It actually reminded me of several not-so-good times in my life - times that I’ve forgotten about and, frankly, wanted to forget about. In contrast, Sea of Solitude made me feel, well, a bit depressed. Even a simple, greasy taco at my local hole in the wall joint makes me appreciate how lucky I am in life. Or seeing your cat buddy trip a gigantic monster 20 times its size in Monster Hunter World. When you’ve experienced some tough times, it becomes even more important to appreciate the little victories in your everyday life. I’m at a point in my life where I try to focus on the things that make me happy no matter how small or insignificant they may seem. As such, it can be tough to play for long stretches.
Sea of Solitude’s experience can be a bit intense at times, even more so if you’ve experienced some of the issues it delves into. I started looking for them at first but the world can get so emotionally oppressive, I ended up just rushing to finish levels later on. A lot of times, you will find yourself guiding Kay from one dry platform to the next, occasionally dipping into the dangerous waters while your monster nemesis is just far enough so you barely make it to the next platform that’s above ground before it gets you.Īlong the way, there are several hidden objects and messages that you can look for to further flesh the story out. Those bright spaces, by the way, are the only safe spots in a world where danger literally lurks under its waters. The longer you play, the more you start yearning for the small light-filled refuges that pierce Sea of Solitude’s world of darkness. Little by little, the game starts to chip away at the walls you’ve placed around your own emotional state. So much so that it might even make you remember unpleasant things in your own life. Sea of Solitude definitely isn’t a walk in the park. As Kay starts to piece together her hazy memories, a litany of bad, bad things start to pop up. The farther you journey into its murky waters, however, the more serious the problems that are unveiled. It starts out relatively mild by discussing more common topics such as feelings of failure and inadequacy. The minds behind Sea of Solitude certainly don’t hide that it’s a game that deals with mental illness. It doesn’t take long to realize that everything that’s happening around symbolizes something else - something dark, dank and deeply hidden for many of the people who suffer from it. Although Kay looks like she came straight out of a fantasy setting, however, the issues she talks about sound like they come from the real world. Having a character that looks almost as creepy as the hostile denizens around her, however, is a dead giveaway. Having dark shadowy monsters and creatures is one thing. Looking at the characters of the game, it’s obvious that something isn’t quite right.
Sea of Solitude, however, makes you face those realities head-on, perhaps even if you’re not quite prepared for it.
Games are normally made for fun - a medium designed to escape the harsh realities of everyday life. In the case of Sea of Solitude’s protagonist Kay, it comes in the form of a giant creepy monster that terrorizes the lonely seas around her.Īs its name implies, solitude permeates the core of the game, resulting in a game that can be both enlightening and utterly depressing at the same time.
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