Tides of Tomorrow Preview

A few years ago, I played a game that was different from anything I had played before: Road 96, a story-driven experience focusing on the characters you meet as you try to escape an oppressive regime. When I heard that the developer, Digixart, had released a second game, Tides of Tomorrow, I had to give it a try to see if they managed to strike gold twice. 

Tides of Tomorrow takes place in a world where the oceans have overtaken the land, and the amount of plastic in the water has started to poison the people. You are a Tidewalker, a mystical being that shares a connection with other Tidewalkers through time. It’s up to you to work with other survivors to discover the secret of the world and find a cure for the disease that is spreading through humanity.

The plot really focuses on the main gameplay mechanic, the Tides of Time, which connects you with other players. Essentially, when you start the game, you select another player whose actions you will be able to see as you travel. It’s not just a wraith that shows you the way; the characters in the world will also change how they react to you based on the other players' actions. For instance, if they were caught by a guard, then the security will be keeping a much closer eye on you when they see you.

It’s an interesting concept, and it seemingly works really well, but there are a couple of problems. The biggest issue is that it takes away some of the exploration when trying to solve problems. For instance, you can see who the other player spoke to, which in turn hints at what you need to do. This is ideal, really, as you don’t get all the answers, plus it can be interesting to see how others overcame some of the challenges.

However, all of your actions do more than just affect how the characters will view other players; they also build your character. Are you more of a humanitarian, an eco-warrior, or out for yourself? While it doesn’t massively affect the world, aside from sometimes offering some more materials, it gives a bar that other players can compete against.

With all that said, what is it that you’ll actually be doing while playing Tides of Tomorrow? For one thing, there isn’t really a whole lot of action or shooting; instead, you’ll be playing through several mini-game-like experiences that are all pretty varied. For instance, you might engage in a race or have to sneak around some guards. All of these use the Tides of Time mechanics as well, offering advice or even routes that you can unlock for subsequent Tidewalkers. One of my favourites was a fist fight where you use the past player's actions to track where the opponent will dodge. 

The writing is also pretty solid, with some strong characters that all slowly become more interesting as you interact with them. However, it does get a tad annoying when they keep talking about the Tidewalker you’re following, which in turn makes it feel less like your adventure. It also feels slightly limiting that you really only follow one other player, whom you don’t really know, so there’s not a lot of drive to care as much, but you can share your code to have friends follow you instead.

Honestly, I’m curious to continue my adventure to see more of the world, and there are mysteries aplenty to explore. So far, the only real issue I’ve come across was that, even with the Tides foreshadowing, you still often have to actually complete an ancillary action, such as talking to someone, before you can do the same thing as your forebear, which is a bit of a pain. With that being said, if you want an interesting story with a novel core concept, then Tides of Tomorrow is one to watch.