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Chill game for the naturally curious

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 8 / 8
Date: February 15, 2008
Author: Amazon User

Endless Ocean appeals with its mellow, self-directed pace, I get to learn about the animals every time I play, and it's a wonderful escape from February in Colorado. It's not a game for the shoot 'em gamer - but then, the Wii is supposed to appeal to a much wider crowd and this game fits in with that great.

I've always wanted to be a marine zoologist, so I am probably right in the center of the target audience, but this is all the diving fun without the jellyfish stings or statistics. There's enough structure - with guided dives, photos to take, species to find - to keep me moving along through the plot and around the ocean world, but on the nights that I just want to chill I can just go dive whatever I want.

I recommend Endless Ocean for people who don't want to shoot anything, don't want to raise their heart rate or stress levels, and find fun in exploration.

What an amazing experience

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 7 / 7
Date: February 14, 2008
Author: Amazon User

Even though I am a COD4 fan, I absolutely love this game/experience. It is such a relaxing alternative to the run and gun games and you truly get lost in this amazing world. Very highly recommended.

Relaxing, fascinating, Great for kids....

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 6 / 6
Date: April 21, 2008
Author: Amazon User

This is a wonderful Wii game. My son plays this as a relaxation tool, when he is stressed out. He enjoys learning about the fish, and can name dozens of ocean fish and their habits.

In the game, you have a boat and diving gear. You start slow, searching for fish. The pace is slow, accompanied by mesmerizing music. The point is to swim around, relax, see fish, very much like real diving.

As the game develops, you find clues for a larger puzzle, the history of the island. You find undersea ruins, tour caves, find sunken ships, and see strange creatures. Your photo journal fills with neat pictures of exotic fish and locations.

All is done at a slow, swimming pace, and my 8 year old is in love with this game in part because after a stressful day of school, homework, sports, this game is a relaxing and yet interesting experience.

Addictive, but know what you're getting

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 6 / 6
Date: May 19, 2008
Author: Amazon User

Endless Ocean is a very unique experience compared with traditional games. It's not Super Smash Brothers; you don't fight anyone, there's no score kept, and you really can't die or meet with other bad fates. It's also not a scuba diving simulation; as a certified diver, I doubt I'd follow a large shark into a narrow cave in real life, but in the game, no problem. You don't have to worry about getting the bends, running out of air (even if you stayed down long enough, you're simply returned to the boat), or getting stung by jellyfish or attacked by aggressive sea creatures.

What is addicting about the game is the exploration. There are several unique sites in the game, each of which has varying sea life; if the thought of seeing a humpback whale overhead during gameplay sounds exciting, this might be for you. There are numerous objects to find, previously undiscovered sites to explore, and a plot that develops over time involving your shipmate Kat. For the most part, you have complete freedom about where to dive and what to do; if you want to ignore the dive guide requests and photo opportunities, you can do so.

The game starts a little slowly in order to orient you with the controls and the layout. However, within an hour or so you have quite a bit of freedom turned over to you (especially once the boat navigation opens). You can acquire dolphin partners, that if you want you can train from the back of the boat (a little silly, but entertaining occasionally). You also have a camera for underwater photography opportunities.

My wife and I, both scuba divers, find the game captivating. Within three weeks, we have each logged over 20 hours of game play. A key part of the storyline can be completed in ~8-20 hours of play, depending on how quickly you decide to accept varying tasks. However, exploring everything, finding all artifacts, and identifying all of the sea life will likely take longer. Since the game doesn't keep a score or have one ultimate goal, fans of the game will likely play beyond the minimum anyway. Overall, we find the game a nice relaxing deviation from the typical frantic pace of most games.

Gloriously Relaxing

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 7 / 8
Date: January 30, 2008
Author: Amazon User

This is pure stress relief in a video game. The underwater graphics are stunning and very detailed, the soundtrack is beautiful and there is a really sweet feel to the interaction with the sea critters. They love being petted, and it is a delight to see them react. This is a real treat for anyone who is an animal lover. I am amazed at the educational aspect of this game as well. Not only do you learn to identify fish, but their behavior seems very realistic.

The best thing, though is being able to swim with the dolphins. What a treat. I highly recommend this lovely game experience.

This is NOT really a game, but an adventure of sorts.

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 5 / 5
Date: March 10, 2008
Author: Amazon User

Let me start by saying I bought this for my non gaming wife, just so she could have something where you can't lose, you can't die, there is no challenge, no levels to beat, and time is virtually meaningless. All of this is achieved in Endless Ocean. A non-gaming game genre!

With that said, SHE LOVES IT! I think she would easily give it 5 stars, but she's not writing this, I am. The first time (or two) I plugged in the disk I have to admit being disappointed. But when I reached a point where I was tired of action, strategy, and games in the fast lane I tried again. What I discovered is that Endless Ocean lets you immerse yourself in a relaxing, slow paced world, that is very enjoyable, even surreal.

Ok, there is a little too much reading dialog at times (for me), but it does give some direction of "things to do, if you want to", and I think this is one of the things my wife likes about it. The dialog among other things, sort of provides missions to accomplish in order to give an additional sense of purpose (besides exploring) to the experience.

You might have read that you can play MP3's (if you have an SD card) and that is true, however it plays the same song over and over so you better pick something soft and smooth, or even instrumental. I loaded a few songs from Enya which seem to go very well with diving. I know you can turn it off during a dive, but if you can change the song without being on the boat I haven't figured it out yet.

