There’s one feeling that most gamers, no matter who they are, can empathize with. The incredible annoyance of finding a fantastic looking game that’s soon to be released… on a console that you don’t own or play on. If, like me, you’re frustrated by Nintendo’s unwillingness to release any Legend of Zelda game on anything but their own consoles, you might check out Oceanhorn: Monster of Uncharted Seas. So far, this game is the closest thing I’ve found to a Zelda game anywhere. It’s available on PC, Android, and iOS. Surprisingly, it’s also available Ps4 and Xbox One.
I should, perhaps, clarify what I mean by Oceanhorn resembling a Zelda game. It’s similar to Zelda in the way that EvoCreo is similar to Pokemon. If you haven’t heard of EvoCreo, and you’re interested in Pokemon, you should check it out. It’s a very well liked mobile game.
Disregarding that, the game is fun. I will say the controls on my tablet are as fiddly as the rest of games on mobile, but you can’t really expect anything different when physical buttons aren’t an option. The graphics are gorgeous, and the concepts and puzzles are put forth in the same style that Zelda games use, if perhaps a little more rudimentary. The Hero wakes up, finds a sword, and starts exploring. It isn’t quite as story-driven as the Zelda games, nor is it the most imaginative game out there, but it’s fun nonetheless.
Oceanhorn isn’t a new game, but it is a well-reviewed one. In 2013, it was named “Best of 2013” by the Apple Store, and “Game of the Year” for iOS, by Capsule Computers. If you want to try Oceanhorn, it’s available on most modern consoles. You can find it free on the Google Play Store, $5.99 on iTunes, and $14.99 on the Playstation store, Steam, and Xbox Store.