➤ With flippers, speargun and goggles 🎮

In 2007 it was released for Wii, developed by Arika and published by Nintendo, Endless Ocean, a kind of diving simulator. Those who have a good memory (and obviously those who bought it) will certainly remember it, since it was a title that, while not proposing a new concept (Arika was also the author of Everblue on PS2), was proposed to the public as one of the examples of the new philosophy of the Kyoto house focused more on casual games than on traditional games. The result was a product certainly well made, with a great exploratory component, rich in information on marine fauna and also technically good, but which made many turn up their noses for the lack of a real objective. And what better method than a sequel to fill in the gaps in the original? Here, good, none.

Atlantis?

Surely the protagonist of the game, of one can define a few, simple parameters, did not imagine, while studying and practicing to take the diving license, that once he found a job he would be involved in an adventure like the one he will be called to live a once the console is turned on ... The fact is that our (or ours) comes into contact with Jean-Eric Rouvier and his niece Oceane, head and member of R&R, a team of divers who are involved in a small Republic in the Pacific of the South, of the most varied tasks that can be taken care of by divers. But the story of fifteen-year-old child prodigy Oceane and her ex-diver grandfather, who can no longer dive, soon turns out to be much more mysterious and complicated than it first appeared: in particular a strange pendant that Oceane had from her father who died years. ago, will give way to a whole series of researches and explorations that revolve around the legend of the "Song of the Dragons". The team will thus find themselves looking for ancient finds and real submerged buildings, in a story that will also be very engaging for those who are passionate about Atlantis and its surroundings, and which is, despite its not excessive originality, certainly well told. The main novelty compared to the prequel is therefore the presence of a plot and an "end", with various missions that will mark the playing time. But limiting yourself to carrying out the main quest would mean missing a good 60% of the adventure, which proposes all the elements of the predecessor with various implementations and improvements. The fundamental components remain the exploration and cataloging of the various forms of life, aquatic and otherwise, which will meet in the dives, gradually filling all the entries of the encyclopedia present in the game with the main characteristics of fish, mammals and quant other and, for some species, with some nice curiosities to be unlocked by carrying out certain actions.

But not only that: you can also recover artifacts to evaluate and sell (with the money earned you can buy new equipment), carry out various sub-missions always useful to earn some cash, engage in photography and interact with dolphins and birds, real and their own "pets" to train in the most varied stunts. Among the most important innovations, then, the introduction of an unrealistic pulsar gun with which to treat wounded creatures and / or calm the most dangerous ones (yes, some nasty shark this time can be encountered from time to time. much), and the possibility of looking out to the surface to study terrestrial life forms, such as polar bears in the Arctic scenario. In short, an extremely varied game, in which the main activities remain, after all, the relaxing ones of the first chapter; but this time, for those who got bored with Endless Ocean, the programmers have also foreseen some, very welcome, action.

The Age of Aquarius

Among the things that do not change there is also, and fortunately, the control system, very immediate and intuitive thanks to the simple use of the remote control alone, but also this time subject to small problems of pointer sensitivity and such details. The longevity of the title, which stands at seven to eight hours as far as the main story is concerned, increases dramatically for anyone who wants to experience the game in the relaxed and peaceful way of the first episode, not to mention the return of diving with a companion in multiplayer via the Internet, this time also graced by voice chat for Wii Speak owners. For all those who, on the other hand, were disappointed with the previous title precisely because of the actual lack of action, it is enough to know that in any case you still have to deal with a slower pace than most "modern" games, and this above all because of the extension of the scenarios that requires a little patience to identify the objective of a particular mission: this side of the game can cause frustration to those who are simply looking for an Action from the original setting.

The latter is however rendered splendidly, considering the capabilities of the Wii, by the suitably improved engine of the first episode: the underwater scenarios are, taken as a whole, breathtaking, thanks to the extended horizon, the effects that recreate the environment and above all to the various animals present, which can also reach a large number at the same time, all rendered well and animated in a credible way, just as the behavior of schools of fish and isolated creatures is likely. Of course, going into detail it turns out that the polygons of each element are not so many, that some textures are clearly "thrown there" just to give the idea, but the final effect, which is what counts, is also above the norm for a Wii title. Finally, the sound is slightly below the first chapter, especially for the choice of entrusting the explorations to a fairly anonymous soundtrack and not giving the possibility, as in the previous episode, to the player to create his own lineup via SD Card: there are still some very beautiful licensed pieces, and the various sound effects manage to capture the evocative atmosphere in a substantially worthy way.

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Always poised between edutainment, a tool for relaxation and real play, Endless Ocean 2 it certainly represents a big step forward compared to its predecessor even if only for the introduction of a story and a goal, which magically expands the potentially interested users by a lot. All this would be useless if, however, the various elements were not of quality, and in this Arika could rely on the positive experience of the first chapter which already presented controls, graphics and company certainly not perfect but very solid. It may not be the first choice for those who are simply looking for a traditional video game, but it remains an interesting and original experience recommended for those looking for something different from the "usual".