So if you ever get in a NON-GAME mode, or you're not much of a gamer in the first place, you can spend hours exploring the ocean, interacting with sea life, and collecting artifacts with stunningly beautiful graphics. This is an adventure for all ages and even this gamer has logged a few hours under the sea. Actually I can't wait for my next dive. I'm no longer disappointed with this title, but it took my wife really liking it (and me feeling like I didn't need to conquer something) before I gave it the chance it deserves.

Immersive Experience, I'm Hooked! (No pun intended...)

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 6 / 7
Date: January 28, 2008
Author: Amazon User

Endless Ocean is far from 'boring' as some gaming critics would have you believe. From the several hours I've already played, I felt like there was plenty to keep me busy (and I've barely scratched the surface). Yes, it's certainly not an adrenaline pumping adventure, but that's not a bad thing. It's an exploration experience... it doesn't try to be something it's not, and this works beautifully.

The educational aspects of the game aren't forced down your throat either. (You gain facts on each creature as you meet and interact with them.) You can choose to read the descriptions at any time, or as far as I can tell, never at all. The animals and treasures you discover get collected back on your boat so you can read and look over them at your leisure. This is definitely a bonus if you're a junkie for collecting everything within a game. Adding to your collection of info and items also gives a sense of accomplishment after each dive.

I think Endless Ocean offers a healthy dose of wonderment and fun. I look forward to discovering everything else the game has to offer... I've already experienced a lot but the game promises much much more. (i.e. night diving, finding/training more animal companions, exploring the rest of the island waters, completing its occasional objects, discovering hidden treasure, etc.)

The game has its share of imperfections yet they are minor enough that they don't ruin the overall experience. My major disappointment is actually the price. While the discounted MSRP of $30 might lure in skeptics and casual gamers, I'm afraid it might have the opposite affect on other players. There's some kind of stigma attached to cheaper games... it's harder to take a title seriously when it's being undersold right from the start.

I hope a lot of people will give this game a chance regardless of any prejudice. I recommend it to anyone (young or old, casual gamer or serious player) that is looking for a unique experience. Even if you're more inclined towards task-oriented action games, still give this a try. It's nice to have at least one game to come back to at the end of the day that offers you the opportunity to unwind and the freedom to play as you please.

Relaxing, visually beautiful, and entertaining

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 4 / 4
Date: March 09, 2008
Author: Amazon User

I am no "video gamer" but got this for myself in case my kids ever let me have a crack at the "Wii". I must say as a SCUBA diver this brings back memories, and there is a little bit of adventure, but this is the kind of game you can turn down the lights and just enjoy exploring the sights and the ocean life. There are occasional surprises, and the beautiful and fairly realistic scenery (on a high def TV) is worth it.

Just Fun

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 4 / 4
Date: July 15, 2008
Author: Amazon User

I am 32 years old and I love this game. The graphics are amazing - completely beautiful. It's probably not something I would buy for my 5 year old because to actually get anywhere in the game, you need to successfully complete goals that a young child wouldn't have the patience for. Being an adult, the challenges are not difficult but, in most cases, what completing the challenge unlocks is so worth it. When I found the manatees I was literally smiling from ear to ear. There are some silly "rewards" that you get after completing a challenge like a new hairstyle (who cares?) but for the most part, you get to unlock new areas, get certified to cave dive or get new equipment. I am completely addicted to finding objects hidden in the sand or reefs. Finding the pieces to a shattered piece of a compass gave me an unexpected surprise in opening up the pirate ship and being taken to the underwater graveyard.

This game is very beautiful and very, very relaxing. To give you an example of how relaxing it is, I actually dozed off playing it one day. This may not sound like a good endorsement for the game but when I come home from a stressful day at work and am all fired up, this game calms me down. I can play it for hours - literally. I love it. It is my absolute favorite game on the Wii and it's really going to be tough to beat.

Completely Different

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 4 / 5
Date: January 29, 2008
Author: Amazon User

Games like this (and No More Heroes, Zack and Wiki etc.) are the reason why the Wii was built and why I picked one up in the first place: innovation. In a world of games where every shooter or strategy game is just like the last, games like this are few and far between. Thanks to the wii's technical limitations, small development firms can create such gems at budget prices for gamers.

Endless Ocean is essentially about the feeling of diving. It may sound boring and frankly looks boring if you are watching somebody play it, but the experience is completely immersive. I thought looking at the data on fish or examining rock formations would turn me off eventually, but with every new discovery it becomes more engrossing. The addition of mp3s was one of the best choices for this title. The soundtrack by Hayley Westenra is quite suitable, but when you put on some epic music (like the intro from Ghost in the Shell: Innocence or Berserk) it becomes something completely empowering. The same goes for the boat. The music for the boat is absolutely terrible until you put your own track. The best comparison to this game is probably Rez (the classic PS2 and DC shooter). In that game you have the feeling of floating to the music, and although you are not shooting anything here, the feeling is quite similar.

Lastly, although this may seem like a simple game, it will turn most children off. If anything, it is for adults who are curious about ocean life or simply seek a peaceful game experience. So buy Endless Ocean now. After all, make the most of your Wii. If you're just a Nintendo fanboy who bought the system for all the franchises, then I feel bad for you since most major first party titles have been released. If you are everybody else, you've come to the right place.

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