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Highwater
Released On: Mar 14, 2024
70
6.3
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Metascore
Mixed or Average
Based on 13 Critic Reviews
70
38% Positive
5 Reviews
5 Reviews
62% Mixed
8 Reviews
8 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
Metascore
Mixed or Average
Based on 13 Critic Reviews
70
38% Positive
5 Reviews
5 Reviews
62% Mixed
8 Reviews
8 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
Highwater is an effective and essential video game, well written and with a confident plot and a context capable of hitting the mark. It is a prequel that manages to fit uniquely into the experiences of the past, with the team having embraced a turn-based combat system that is excellently implemented but not so deep. It is a dynamic adventure that bases its total focus on narrative.
Highwater is definitely one for fans of Demagog Studio's other work, presenting yet another distinct gameplay experience set in the shared world. It's also a great little game in its own right with fun turn-based strategy encounters and charming characters.
Highwater from developer Demagog Studio is a powerful and cautionary tale of environmental damage and how people have to survive it when the world collapses. The game hits all the right notes with the story it wants to tell, while not letting the turn-based backbone and strategy steal the story’s spotlight.
There are moments of beauty in Highwater, most of it instigated by environmental design – I loved coming across surprises and marvelling at how even after catastrophe, human beings continue to do their thing. But unfortunately, as much as I love the game’s aesthetics and very competent turn-based combat, it doesn’t have all that much to say about its complex themes, and finishing it felt like a relief.
Whilst Highwater starts with some rather lovely visuals and whimsical charm, it soon devolves into a tedious, languid affair that failed to launch. If you can endure the droning voices and hackneyed lyrics in here, you may enjoy this turn-based nautically-induced apocalypse adventure.
Highwater is an adventure with a heavy focus on its narrative, and a turn-based combat system that presents its battles as puzzles. It is a modest but correct game in its technical aspects and the music is frankly spectacular, but each of its goals runs out of steam halfway.
I really wanted to like Hightower and I kind of do, thanks to all of the passion and cute touches that are peeking through the cracks. Whether it's the inclusion of old movie trivia that can skip a battle, some Charlie Chaplin footage, a scene where you're trapped behind a wall and more, it's clear there was a real vision here, and while it may not be fully realised, I admire the effort. The end product falls short on a number of levels, but I have a soft spot for it regardless and will be keeping an eye on the developer's future games.
User Score
Mixed or Average
Based on 4 User Ratings
6.3
50% Positive
2 Ratings
2 Ratings
25% Mixed
1 Rating
1 Rating
25% Negative
1 Rating
1 Rating
User Score
Mixed or Average
Based on 4 User Ratings
6.3
50% Positive
2 Ratings
2 Ratings
25% Mixed
1 Rating
1 Rating
25% Negative
1 Rating
1 Rating
There are no user reviews yet. Be the first to add a review.
Summary Amid the Great Climate Catastrophe, the flooded region of Hightower has become a kind of safe zone between the two dry regions: the nearly global ravaged land of the War Zone, and the fortified city of Alphaville, where the ultra-rich live behind giant walls. With life on Earth becoming untenable for humans, and rumors of an escape to M...
Rated T
for Teen
Platforms:
- PC
- iOS (iPhone/iPad)
- Nintendo Switch
- Xbox Series X
- PlayStation 5
- PlayStation 4
- Xbox One
Initial Release Date: Mar 14, 2024
Developer:
- Demagog Studio
Publisher: Rogue Games
Genres:
