Image courtesy of Ice Code Games
Well... There not all going to be 10s. According to my track record this year, apparently a 10 is about as rare as a unicorn. That's probably how it should be, though. Even still... what I had hoped for from this title and what I ended up getting were pretty far apart.
Rogue Waters is a tactical roguelite with a piracy theme. Even just writing out that sentence makes me feel like this should be right up my alley. Strategically placing your pirates along the deck, knowing that you can come back with better strategies and tactics to whoop someone's ass again, and carrying a cutlass and pistol the entire time you do it? Sign me up.
Oof.
You play as Captain Cutter, a former first mate of a captain called Blackbone (hardy-har) who finds himself murdered by that very captain who raised him. It's all over the possession of a gem that Cutter finds on their latest expedition, and this particular gem holds the soul of an entity that wants to strike out at the sea goddess as well as Blackbone himself. Maybe even Cutter too. She's a fickle mistress in the midst of a convoluted story that does little to build upon its lore. Either way, the main story is one of revenge as Cutter goes after Blackbone and gets killed/resurrected multiple times in the process.
The Good
The tactical portion of the game is fun. Every battle is split into two components. There is the sea battle with your ship and the enemy's, complete with bombarding one another with cannonballs, and there is the boarding skirmish immediately following.
The sea battle is interesting because its all about management. You have a certain amount of command points and different cannons will require different inputs. This all takes place during the course of three rounds. The player needs to decide whether they want to take out the enemy's cannons to protect themselves from subsequent fire, ship modules that give boosts to things like health or movement, or just go after the crew then and there. Each has its pros and cons, and it can be entertaining to weigh the options and watch how they play out. The ship battle is not really one that you can lose, it should be stated. It's more of a preparatory moment before the actual battle takes place on the enemy deck.
Boarding skirmishes are the meat and potatoes of Rogue Waters. This is where the game shines with multiple specialists on your crew that range from cooks carrying massive cleavers to musketeers looking for distant sniping opportunities. Each specialist has their own talents, and utilizing them in conjunction with one another makes Rogue Waters play like an advanced form of chess. You move your "pieces" along the tiles on the deck, position them to maximize damage using the environment around you and your enemies, and play it out. There is also an undo if a particular move wasn't altogether satisfying.
The Bad
If you've read any of my reviews before, you'll note that that's a relatively short section for The Good. I wanted to like this game, but there were too many things stacked against it for full enjoyability.
The graphics are okay. I'm not a huge graphics-guy, so I can forgive quite a bit. When you have characters melding into one another in virtually every fight scene, however, it can be a little distracting. This is especially unforgivable when there aren't that many character models that were created for the game as it is. Ice Code could have probably honed in on what they were creating a bit better when there's not that much content to pore over. Take away some of the artwork used for different stories throughout your voyages and you really only have a couple of different floor plans with randomized obstacles.
Most roguelite/likes/whatever you want to call them these days have a lot of different variations that they will play into from run to run. This is what makes them fun and unique. If it was the same exact scenario the entire time going through the underworld in Hades, would anyone have really defeated the titular villain the required ten times to unlock the true ending? I know I wouldn't. Things need to change up to prevent some boredom. Even Hand of Merlin has gotten that right so far in my playthrough. There needs to be a couple handfuls of scenarios that can change up and make each run enjoyable. Rogue Waters just doesn't have it. The very few "story" scenarios they have are on repeat to the point that you will find yourself skipping all the dialogue you've already read more than twice to just get the item from the mermaid and move on with your day.
The narrative just isn't there. Ice Code tried to concoct something interesting here but with hokey voice acting and a story that falls flat... it just can't deliver. Cutter is not a compelling character, and his riffing with Mr. Wilkes doesn't do him any favors. Always saw him as your father, Cutter? With no indication of such or buildup to that level of relationship? Come on. The story doesn't drag, at least, because it's less than 20 hours in total but you will still find yourself ready to rush through battles. Unfortunately, that's inadvisable.
Using the speed up, at least on the PS5, almost always ends up in a glitch where the opposing sides will just rapidly dance in place with their weaponry. Closing out the game and starting it over is the only way past the hurdle as no controls respond at this point except the speed up/slow down option. It's best to just not use it at all if you want to spare yourself the aggravation.
The Mid
And so we come to my ruling. I don't want to fully diminish the work done on this game because it can actually have its fun moments. The concept was cool. The execution just left something to be desired.
I do want to say that I know this was an indie venture. That's not an excuse to me. Kena is an indie game, as are Indivisible, Wayfinder, and Asterigos. It's more than possible to make a great game on a minimal budget. Ice Code just... didn't.
5/10
Middling at Best
To check out my own venture into swashbuckling, take a look at Severance
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