Written by Jonathan Lee, November 5, 2016, at 6:21 p.m. Tweet to: @Writerscube
It’s Terrifying to Zail Alone. Here. Take This Ferret!
Welcome to the subterranean world of Sunless Sea. It’s dark, it’s gloomy, you have more bats than birds (you even use bats to find new land), and no one’s really in their right mind. Made by Failbetter Games, Sunless Sea is a rogue-like exploration/survival game with touches of Victorian-era aesthetic and Lovecraftian horror.
And a lot of things have Z in it. You’re a Zee Captain, you have zailors, Zee monsters, the Zee itself. The list goes on!
The World of Sunless Sea
Your journey will begin in the subterranean Victorian city of Fallen London. By some strange circumstances, somehow London has fallen underground and now sits in the middle of an underground ocean. From its murky ports, you’ll set out to explore the unknown world… and survive to tell the tale. The story is told out through little snippets and quests that you get from different ports, but Fallen London is where it all comes back to.
From the excellently described locales that you’ll visit to the strange characters you’ll run into (with portraits that remind me a lot of the same illustrative aesthetic of the Arkham Asylum board game—in other words, love the character design), you’ll soon discover that there’s very little in the Zee that’s bright, shiny, and happy. The shiniest thing you’ll find might very well be the glowing eye (or myriad eye stalks…) of an eldritch Zee monster before… well, before you never see anything again.
It’s the Zailor’s Life for Me!
So you’ve ventured out into the Zee to see what stories of horror and riches you can bring back. All you’ve got is your few crew mates, your first mate if you have one, and maybe a pet (I had a very condescending ferret…). And then… there’s your mighty vessel!
Well, sort of. You’ve got a basic cannon, there’s enough fuel to reach a couple ports, and the food supplies should last so long as you buy a couple extra for the long trip, or run into a large creature that your cannon can take care of.
Speaking of creatures—do keep an eye out for giant Zee crabs, luminescent jellyfish who just want you to leave them the hell alone, PIRATES!, and of course… worse things.
Naturally, you’re going to want to upgrade that ship of yours as soon as possible, which you can when you return to port. Goes without saying that the more guns you have—the better. And you’ll want faster engines. Monsters love getting up close and personal (for mind-shattering, organ-grinding hugs!)
Terror at Sea
What’s a good romp out to Zee without some good ol’ terror? Sunless Sea gives you a terror meter that can be affected by all sorts of wonderful things! And if your terror gets too high? Well, it’s not going to be very pleasant for your crew. Or for you!
Landed at a new port? Searching for whatever valuable information you can get to take back to Fallen London and make your living? Oops, you ran into a tavern with one too many shady characters: Bam, +1 to your Terror meter.
You’re taking a passenger to a colony that has an obsession with coffins? Well that’s not creepy at all. Wait, it is! Add more terror to your meter.
You defeated a mighty beast whose origins could only be from the stars! Your battle was hard-fought, your victory glorious! But as it decays before your eyes you hear its remains cry out in shrill ululations, in a tongue unknown to Humankind, before vanishing. You’re scared witless! Add some more terror to that good ol’ meter of yours!
Face it. It’s horrifying to go out to Zee. And you’ll have to find ways to get your Zailors to calm…. the hell…. down.
There and Back Again
Ultimately the story is how you choose to unfold it. From what interactions you have with the peculiar characters inhabiting the different locales (and your crew—remember to talk to your crew) to how far you choose to venture and face the horrors that await, you’ll chart your map as much as your crew’s tale and fate.
And when you’ve earned your keep, your fame, and your sanity—it’s time to return home. To Fallen London.
Of course, it’s not the only way to end things. If you should die (which you will a lot, and there’s no saving those poor captains) you can pass some of your progress on to the next Zee Captain to take up your mantle. There are different ways you can go about this, which helps make even character permadeath an important part of the grand plot.
Final Thoughts
Sunless Sea is a well-written and well-designed survival game of exploration, terror, and a light application of Lovecraftian style. All-in-all, it’s a great thing in a small package, and it has excellent replay value. What makes it stand out is that the survival factor is not so overwhelming. It’s important that you keep your fuel and food supplies up, but it doesn’t occupy your time 90% of the time. Once you’re stocked up, you have the time to explore, chase down pirates, attempt to take down monsters, and run for dear life when you encounter Sentient Icebergs (Yes. They will attempt to hunt you down! Subterranean Icebergs are not like our icebergs. Look just don’t think of ANYTHING as friendly.)
Sunless Sea balances the tension of surviving on depleting resources with the dangers that make this game unique—the Terror factor, the monsters that wait out in the fog of the unknown, and the characters that you run into. All of these can just as easily be the undoing of you and your crew, in more insidious or gruesome ways, and it’s where the real survival comes in.
I give this game a BUY! Check it out, folks!
Also recently out is the expansion for Sunless Sea, Sunless Sea – Zubmariner. Take your next doomed adventure in the Unterzee!
