Have you ever realised how certain games get you into a certain mood? I find games such as Halo, CS, Unreal Tournament and Quake get me worked up at times, then also allow me to let out huge amounts of frustration. I have discovered a truly unique game here, it’s called ‘Everblue’. and its the first game to actually make me fall asleep. Normally, that would be an awful thing for a game to do, but in this case, it’s not that bad. I feel that I may be losing you here, so I shall try to explain…

Everblue is a bizarre game. It’s a mix of an and Diving simulator, yes, I know it doesn’t sound too good so far but please hold on. The game is the single most relaxing title that I have ever played. The game lulls you to a state of complete contentment, no matter what you have been doing before. It’s quite strange. It is so difficult to explain quite how Everblue manages this feat, but believe me, it does.

The graphics in Everblue might have something to do with the relaxing effect. They are certainly not the best graphics on the PS2, in fact, in places in looks like a Psone title to me (the subscreens and town sequences are truly awful), but underwater, you’ll forgive the game as everything looks so serene. Flotsam drifts past, as do various fish, big hulking ships and buildings lumber into view from the peaceful murky depths. It’s quite unique, if a little dull at times, due to an apparent lack of textures and colour.

The sounds in this game are perhaps the catalyst to the process that will send you into this relaxing trance like state. You will hear bubbles, bubbles, bubbles, some water, a sonar, bubbles and perhaps some more bubbles. But then again, this is an underwater game, so what did you expect? The sounds aren’t bad, just incredibly repetitive and relaxing. Weights tug at your eyelids after 20 minutes of play. Coffee is recommended.

So, what does it play like? Well, as you have most probably guessed, it’s slow. If you like your games fast and furious, don’t look here. The game plods along at a very slow pace, which is in with its character I suppose. You dive, you use sonar, you find rubbish, you surface, find out rubbish is treasure, you make money, you dive again, etc. etc. It’s quite repetitive, although the scenario changes enough to keep you interested, if you haven’t already nodded off.

So then, what we have here is a game that can send you to sleep, although it’s not actually that boring, it’s more the bubbles and the hypnotic effect of the water. I don’t know if that was what the developers where aiming for, but they have made a strange little game here folks. Maybe they are trying to create a mind control, mass hypnosis game… Or not.

Don’t buy if you like fast paced, packed games. Do buy if you like water and falling asleep. Just a word of warning though, I played the game for two hours, fell asleep and didn’t awake until eleven hours later. Oh dear. It would appear that the game can actually send you into a REM sleep. Insomniacs, buy this now!

ZZZZZZZZZZZ…

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By Ben Jackson