Each ‘room’ is large enough to take about ten to fifteen minutes to fully explore, with various details like ruins, caves and seaweed forests all contributing to the diverse seascapes, and these rooms are seamlessly linked by caves and other passageways.

Lazily winding around, going this way and that, is the bread and butter of Abzû it’s about the experience of swimming around and interacting with all manner of aquatic life around you.ĭespite the open environments, Abzû is a relatively linear experience essentially it’s a game of jumping between little sandboxes. After a seamless introduction, you’re taught the basic controls for a nameless diver and are then allowed to explore the ocean environments at your leisure, going wherever you please and enjoying the gorgeous scenery. Trading the sandy deserts for deep aquatic environments, Abzû excels at immersing the player in an unforgettable, painterly world of life and mystery, one you’ll want to explore again and again.Ībzû isn’t a game about having ‘fun’ in the traditional sense that one thinks of that term as it relates to gaming there isn’t really a way to win or lose.

Journey generated all sorts of acclaim for its atmosphere and pace, so it comes as no surprise that Matt Nava – Journey’s art director – wanted to return to this type of gameplay when he was given the chance to direct his own title, Abzû. Journey changed the game when it released back in 2012, bringing a distinctly serene experience to PlayStation owners that championed the experience of play, rather than the goal of conquering challenges.

Abzu shells