Uutiset
Sunless Sea grips you with the fear of the deep
J
Jason Rodriguez
While you won’t encounter a lot of fire-breathing flying lizards in Sunless Sea, you’ll still find curious beasts, devious pirates, and otherworldly events. This is a journey like no other, where you have to manage dwindling resources, heart-pounding random events, and the compounding effects of terror.
Think of Sunless Sea as somewhat similar to the classic Sid Meier’s Pirates!—that is, if you replace the swashbuckling buccaneers and jaunty tunes with cosmic horror and cannibalism. As a captain in an alternate Victorian era, you sail from the port city of Fallen London to reach distant islands. Your tasks include managing resources, recruiting officers and crewmates, as well as upgrading your ship’s equipment, such as weapons and engines. You'll also gather information on various ports and search for key items that are necessary to progress through the game's many quests.
However, exploring the unknown presents numerous perils. Danger lurks in every corner, whether it's a ship manned by corsairs; a great white shark bound by metal contraptions; floating icebergs that have a ton of health; ungodly monstrosities that emit shrieking blasts; or whatever other strange creatures you could possibly imagine.
This weirdness is compounded by events and quests that develop when you dock at ports. For instance, you might encounter a set of triplets that indulge you with a meal, or colonists that are eager to end up in a tomb colony. There’s even an arc where you deliver gifts at the behest of a faceless Santa Claus, only to meet a child made entirely of snow. There’s more than enough to pique your curiosity for hours, since exploration and traveling to new areas are expected.
As you venture forth into the murky depths, you have to be mindful of your fuel and supplies. If you run out of these key resources, your ship could drift aimlessly in the middle of nowhere, or you’ll be tempted to devour some of your crew members. Sometimes, you might be enticed by the idea of proceeding to a faraway island, only to realize that the harbor doesn’t have the items you need. It’s also worth adding that the world map is procedurally generated, which means certain destinations might be in other spots the next time around.
You'll also need to consider the terror mechanic. It's spurred by the foreboding dread in the darkness of a vast ocean, along with the appearance of dreadful monsters, and it can be aggravated by certain events or decisions. Should your sailors become even more terrified, they’ll mutiny.
Thankfully, this untimely end leads to new beginnings, as Sunless Sea also features roguelite mechanics that allow you to choose a Legacy. In some cases, you might even unlock boons or begin your next campaign with your lodgings and resources retained. Perhaps you’ll be luckier in your subsequent run, or you could learn from your lessons if you fail again.
All in all, Sunless Sea creates a tense atmosphere that resonates with our primal fears of the dark and the unknown. If these pique your interest, then you should check out the base game, along with the Zubmariner expansion, which are both available on the Epic Games Store.