Still Wakes the Deep from UK developer The Chinese Room is due to launch on June 18 for PS5, PC and Xbox Series consoles. Set in 1975, the game follows Caz McLeary onboard a oil rig off the coast of Scotland as some sort of supernatural disaster befalls him and the rest of the crew.
It’s unclear exactly when the review embargo will lift, but print magazine embargoes tend to be a little different which is why Edge magazine has their review out. Subscribers like myself have begun getting the latest issue delivered, and on page 101 lurks what looks to be the very first published review of Still Wakes the Deep.
Obviously, I’m not going to ruin the whole review. You should go read it yourself. But I will provide a few quotes.
On the way to handing Still Wakes the Deep a very solid 8 out of 10, Edge covers a variety of topics. They describe the key to to the game being its fidelity, from the authentic Scottish dialogue to detailed environments.
“In Caz’s home-from-home, the Beira D oil rig, chatter shuttles between crew members with a fierce rhythm, able to give no quarter to less accustomed ears precisely because the subtitles act as a safety net.”
The review mentions subtitles being able swap Scottish terms out for more widely understandably terms, or delivering a one-to-one transcript.
Edge moves on to describe the oil rig’s drill hitting something it shouldn’t, sparking chaos.
“Panels and piping are coming loose from the moment disaster strikes, while systems need rebooting or shitting down to keep the platform on an even keel. Other survivors do their bit, but the buck tends to stop with Caz when it comes to the toughest jobs, forcing him into death-defying shuffles across narrow beams and hail-Mary leaps to ladders with nothing but air and water beneath.”
Edge refrains from revealing what horrors are lurking in the game, but commend the slow-burn tension and describes the pacing as “immaculate.”
“…the true extent of the terror unveils only with the most gradual of curtain pulls. Tension rises once you see blood smeared on the floor, more so when you hear screeches you can’t identify,” reads the page.
Edge discusses the fact that there’s no combat, leaving you to scramble between safe spaces while using throwable objects as distractions. The rising water poses just as much of a threat too.
“With this combination of threats, the past master of the walking sim reveals a proficiency for the running/swimming-for-your life sim.” jokes the magazine.
The review does mention a few issues, too, such as crouching and dropping an item sharing the same button. They also occasionally got stuck in the environment, forcing a checkpoint restart.
The magazine also tackles the heavy use of yellow point to show where Caz can climb and clamber, but says that like the subtitles which change the language to something more approachable, the yellow paint is a “necessary evil” to “help make the horror rick as intended.”
In the reviews final moments, our unknown author (Edge sadly doesn’t list who wrote a specific review) closes out by saying: “…what is for sure is that over its six-hour span we’re engrossed in Still Wakes the Deep far more than not, eyes locked on the screen whether Caz is in conversation or creeping around the unlit laundry room before bolting from the unnameable fiend. And in those moments, a cry of “Shite!” from our hero never feels less than authentic, regardless of what the text says underneath.”
Ultimately, Edge’s review paints a disturbing picture of a compelling horror game. It falls under the Chinese Room’s usual walking-sim style genre at times, but seems to provide some decent room for players to make mad dashes to safety.
Personally, I’m quite hyped for Still Wakes the Deep. I’m a Scottish lad and my dad worked on the oil-rigs in the same period that the game takes place. His stories often told of comradery in an incredibly tough working environment where conditions were cold and harsh, health and safety was optional at best and help was a few hours away. As the setting for a horror movie, it’s damn near perfect.
Keep an eye out for Still Wakes the Deep on June 18. It’ll also launch onto Game Pass.