Wavetale (2022) [PC] first impressions

I’ve always been partial to games on water. It reminds me of vacations at the beach when I was a little girl, of waves and seagulls and the mysterious and terrifying land beneath the water. I grew up with my share of jellyfish stings, waves that knock you so hard you don’t know which way is up, and at least one circumstance of being assaulted by driftwood, so I like to explore different seas and different dangers that games can provide. As its name implies, Wavetale provides a story and gameplay just like this.

You’ve Got a Friend in Sea

A kelp-covered shadow figure appears in the water and offers you a ride…on her feet. This is the main method of transportation in Wavetale, gliding over the sea on the bottom of your new ally. The controls are as fluid as the water, allowing you to walk, run, and leap off the waves like a dolphin as you make your way between various ramshackle islands, finding sparks to power the lighthouse and undo the damage caused by the wave and the mysterious antagonists known as the Dirty Paws who seem to have some control over sea monsters and the Gloom.

You don’t only travel at sea level, of course. When you live on limited land, the smart thing to do is build up, and up you must go with the help of your trusty electric net. It captures the sparks that you can’t touch with your bare hands (come on, it’s electricity), helps you hover over great distances, and zoops you around the world to the higher levels as a grappling hook. With its autotargeting capability and a camera that turns to focus on things of note, it’s surprisingly easy to use. All in all, I’ve found the controls and camera to be smooth and forgiving, which is exactly what you’d hope for in a 3D platformer. The islands are small, so falling down or backtracking is generally quick. 

How Hard is Life on the Ocean?

Difficulty-wise, Wavetale is not a game that’s going to challenge you. Combat is generally done almost as soon as it begins and any damage taken heals just as fast. Fighting is flashy and simple, again autotargeting (but not locking onto) enemies with your handy dandy net, so all you have to focus on is dodging the occasional attack if something lives long enough to take a swing at you. Enemies begin to glow before they throw a punch, though, so you can prioritize.

Outside of combat, your map and compass typically show you your next destination for the main quest, so you always know where you’re going. Sidequests, of which there’s a good amount, not too many, not too few, are more challenging. Thus far, they’ve all been “bring me” quests with some of the things you’re looking for in the same area and others not as easy to find. “Where can I find the thing you need?” “Around. Shrug.” But they’re side quests, not necessary quests, so you can look as long as you want and then move on.

You can find several timed challenges issued by a friend you meet along the way, urging you to try some high-speed platforming. While the challenges themselves are, well, challenging, you have the option to restart at any time without “are you sure?” prompts. They’re also fairly short challenges, able to be done in less than a minute, so you don’t lose much if you flub it at the last jump.   

Final Thoughts

So what do I think overall of Wavetale so far? I’m having a great time riding the waves without a surfboard. I feel like I’m maybe halfway through the game at about three hours in, so don’t settle in for a long experience. The music and voice acting is top-tier, controls are smooth as silk, and the story is keeping me guessing. You can also customize Sigrid with a variety of cool, silly, and fun costumes and colors. All in all, I think this will be a game that appeals to people who enjoy peaceful waves and a slow pace just as much as people who gotta go fast. I can’t wait to see what speedrunners can do with the tools available to them.

Thank you to Thunderful for providing us with a copy of Wavetale.

Maggie Maxwell spends most of her days buried in her fiction writing, only coming up for air to dive into the escapism of video games, cartoons, or movies. She can usually be found on Twitter as @wanderingquille and @MaxNChachi or streaming on Twitch with her husband, also as MaxNChachi.