Sea of Survivors – (Early Access) Game Review

Sea of Survivors is a piratey take on the survivors roguelike subgenre. Allowing the player to set sail in the open ocean; taking on fellow pirates, sharks, and even the Kraken! Here is our Sea of Survivors – (Early Access) Game Review…

Developer: Nah Yeah Games

Publisher: Nah Yeah Games

Platform: Windows (Steam)

Release Date: Early Access 18th October 2023

Age Rating: Not Rated

Sea of Survivors

Story of Sea of Survivors

As a roguelike Sea of Survivors doesn’t contain a story but rather a core gameplay loop in which the player’s progress is at least some what reset after each death. This game sees players take to the open water as they captain their own ship. Equip your starting weapon and crew then set sail!

Analysis  of Sea of Survivors

Art Style

The art style is very pleasant to the eye, complimenting the themes of the game very well. The enemy design is a bit old fashioned, resembling more pixel art than today’s games but it works well. It gives Sea of Survivors a bit of character. Apart from the shark’s design. I LOVE SHARKS. But they look more like a slanted Wobberfett scotting along the ocean floor rather than the king of the ocean.

Upgrades and Weapons

The inventory system, similar to Resident Evil 4, is slot based and allows the player to insert upgrades into them. Bonus stats are given when certain upgrades are chained to one another. With relics (special upgrades with unique traits) providing the player with abilities. With one relic doubling all bonuses from other upgrades that are linked to it. With you earning upgrades from leveling up. You level up by killing enemies rather than collected what they drop, unlike Vampire Survivors. Relics you acquire by defeating boss enemies or collecting treasure from islands. Picking up messages in a bottle will gift you with a waypoint guiding you to the next island.

There are only a handful of weapons so far in the game, and not all are worth using but the game is still in early access. I’m sure this is one area that we will see extensively added to and tweaked. They include harpoons, explosive barrels, a ram, swords, cannons, and more. The cannons and swords make horrible starting choices as they have very limited range. The cannons shoot side-by-side and are quite difficult to aim unless swarmed by enemies. As mentioned before this is where the developers need to work on the most. As right now in this stage of its early access some weapons (swords in particular) just seem as useful as a fart in a bottle.

Summary of Sea of Survivors

Sea of Survivors is an amazing seafaring take on the survivors roguelike subgenre. The art style is takes the common gothic aesthetic and applies it to life on the sea, the water in particular is nothing short of beautiful. The freedom provided by its vast open levels is unlike anything else in the subgenre. It still requires work, especially in the weapons available, but there is a solid foundation for the developers to build on. If you like games like Vampire Survivors and Brotato Sea of Survivors is a must buy!

Overall Rating: 7.5 – Good

Platform Played On: Steam Deck

Game Time At Review: 9 Hours

Recommendation: Yes

You can purchase Sea of Survivors on Steam

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