The Pathless

About the Game

Game: The Pathless
Genre: Action Adventure
Consoles: PS5, Ps4, Xbox One, Xbox Series X,S, PC, Nintendo Switch
Published: Annapurna Interactive
Developers: Giant Squid
Released: November 2020

Giant Squid is an indie developer studio which found imidiate success with the release of their first game Abzu. Abzu was critically aclaimed game which imidietly placed them in spotlight. The developers were extremely glad of their work and were slightly worried on how they will approach the second game. The Pathless was chosen to be the game to continue the legacy of the developers. It was revealed during the game awards of 2018 and it was set to be released on 2019. The team came to the realization that the game needed more development time and thus they made the decision to postponed it until 2020.

Late 2020 the game was released for PS4/PS5 and MacOS on November and a year later on Novemmber 2021 on windows. Years later in 2023 the game was released for the Microsoft and Nintendo Hardwares.

Aside from the game some physical editions of the game include physical Art postcards of the game.

The game seemed to have proven that Giant Squid is NOT a one hit wonder developer as The Pathless was positively received as well. The game is also quite different than Abzu, proving that they re capable of creating different style games that seemed to attract players. As of now the game sold quite well and the reviews from both the players and the critics seemed to agree on an overall enjoyable and fun game.

Story of the Game

Unlike Abzu, The Pathless has a more straight forward narrative but pieces of lore are hidden around the game's world. Some theories are also out there stating that the two games share the same universe. The developers themselves did not confirm anything but they also didnt deny anything. They did patch out a few things or altered a couple of texts but the core idea is there.

A dark threat threatens the world and the humans were able to determine the location of where the curse's core resides. The location was set to be an ancient island at the end of the sea where the Tall Ones reside. Many brave human warriors tried to stop it but they never made it back. The player gets control of the Hunter, the last brave master archer who wishes to cure the lands from the curse. There the Archer met the Eagle Mother spirit which was suffering. In order to help her, the eagle shows the path to the archer where she finds the Spirit Mask that allows her to see the world's secret that exists within the islands. The hunter then proceeds to help the eagle by removing her curse. The Godslayer then makes his pressence known and attacks the Eagle mother and the huntress. Assuming he killed the spirits he warns the hunter to leave the area or else. He then flies to the floating island in the middle or the area. The dying Eagle erges the huntress to travel to all the other islands and cure her childern(the Tall ones) the same way she treated her. If all the tall ones are cured they might be able to stop the Godslayer. The eagle mother uses her remainning powers to reincarnate as an eagle and joins the huntress on her quest to save the world.

Will she succeed??? Will the World be saved??? Or will the Godslayer destroy the world.??? All the questions will be ansered!

Thoughts on the story

For good or bad, I personaly enjoyed the story way to much. Unlike the Journey and Abzu, we had an actual plot to follow in order to save the world. Its not completetly up to us to piece the story together. However, the element of lore discovery can be found through out the game. Any exploration you do will expose you to the universe and the characters. The main character comes out as someone who has nothing to lose and everything to win, we dont explicity told that, but for her to make the decision to step to the island means she is well aware that it's either success or death no inbetweens. The Godslayer himself is an interesting character with a unique design and a very straight forward persondality and ideology. The concept itself i wont say its original but the adventure is worth it.

Gameplay

MOVEMENT
The gameplay of Pathless also differs incomparisson to Abzu. In the new Game the player gets control of the Huntress as she ventures around the islands with the goal of helping the Tall ones and trying to stop the Godslayer from destroying the world. The player has the very basic of movement and jumbing, nothing special at the beginning. The game is fast pase and requires you to keep your momentum going. Around the world there's these gems that The huntress can shoot in order to increase her mobility. Each time a crystal/gem is shot an air of wind increases her speed. Under the speed momentum effect, the huntress han jump to even further/ taller areas. The player can also use the eagle in order to glide to different areas. You can still shoot the gems while gliding which will increase the power/ stamina of the eagle. Through the story and your adventures you can find items around the world that will increase the stamina of both the hero and the eagle which will boost the strength of both. For the Huntress it allows you to aim to distant targets and also gives you more time to aim at the targets. As for the eagle it buffs its time of gliding and allows the player to increase the verticallity of the player.

THE TALL ONES
The Godslayer has the tall ones under his influence which drives them insane and uses them to destroy the lands. The player's role is to clense them in order to free their spirit. Each time the player visits the area of a Tall one, he has to break the towers that poison the brain of the Tall one. At the same time, the Tall one of that area is searching around the lands in order to get/kill you. The Tall ones move around in random locations and they re represented as a giant red mist. If the player gets caught in it then the eagle and the huntress will seperate from each other. If that happens you play a stealth section where you have to get to your eagle whilst dodging the eyesight of the Tall one. If the player catches up with the Eagle they will escape the mist. If not the player will faint and will respawn somewhere far away. The idea is to always avoid the red mist by running away as soon as possible.
Game'chasers

