Endless Ocean Luminous is a title for those who seek a peaceful experience in a place filled with marine life, where the secrets of the ocean can be discovered in an interactive and educational way. Sadly, the game lacks options that could have made it more enjoyable and focused exclusively on exploration that can be too relaxed and at times even very repetitive.
Definitely one of the most exciting games I’ve played this year. I love how relaxing and informative this game is. I never knew it had prequels on Wii!! As a first time player, I am delightfully surprised!
This game is perfect in what he's for
Association of Discovery, Research and Nature Prevention
And on top of that, that game clears my mind, it's super chill and pleasent to play
A lo-fi ocean adventure for those in need of calm, monotonous focus, Endless Ocean: Luminous provides an experience that is entirely low stakes, low risk, and low reward. It’s incredibly soothing to dive in and chase down a huge variety of aquatic creatures through the game’s diverse, atmospheric marine environments, but anyone looking for a deeper narrative will be left high and dry. Check this out if you’ve got the funds and don’t mind fumbling through a bit of jank to reach your zen state of mind.
Endless Ocean Luminous is not a bad game per se, but not an excellent one either: you should enjoy it in small doses and, if possible, with the right companions.
I don’t see much replay value in Endless Ocean Luminous, nor do I see enough to keep players occupied or interested for the long haul, aside from perhaps the multiplayer offering. If you’re nuts about fish then this is probably a game for you, but if you’re looking for anything more than an artificial aquarium simulator, you might be disappointed by how shallow it is.
Everything about Endless Ocean: Luminous makes it a particularly Nintendo game: the chunky menu layout, the soothing AI voice, the tranquil music and the laidback vibes. That’s emphasised by the notion that this is a deeply unusual piece of software, and one that you wouldn’t find coming from the other major console manufacturers. It’s a shame then that, unless you’re an avid fan of marine facts, it’s interminably dull.
Endless Ocean: Luminous could have been a realistic SCUBA sim with all the treacherous hazards that real underwater divers need to consider, a relaxing chill-vibes game that's mostly about finding fish with your friends, or a story-driven game centered around discovering awesome and even extinct underwater beasts. It has pieces of all of those, but it doesn't commit to any of them. Instead, it takes the enormity and glory of earth's largest and most mysterious region and turns exploring it into a dull, repetitive chore.
Everything about this game makes you relax and enjoy, in a transcendental vibe. Not everyone is prepared for this in an era of souls like and similar games, if you are looking for frantic action, this is not your game. Enjoy the beautiful soundtrack, graphics and rich biome. Swimming has never been so enjoyable.
As a huge fan of the previous games in the Endless Ocean series, I know with confidence that the developers of this game had the formula to make this a successful, long standing game that would attract both old and new players. However, they abandoned that formula entirely. Endless Ocean Luminous is missing some very essential features. As you’re swimming across the (mainly empty, lifeless ocean) you have many moments where you wonder, “what is this all for”? There are not enough incentives to continue scanning fish and exploring, other than some different colors for your equipment and some stickers. The environment becomes increasingly soulless and repetitive as you dive 3+ hours - soon enough you have already seen everything the game has to offer. One of the most frustrating removed features from the last Endless Ocean is the aquarium. This feature made you excited to scan fish because you could add your favorites to the aquarium and enjoy seeing them there.
With the story mode lacking, and both the solo dives and multiplayer dives being extremely repetitive, this game just doesn’t have much to offer. I’m a huge fan of the series and really hope there’s another attempt to recreate the magic of the previous titles.
Endless Ocean Luminous is a good ocean exploration game that you can play with friends AND that is why the game **** compared to the 2 previous entries that were made on the Wii for the same price.
It seems like modern developers treat Endless Ocean as a standard ocean exploration game so they removed the story, characters, hub worlds, and even catchy music because ocean games can ONLY be ocean games with no story, no characters, and only atmospheric music because it's an ocean game.
Endless Ocean Luminous compared to the other games is like comparing an early access alpha build to a game that is actually worth $50. Even Dave the Diver has more character, story, content, and interesting ocean exploration than a $50 Switch console success Nintendo game.
I recommend saving your money in buying copies of the Wii Endless Ocean games instead of supporting barebone games just because it has a multiplayer feature. And because Nintendo and Arika have forgotten why Endless Ocean is a unique franchise compared to the rest of other ocean exploration games.
SummaryTake a deep breath and plunge into the Veiled Sea: an unexplored region with discoveries that change with each dive. Encounter and learn about over 500 species of marine life—some of which are presumed extinct, or even mythical!