STRANDED DEEP GAME SERIES

The crafting system is one of the most important mechanics within the game. The developers have made it extremely difficult to get to know the precise layout of the surrounding region, as the island changes with each playthrough. To delay the unavoidable we are forced to carefully manage our limited resources, which need to be acquired either by exploring the vast and rich, but dangerous, underwater world or by scavenging whatever we can find on the island itself. When done correctly, this kind of ending can be a thought-provoking reflection on destiny and the amount of control one has in life, but Stranded Deep, despite its title, doesn't move beyond the shallows of this topic.In Stranded Deep we play the role of a sole plane crash survivor, who is desperately trying to stay alive on one of the uninhabited isles on the Pacific Ocean. It suggests that all of the player's time and efforts were for nothing and that, in the end, they had very little autonomy.

Unfortunately, inВ its final seconds, Stranded Deep botches the landing and leaves a sour taste. Other titles in the genre, like The Forest and Subnautica, have deeper lore and story beats that players can follow, which culminate in fulfilling endings to previously-established plot points. To finish the game in this way is not thought-provoking, nor is it resonant.В The sci-fi twist isВ almost petulant,В feeling like something the developers tacked on inВ a last-ditch attempt to add more dimensions to what is overall very good survival game, but one without a story. RELATED: Sea of Solitude: The Director's Cut Fails to Capitalize on Its Emotional Punch Beyond the basic tutorial, it offers no guidance on what to do or where to go, and there are countless ways the player can find themselves in peril, whether it's from a lack of water or getting chomped by a shark. Stranded Deep, when played on its normal settings, is not an easy game to complete. Obviously, it's supposed to be a shocking final twist inВ an otherwise grounded survival game, but the intended gut-punch doesn't land. Not only has this trope been used many times before (and with more artistry) like in films such as The Triangle, but there is absolutely no setup for it in the game. There has been no official explanation for the ending, but it seemsВ to imply that the protagonist, by escaping, caused the crash that left them stranded in the ocean in the first place and is doomed to repeat this cycle for eternity thanks to some kind of wormhole. RELATED: Jurassic Park Needs A True Survival Horror Game The perspective instantly shifts to the protagonist inside the crashing plane sequence from the start of Stranded Deep. Things pick back up three hours later, with the plane still flying - until it abruptly crashes into a private jet identical to the one which crashed at the beginning of the game. The player enters the plane and gets airborne before the screen fades to black.

Once all the requisite parts are gathered, as well as supplies like food and water, it's time to leave. The protagonist eventually stumbles across a broken plane that can be repaired. While Stranded DeepВ has such an ending, it all but spits in the face of players who committed to beating it. However, they do want a goal to work toward, usually in the form of successfully leaving the dangerous setting of the game. Stranded Deep does not offer much in the way of a story, which is not necessarily a bad thing - many players turn to survival games for the challenge and the mechanics rather than plot. The indie game is slow and methodical, requiring planning and patience to level up the protagonist's skills in areas like crafting and huntingВ so they canВ build a vehicleВ to escape.В However, rather thanВ offering a satisfying rewardВ for hours upon hours of grafting, the game concludes with a cheap and tired timeloop cliche.

STRANDED DEEP GAME SERIES

Gamers play as the lone survivor of a plane crash isolated on a series of islands somewhere in the Pacific Ocean. Stranded Deep certainly sticks to this formula.

Survival games, by and large, all follow a similar format: the protagonist finds themselves alone in a perilous and unfamiliar setting and needs to gather resources and craft tools to escape and get back home. Warning: The following article contains spoilers for Stranded Deep.

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