Bahamut and the WaqWaq Tree Review

Jump into the immersive underwater realm of Bahamut and the WaqWaq Tree. Developed by Starvania Studio, based in Saudi Arabia, this 2D adventure game has a story inspired by Arabian and Middle Eastern mythology. You will explore the Ma'een ocean's depths to find the source of the corruption threatening this once-thriving area. I can’t wait to dive into this game and explore this watery world

The story begins by showing a tree with a piece of fruit hanging from the branch; inside is your character. The game asks you to hit a button to break out and set yourself free. Upon doing this, you fall into the waters of the Ma’een ocean. Fortunately, swimming is incredibly easy to do: all that is required is to control where your character moves with the left thumbstick and use the right face button to boost. As you progress, you will acquire new abilities to add to your repertoire, like Zap: it is a bit trickier to use and requires a lot of patience, especially if you don’t have great timing. Enough about the future abilities, in the beginning, you take the chance to explore the full area, that is, until you die…

At this point, the spirit of a whale revives you: this creature is Bahamut. He tells you the story of how, along with Falak, they served as the guardians of the Ma’een ocean and protected the race of weak creatures, you are one of them, who appeared one day. As time has gone on, a darkness has taken over the waters. This corruption has weakened the guardians; thus, they need your help to drive this enemy away. When you find Bahamut’s feather, it gives you a power that no mortal has. You will use the power of his light to fight the darkness and save the waters. Your task is to navigate the dark, corrupted areas to repel the lurking Dujaa and restore balance to Ma’een.

The gameplay of Bahamut and the WaqWaq Tree has you exploring the watery environments, searching for checkpoints that look like floating stone structures, refilling your light barrier, and saving your progress at the same time. I thought these points were too close together at first, but you'll see why as you play. You will encounter a lot of dark, corrupted waters; you only have your light source for a short period of time. Once it depletes, the Dujaa, who are usually right on your tail, will overtake you, or the corrupted water will, and you are sent back to the last point you had reached. When you are at a checkpoint, you are safe as long as you stay inside the bubble surrounding it. It acts like a barrier that the enemy can't break through; they are repelled and bounce off.

If you are swimming in light-coloured, serene water, you don’t need to worry about using your shine ability, except for when you need to unlock a gate or clear a path. It’s when you head into the dark blue and purple water that you need your light shining, even when no one is pursuing you. You can take your time and enjoy the scenery in these areas. The visuals in Bahamut and the WaqWaq Tree are breathtaking. The colours are amazing, and the underwater world itself flows like you're putting a drop of ink in water. The music is calm and soothing, with sounds of moving water layered on top of it.

At first, the game seems all chill; you are just swimming around, taking in the scenery, but it can get challenging fast as you navigate through different underwater areas. If you take a wrong turn, the darkness or a swarm of enemies will engulf you. It can be challenging to find the fastest route to take to reach the next spot so that you don’t die and get sent back. Some areas took me multiple attempts to figure out. When I was lost, I would try to find the plants that would light up when I passed by them. These glowing plants will help lead you on the correct path to where you need to go next.

Bahamut and the WaqWaq Tree is a tranquil experience with vibrant visuals that do a great job at portraying the fluidity of water. You may think that the only thing you do is swim around and explore, this may be part of it but there are puzzles to solve and corruption to avoid to restore the Ma’een back to its original state. This game is a unique experience. However, swimming can make it tricky to be precise with your movement, especially when you are required to draw shapes to unlock gates as you are being attacked. It is worth playing to experience the visuals and the smooth and fluid swimming motion.