Endless Ocean

Endless Ocean is a very different game to anything else in the market - for one point, it is the first true sandbox game around. Many other games have sandbox elements, but the game still has a mission layout - even the reasonably sandboxy No More Heroes. So, what is a sandbox game, and why is it so special? Mainly because of the facts that they give the user complete control with normally more than one objective, which the user can then complete by either doing just one of them, or all. Sandbox gaming goes further than this though, normally giving the user complete control over what they decide to do. Endless Ocean is the first game to completely incorporate this design, and therefore the first sandbox game. So, focusing back on this gem of a title, what does Endless Ocean offer? Well, firstly it provides some of the greatest graphics on a Nintendo console ever, some great gameplay elements, an amazing roster of fish, birds and mammals, as well as some of the most amazing music that has ever appeared on a game. Looking  at the graphics, the water effects are amazing, and when you are diving, you see things as you would if one was diving for real. Things are at first tinted blue, but as soon as you go up to something, this tint begins to fade until you are left with beautiful coral reefs, or maybe just the sandy ocean floor. Then, of course, there are the animals, which have fantastic movements, which are slick and smooth. The only thing that doesn't look that great is the polar bear, but that is only one thing in the whole game. So what about the gameplay? Diving all the time may sound boring, but it is pulled off a treat, with that vague whiff of a story that is so deep that it almost reaches the ocean floor. That is the other factor that is amazing about the game - the story, and that fantastically characterised girl, whatever you call her. Isn't she just mysterious? That is definitely one of the best characters in gaming. Full stop. The music however, is the most hauntingly spectacular feature of the game. All tracks are sung by amazing singer Hayley Westenra, and they each offer that magnificent feeling every time you get into the water. The mix of music and graphics at some of the cut scenes are is enough to sometimes make you tremble - it really is that astounding. 

39/40