Despite the vastness of the sea, Abzû is not an open-world game. Instead, it aims to encourage exploration and convey the enormity of the ocean but avoid players getting lost or the need to backtrack. "We want the player to explore a specific area and feel free to do that," Nava says. "Once they finish that area and go on to the next one, then they don't have to think about it anymore. They can keep going forward." The area I just left contained other currents to different locations, but in the end, the developer wants players to experience a linear story.
Even in these early sections of the game, my curiosity about larger events is piqued. I start off floating seemingly lifeless in calm waters, the sky a vista above. It's a different perspective to what I imagine will be a majority of my time spent underwater. Upon diving below it's not long before I encounter architectural remnants of some previous civilization. More than just sunken structures reclaimed by the water, these are arches and columns integrated directly into the coral and sea bed. I even come across carved busts of sharks. Were these meant to be worshiped? I can interact with them, but Nava doesn't reveal their function. In another area I use the drones to clear away sand from a wall of hieroglyphics. Unfortunately, I can't decipher the meaning of the scene.
Perhaps the most intriguing part of my experience with the game, however, is not my questions about who built the structures, but rather my interactions with the sea creatures. Later in the demo I come across a blue whale slowly making its way down into the depths, singing a lonely song. I'm immediately drawn to the impressive mammal, and as I grab onto it we plunge into the alien surroundings.
Later, I'm near the bottom of the ocean, which is an inhospitable environment and home to very specialized species evolved to survive the pressure, temperatures, and thermal vents. The entire level is cast in a murky reddish hue; the frolicking near the placid surface is now a distant world. Down here, Abzû's adventure is just beginning. "There's a lot of secrets we're hiding down there," Nava says. "A lot of things that are going to surprise in the second and third acts."
please?
