Similar to Firewatch, Call of the Sea has a personal story to tell with a healthy dose of mystery thrown in.

She’s expertly voiced by Cissy Jones (of Firewatch and The Walking Dead fame) who carries the story on her shoulders for almost all of its runtime with occasional support from Yuri Lowenthal (Marvel’s Spider-Man) as Harry. You play as Norah, a woman suffering from an unexplained illness, the cure for which is the reason Harry ventured to the south Pacific in the first place. There’s a genuine feeling of discovery as you follow in the tracks of your character’s explorer husband, Harry. Wells as you travel to a mysterious location and unearth its history as well as the remnants of an ancient civilization.

“Call of the Sea is not without a sense of adventure, though, and borrows heavily from the 19th-century novels of Jules Verne and H. Never does it descend into pure horror, though, and stays firmly put in the more dreamlike elements of the Lovecraftian spectrum, with aspects of Guillermo Del Toro’s work also present. The shadow of Lovecraft hangs heavy over the island, with echoes of other-worldly creatures and pearlescent “The Colour Out of Space” tones littering the landscape at times. It’s clear from the get-go of this four to five-hour first-person adventure where its inspirations came from. The stunning island setting of Call of the Sea does exactly this as you’re led through each of its puzzle-laden areas, gradually revealing the answers to an engrossing story full to the brim with beauty and darkness. They take you to a mysterious place full of intrigue and the unknown, a place which by the end of your time there you’ve uncovered all of the secrets it held inside. All great puzzle games not only consist of lots of smaller problems to solve along the way, but one overarching conundrum to unpack on your journey.

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