Game Name: Windward
Platform(s): PC
Publisher(s): Tasharen Entertainment Inc.
Developer(s): Tasharen Entertainment Inc.
Release Date: May 12, 2015
Price: $14.99
I don’t really play sandbox games, as I get bored easily by arbitrary goals that usually mean nothing to the game, but something about Windward raises my sails (pun completely intended.)
Windward, being a sandbox adventure game, puts you in charge of a ship traveling a in a procedurally-created world (this means it’s dynamic-as-f*ck.) A significant chunk of the action in Windward is simply going from port-to-port, doing small quests involving port-to-port trades, island discovery and collecting gold and goods, and while that might be simply boring on its face, there is a lot of action deeper in the world.
As you go further in the game world, you begin to unlock new missions, such as eradicating the pirates that are invading a select map, and taking back ports from said pirates, and the securing of trade routes between ports and municipalities under your command. These break the rote monotony of the normal course of play, but the monotony of the normal course of play can provide itself a wonderful experience if you’re into that kind of stuff.
Combat does exist in this game, and it’s weird, to say the least. You can ram into the enemy ships, which isn’t recommended if you have a smaller ship, or you can attack with cannons and standard arms when you’re aligned parallel to your enemy, which is the least of their problems, as the AI is generally aggressive as you get further into the combat stages, which involve fighting pirates and taking back ports that have been conquered.
That being said, the UI is simplistic, and very easy to navigate, however, that simplicity is a negative when it comes to the trading, as there’s no real incentive to the trading system. If there is any, it’s probably only to buy a bigger ship down the line, but that is it.
*Review copy provided by Tasharen Entertainment. All Reviews posted on The Outerhaven are subject to our Review Policy.*
Summary
Where I saw myself spending at least 2 hours playing this game at a time, others won’t find that much time to enjoy the game. It’s not that the game is boring, not at all. The game is repetitive to a point, but that repetition may not be for everyone. The game still has it’s enjoyable moments, and if you can wait that long to reach it, you’ll be satisfied.
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Windward provides small bursts of fun, but it's not a game you could play endlessly.
