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Endless Ocean: Luminous
Dive in and survey a mysterious underwater world. Take a deep breath and plunge into the Veiled Sea: an unexplored region with discoveries that change with each dive. Encounter and learn about over 500 species of marine life—some of which are presumed extinct, or even mythical!
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Endless Ocean: Luminous Reviews
Professional reviews from gaming critics
Endless Ocean Luminous is the third title in the scuba-diving series that began with the Wii in 2007. This latest entry gave fans a nice surprise when it was an
Endless Ocean Luminous is not for everyone, but does offer a very rich and soothing experience for those willing to take the plunge.
Luminous features solid visuals, from the detailed fish to the vast ocean itself. I didn’t run into any major performance issues or stutters, even when playing with others on rather large oceanic maps. The sound design is pleasant, with the soft sounds and ambient aquatic noise making it especially easy to lose yourself in the laid-back vibes that come with scanning fish and picking up submerged knick-knacks.
Endless Ocean Luminous is nothing like Subnautica, and comparing the two is redundant for obvious reasons. Here ends today's lecture on basic media literacy
Ultimately, Endless Ocean: Luminous is a chill, relaxed experience that doesn't offer much beyond the surface. The game is essentially a collectathon, with little to do outside of exploring and looking at things. It won't be everyone's cup of tea, but Endless Ocean: Luminous is exactly what it aims to be—a title about exploring the ocean.
If I told you I’m well-versed into the world of Endless Ocean, I’d be lying. I had never played a game in this franchise prior to tackling Endless Ocean Luminous. It took me a while even to realize this was actually a Nintendo joint in the first place. That being said, some of the elements in its premise caught my attention. I don’t know why, but I really dig these relaxing underwater games, such as Abzu. When some of the folks at WTMG told me there was a semblance of cataloguing and co...
Endless Ocean Luminous is a mildly confounding product. On the one hand, it's still got that very compelling offering of hours spent drifting through gorgeous oceans and coming face-to-face with hundreds of stunning creatures, without complex mechanics or urgency to get in the way. On the other hand, the overall gameplay experience has been dulled down so much to feel like a backwards step, and the system of randomly-seeded dive spots dilutes a lot of its personality.
The Endless Ocean franchise has returned after 15 years of absence so let's see if it can make a new fan out of me in 2024.
The aquatic exploration game, Endless Ocean Luminous, provides an immersive experience on the Nintendo Switch for players to dive deep in the ocean to swim with all manner of fish, whales, sharks, and more. Developed by Arika and published by Nintendo, the game is a simulation adventure that tasks virtual divers with documenting over 500 species of aquatic life and salvaging relics from past civilizations. Whether playing alone on a solo dive, or experiencing the beauty of the ocean with up to 30 other players, the game is a beautiful, if slow, experience.
Endless Ocean Luminous’ highs come early, with a relaxing atmosphere and excitement of seeing new sea creatures and learning about them. Those highs quickly drop off and what you’re left with is an often frustrating, bland game that completely abandoned what made the series special in the first place.
“As far as franchise revivals go, Endless Ocean: Luminous doesn't put its best fin forward.”
The SCUBA simulator has relaxing chill vibes for a little while but quickly runs out of oxygen.