Was reading the latest IGN preview of the game, and came across this comment on co-op play. I think my partner would love this game, definitely considering a purchase when it hits Oz shores (if the price is right...). I could see myself playing this game online with some friends in Sydney who are into scuba diving...
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From http://au.wii.ign.com/articles/810/810095p1.html
US, August 2, 2007 - Nintendo Japan isn't letting up on delivering more hits like Dragon Quest Swords and Gundam MS Front 0079. The latest title to make us waggle our Wiimotes is Endless Ocean, an Arika-developed diving simulation that hit the Japanese Wii on Thursday under the Nintendo label.
Set in the fictional waters of the Manaurai Sea, Endless Ocean, known as Forever Blue in its home territory, has players suit up and explore the sea in search of sea life and hidden treasure. The game offers full freedom of movement across a substantially sized water environment, and with hardly any limits on air supply and no actual sea-based dangers (there are dangerous creatures here and there, but they don't seem to bother you), much of your time will be spent by simply swimming around and taking in the sights.
And there's plenty to see. The Wii may not be exactly up to PS3 and Xbox 360 levels when it comes to visuals, but that doesn't keep Forever Blue from being one of the most stunning underwater recreations ever put to the videogame screen. Fish and your in-game diving counterpart are modeled and animate well, but the big stars are the colors and lighting for the surrounding environments. Everything is so vibrant that watching the game can be just as hypnotic as playing.
For those who do chose to be on the playing side of things, things couldn't be easier. Used primarily as a pointing device, the Wiimote handles all the controls on its own, without the use of the nunchuck attachment. Your diver follows a cursor that you aim around the screen. Continue to aim in any direction, and you'll eventually manage to turn yourself around. To swim, you hold down the B trigger, or you can tap minus to make your character go into a constant swim mode.
The control scheme makes movement around a 360 degree space relatively easy. I'm not sure if I'd want to battle alien sea life like in an Ecco the Dolphin game using this control scheme, but for the peaceful gameplay of Endless Ocean, it gets the job done.
Outside of the controls, Arika has provided all the tools to make your diving sessions a snap. You have a compass marking your current direction, along with an easily accessible map that clearly marks your position and grows in detail as you explore further.
The game also includes a mini paint program that lets you apply colored markings to the sea world; you can paint an arrow that points to a particular rock, for instance. A neat Wii-only feature to be sure, although I haven't found much use for this yet, as the markings disappear once your current diving session comes to an end.
While swimming is fun and all, it would be tough to justify paying full price for a virtual aquarium. Thankfully, Arika has filled the title with other diversions, some offering hints of actual gameplay.
You're slowly introduced to new areas of the sea as you play through missions. These require that you to travel to certain areas of the sea in a search for lost items, or simply that you take someone on a tour of the waters.
Missions are assigned on the deck of your ship, which acts as your center of operations for the entire game. You can move the ship to different areas of the map, something that's essential unless you don't mind starting your dives from the same spot. You also have access to a dress-up room, where you can modify your suite with items that you've earned as gifts. You can chose to advance time while on the ship, switching from dawn to evening and back again. Different fish appear at different times of the day, so you may need to be in the water at different points.
Some of the fun centers on the sea-life that you encounter during your exploration. If you see a fish that interests you, you can turn your attention to it and take a picture, or make friends by feeding it. Get friendly enough, and information about the creature will be added to a growing sea-life gallery that's accessible from your ship. Eventually, you'll gain access to an aquarium that you can freely populate with your underwater pals. While Manaurai isn't real, its sea life is, so there's some educational value here.
Early in the game, you come into the company of a special friend, a dolphin! Following your initial meeting, you can call the dolphin to your side whenever you're out on dives. You can also teach the dolphin to perform tricks! There are some hints that the game will include more than just this single friend creature.
On top of the pointer-based controls and gorgeous visuals, Arika has managed to take advantage of a few of the Wii's lesser-used features. Endless Ocean provides Wii owners with something that's been pretty much exclusive Xbox 360 territory until now, custom soundtracks. The game can read MP3s off your SD card, so you can listen to your own music instead of the peaceful tunes that come included standard. While this is a cool feature, the playback isn't as easily accessible as it should be, in addition to sound quality being a bit on the low side. I find myself sticking with the in-game tunes.
The game also has another rarity in Wii gaming -- full online support! Making use of Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection, you can travel to your friend's boat and head out on dives for cooperative exploration. The game includes a simple chat interface where you select from pre-set messages using the Wiimote's d-pad.
As a side note for those keeping score at home, Endless Ocean maintains its own friend list separate from the Wii hardware. To get your friends to play, you'll have to exchange a game-specific friend code that's automatically generated when you attempt to connect for the first time. This means more big numbers to pass around, but on the plus side, at least you can store up to 42 friends.
It's a bit unclear at my current point an hour or so in how much of Endless Ocean is actual 'game' and how much is just pure exploration. Whatever the case, I'm enjoying my time in the waters of Arika's Virtual Sea. A positive reception from the Japanese press, along with the Nintendo publishing label, will hopefully ensure a big push for this title when it hits the US this October.
Gesta Non Verba
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