Once the player broke all of the Godslayers towers the Tall one will start running left and right. Thats when the Huntress become the hunter and instead of avoiding the red mist your goal is to approach it. Once you enter the red mist you have to chase the Tall one around the area. Using the gem's speed boost you have to approach the berserking beast and shoot its weak points. The Tall one it self will not attack you but it will throw fire and obstacles(trees/rocks etc) to break your momentum and run away. Usually in the chase/hunt section you have to hit the white crystals on top of the enemy which represent its weak points. Once the beast is done running the real fight beggins. Whats unique is that most of the Tall ones have unique mechanicks that you have to do in order to expose their weak points. For example, the first boss is basic, by having you dodge the AoE attacks and wait until his weak parts are exposed in order to shoot them. On the second boss fight the stage is important as you have to climb through walls to get on the bosses head, or use the moving walls in order to avoid it's fire and so on until you reach the center where the fight will have you flying around with the eagle whilst dodging it attacks. To avoid spoilers i wont go into more details or say anything about the next ones. Its worth discovering them on your own.
Once a Tall one falls their spirit will bless you with power. Just keep in mind the Godslayer is watching your actions and will not be happy with your heroic actions.

PUZZLES
The game has alot of puzzles around the world. Some re mandatory in order to progress through the story whilst others are simply perks to boost your power. The majority of the story related puzzles are easy with clever mechanics but the optional ones vary in difficulty. Some puzzles require you to light the fire around the world whilst others require you to simply place the rings around the area and with the usage of a single arrow and the environment shoot it through all.

Sound and Graphics

The graphics of the movie are reminising of the Abzu and the Journey as the graphics are very similar. The world is beatifully design with alot of detail on its environment. Each island is different than the other one. Traversing through the lands is very fun and interesting. The architecture is hiding alot of secrets which rewards exploration. The huntress herself has a mysterius look and Godslayer has a badass i do what i want look. Its quite interesting. The Tall ones themeselves have unique designs and the whole idea of chasing to fight was properly handled. Stealth and chasing sections change the color pallete of the world and the design (destructive) which made those parts scary and dangerous.

The music of the game is quite interesting. When you re moving around the environment the music is calm and yet has a mysterius tone in the background. The huntress barely talks and the only way of communicating outside of the cutscenes is through whisteling. The sound effects of the bow, eagle and the gem crystals are very good. During the chase sequents and the boss encounters the music hits different. Epic instrumentals are being used that escort the action scenes like cheese and wine. The voice acting on the other hand although consist of talented the Voice actors, Troy Baker and Laura Bailey fails to stay as memorable as the rest of the experience. Not to say they were bad or anything close to it. Simply put the game has more memorable in game action sequences than the dialog exchange during the cutscenes.

Collectables and post game Content

The game has a plethera of collectables scattered around the islands. The player acan activate Eagle vission in order to track them down. The game does not have a minimap nor a fast travel function which makes exploration and traversal essential. It honestly makes you feel like a badass hunter who is outhere exploring the unknown lands inhabited by the gods.
These collectables are in the form of:

Stone Tablets: These Pillars help the player understand the lore of the world and the story of certain items
Lore Messages: These are messages left by the former inhabitants of the islands. Once again they re being used to build the universe and its realism.
Monastery-Workshop-Bathhouse: These are giant buildings that contain puzzles. The player is tasked to enter them and solve the puzzle inside in order to escape and collect the hidden item within
Lightstones: These relics are scattered around the islands and the player needs to approach them to interact with them. Some re trapped and the player is tasked to solve a puzzle in order to free them. The more you find the harder the puzzles become. They re needed in order to dispel the darkness in the Obelisks and to gain gifts.
Crystals: The crystals are scattered around the world and is what needed in order to power up your eagle.
Shells: The shells are required to open a hidden door. The door consist of the only Tall one you dont get to ecnounted. behind the door theres also an Easter Egg that seemingly connects the worlds of Pathless and Abzu.

Final Thoughts

In conclusion, The Pathless is a very good and interesting game that makes you feel exactly how your character feels. You re alone in an abandoned world where the Tall ones gone berserk. You never feel weak as long as you have your eagle and bow, but you do feel pressured when your eagle leaves you when inside a red Mist. The exporation and the gameplay are handled in such a way that you dont feel like anything was missing or that you needed items. The fights themselves are excellent, smart and honestly perfect for its concept. You try to avoid the enemy as much as possible, but when you break the pillars The haunted becomes the hunter. The chasing sequences are excellent and very interesting which are only used to guide you to the area where the Tall one wishes to fight you. The fights themselves are perfect using different mechanics and combat strategies. Last but not least the xploration is rewarding with fun and challenging puzzles

The only negative thing about the game is a simple repeatition pattern. I personally did not feel it as much but its something that it can easily be spotted. What i mean by this is no matter where you re, the idea is simple. Avoid the Tall one when approaching the island, spot the red towers that need to be taken down, chase the Tall one and clense their spirit. Sure elements differ here and there but the basic idea is that. The Huntress and the basic gameplay doesnt get enchanced nor does she unlock new "interesting" abilities to keep the gameplay fresh, not that she needs them but usually the more things the merrier.

I genuently believe that Giant Squid Company improved alot from their previous title. By the time of writing this, a new project got announced called the Sword of the sea. This project seems to combine the two previous games and enchancing them into a new fresh experience and i cannot wait to see and experience the game for myslef.