Dead Water - Beta Review

Anannya Sen ’s Review

An action game that's plays like many others except that you can swim in parts.

Small developers don't always equal small games and we have the classics such as Super Yum Yum and Elfin Forest as proof. In this case, however, it definitely feels like the adage rings true.

Admittedly this is the demo version that I played and on a K600 no less which is rife with potential for great sounds and graphics. Unfortunately this isn't the case and the graphics are reminiscent of the old Commodore and Spectrum games with a bit more shading. The running water effect is cool and the backgrounds do look like a derelict ship (how did everyone else get off?) but the sprites are fairly small and the animation is a little jerky at times. There are nice touches like when the character (does he have a name?) skids if you run too fast and also the swimming is reasonably well done but nothing grabs you at all really.

The sound is pretty similar with some running water sounds and a murky depth sound but there is no music which is a shame. The sound effects are limited to the running water, the explosions and the undersea sound so again this is an area which can be improved.

Controls are easy to use but a little unresponsive. Use the D / key pad or stick to control the character and up will jump or climb. The instructions neglected to inform you of how to plant dynamite which is a key aspect of completing the game but after trial and error found it is the 3 key. Stand well back though. I suppose the 'draw' of the game is the swimming aspect but even this looks like the early days of hypersports. Left and right rotate the character and press the main button or 5 to swim. You get a little air countdown as well.

The playability feels distinctly average. Yes, there is the swimming element and this is commendable as certain areas require you to wait until it's full of water before attempting to get the key. However, even with the 3 difficulty levels, it's just a standard run and collect key scenario. The only playable level available to us wasn't that large and when you do collect the key you even get a little pic of which door it opens in case you are confused. Basically in the first level you only have to collect 4 keys to make it out or you could choose to hang around and go for more coins to improve your score. Again, the game wasn't tremendously appealing as it had the feel of many things that had gone before. Ok, I haven't seen the swimming thing yet in a phone game but it's only a matter of time until Lara Croft gets her kit off, and her bikini on, in her next instalment. The jumping can be a little tricky which is frustrating at times and only other aspect of the game is collecting coins. There is also the element of the race against time as the water fills up so this may generate a little excitement but apart from the game you you get a rating which is based on the time taken and coins you collected but not much else.

I can't comment on the lastability as we only had one level to play but there are apparently 6 levels with 3 difficulty settings. I also don't know if there will be a save feature in the game but it does suspend and resume so that's ok at least. The tension element with the water is there in small doses but you're never under that much pressure, at least not in the level we played. I'd imagine it may get pretty tough on level 6 but again, the game doesn't have enough wow factor to have you keep playing.