘Tyne’ Energy showing you a possible outcome. You got a health upgrade? No, you found a part of an old submarine that Merryn bolts to her ship. Is Song of the Deep a game you need to play in 4k? Probably not, but It’s that attention to detail that really sells the world.
Conclusion
Song of the Deep tries a different approach to storytelling and it should be commended for that. While, it doesn’t all work, enough of it does that it’s absolutely worth the 7 hour trip.