Leaning heavily into some real world issues facing us – namely plastics in the ocean and just about everywhere else – Tides of Tomorrow risked coming across a bit heavy handed in its messaging. Thankfully, the tale is kept fairly lighthearted, giving us plenty to think about but also be entertained by along the way.
We play as a Tidewalker; one of a host of floating bodies under the sea that is awoken and set on a course to try to save the ailing population – well, what is left. The planet has flooded, plastics are killing not just marine life but humans as well via Plastemia, a virus-like disease that spreads through their bodies and ends in a multicoloured corpse. The only known cure is Ozen, cannisters of which are not only in short supply but controlled heavily by Marauder overlord Obin.
As a Tidewalker, we need Ozen as much as anybody but are also tasked with helping the populace in all manner of ways. Some need Ozen, others some scraps to pay a debt, and others still simply want to get by in various ways.
As we play, we are presented with various moral and dialogue choices. These affect how we’re seen by at people we meet as well as what further options will be available to us further on. However, Tides of Tomorrow’s real USP in this regard is in the Story Link system.
We start off by picking someone’s tale to follow. I just went for the top picked person – Nestorian – though we can pick from our friends who have played, favourite streamers or simply a random choice. What this means is that any choices Nestorian made directly affected my game. Did they fail to sneak into a bandit camp? Well now there will be more guards on duty looking out for others to try the same. Choose to hoard Ozen for themselves? I’ll find less in certain areas. Or more directly upset one of the characters in the story? They may not trust me or share vital information.
It’s a very smart system and pretty well implemented. Each chapter breaks down what we accomplished and how it’ll affect anyone following us, as well as any major changes from those that we are following. In game, we can use our Tidewalker vision to see snippets of what came before, be it a part of a conversation or simply a route that was taken that may otherwise have been hidden. The NPC’s are quite explicit in their explanations – oftentimes literally telling us what happened before, and what will happen as a result of our choices – but we found it an enjoyable twist on the choice-based adventuring on offer here.
This is woven through every aspect of Tides of Tomorrow, with all areas affected in one way or another. Sometimes we’ll be tested on those we’re following to see if we’re in line with their thinking, and their dialogue choices are also highlighted to allow us to follow or deviate as we see fit. We can also change who we’re following before each stage, with each person offering not just different choices but traits too.
Depending on our actions we’ll be assigned various traits. Helping people sees our Pro-Mankind trait boosted, and the same goes for nature etc. Stealing, double-crossing people or generally being a menace boosts the Mischeivous trait. There are several others to be mindful of, and again these affect our standing with others and may or may not lock off certain access to people and areas at points.
Tides of Tomorrow utilises these choices everywhere, but there’s also some more traditional gameplay. A lot of sneaking about is to be done, as well as general exploring and parkouring to get to hidden areas. Levels are short and snappy, but drain some of our Ozen levels at the start of each, so difficult choices must be made to survive while helping others (or not).
Despite the dire situation we find the world in, Tides of Tomorrow retains a fairly lighthearted presentation. Everything is very colourful, the world full of music and people to meet, and even when shit is hitting the fan it all feels a bit like a whimsical Dishonored. Again, the core message behind it is obviously very serious, and Tides of Tomorrow does at least get us thinking about that very real threat, though again not in a dour way.
Conclusion
Presenting a serious message in what is a fairly light-hearted game, Tides of Tomorrow is absolutely an entertaining time. The Story Link feature is a very cool concept, and the way it affects not just our world but those that come after gives us pause for thought every time we’re asked to make a choice.
This game was reviewed based on Xbox S|X review code, using an Xbox S|X console. All of the opinions and insights here are subject to that version. Game provided by publisher.
