Sometimes I just want to play a game that helps me unwind. I’ll grab my Nintendo Switch and cosy on in for some Animal Crossing or Stardew Valley. But, sometimes I’ll find myself craving a little more action, a little more adventure, while still hoping to protect my peace. Lou’s Lagoon is where I’ve finally found the answer.
This whirlwind adventure lets you take to the skies in your seaplane, let loose with some pretty nifty equipment, craft in abundance, and, perhaps most importantly, hunt down your missing uncle Lou.
But there’s also something incredibly unique about this adventure title that makes it surprisingly peaceful – you don’t have any health or stamina to contend with. Your journeying is boundless and any fear you might have of getting hurt, well, leave it by the back door to get taken out with the bins. There’s only a handful of enemies you ever have to deal with, and with no health, they can’t hurt you anyway.
I sat down with the Deluxe edition of the game, thanks to developer Tiny Roar, which added some extra aesthetic bits (if you notice me wearing something swanky in the screenshots). From the outset, a mysterious poetic tale is woven of Light and Dark, Wind and Wave, and its intrinsic to the way the adventure unfolds. What it laces into the gameplay is a mystery that feels worth solving.
I found myself on an island, Lou’s Island, told quite desperately that my uncle is nowhere to be seen. There’s a terrible storm swirling around and a lot of mess to sort out across the Limbo Archipelago, all while looking for Lou. He runs a pretty important delivery service that I’ve been entrusted to rebuild in his absence, whilst also trying to find out where on earth he’s gone.
Fortunately, whilst it’s an open-world adventure, there’s not too many places he can be hiding. In fact, there’s just four main areas to explore that you’ll progress through at your leisure. And if there’s one word that really describes this game, it’s leisurely. As I mentioned, there’s no health to worry about. Fling yourself off a cliff? No problem. Crash your seaplane into the side of a mountain? Okie dokie.
I also mentioned there are barely any enemies, and that’s as pleasant as it sounds. In fact, there’s only one type of enemy on your journey of discovery and that’s pirate rats (or the odd creature will give you a little boff, if you disturb them). I stumbled across a couple of these weird swashbuckling rodents on the beaches of Lou’s Island early on in the game, baffled initially by their presence especially when they kept knocking me out with their sacks.
It quickly became clear though that they weren’t going to be a problem. With no health to stress about losing, I just legged it away. Sure, you’ll encounter the odd sea creature that looks like it could be threatening, but they’re pretty harmless, which is ironic considering how many arms they have.
This was a tone setter for the rest of the game. Pirate rats aside, you’re able to set your own pace and with it learn the ways of the islands. Visually, I’m reminded of my time with Demon Tides last year, vibrant and eye-catching, a zippy protagonist with some zany outfits of which your wardrobe will only increase as you search the islands.
But, it’s one of the main mechanics of Lou’s Lagoon that makes it a real joy to play. Equipped with the Swirler, a tool used to collect materials by sucking up the things you need. And you’ll need to collect a lot of materials, which I’ll get into shortly. But, while you personally don’t have any lack of stamina or health, your Swirler is less fortunate. It’s susceptible to overheating, so you have to learn to use it wisely.
It also does a reverse Swirl when you’re offloading materials, streamlining a rather busy adventure with a quick and nifty way to get the job done (and there’s lots of jobs). Materials are abundant and in high demand. Put it this way, even after completing the main quest line, I was still discovering unknown items growing in the flora and fauna, hiding in the shadows of the caves and even part of the creatures themselves, anywhere from Wool to Beever Oil.
The Swirler isn’t your own fancy tool though. You can build with the Builder. You can scoop underground with your Scooper. You can glide to hard-to-reach places with your Glider. And you can fish with your… Fishing Rod. Consider this my official petition to call it a Fisher. They’re pretty customary tools for a crafting and adventure based game, but they’re also multilayered. Yes, you can use them for missions, but you can also use them to gather up materials for your own endeavours.
With the Builder, you can even create your own home on Lou’s Island (though I never found a reason to bother). You also have to get a bit clever with your materials. Once harvested from their various locations, they regenerate at different paces. Fortunately, you can send up drones in exchange for Shellings, the Limbo Archipelago’s currency, to retrieve your materials (as long as you’ve already discovered them yourself).
It’s the residents of these islands, though, that help you on your journey, as well as giving you jobs to do while Lou’s away. Each island has its own unique populous, from strange owls to the quirky little Gorplins. These communities feel alive, bustling around and often waiting patiently for you to come and lend a hand. And they’re happy to engage with you with chat that’s actually quite impressive considering how many of them are littered around the islands.
Even more so when I started to notice they were reactive to the main storyline, mentioning it as I grew further into the game. But there’s also core characters you keep on returning to, like Fidge the mechanic, Jackie the sales extraordinaire and even Hefti, your trusted dog/cow(?) companion on Lou’s island. Prepare for less voice acting though and more voice grunting. It’s a small social circle to begin with, but it expands quickly as you take on quests for a wide range of critters across the lands.
They’re quirky, too, playing heavily into puns and parodies from a resident called Larpa who likes to play CNC, or the suggestions of a cheeky game of Frantic: The Blathering. Oftentimes, your quick conversations will result in an abrupt goodbye, but it still makes the islands feel more alive and certainly more filled with banter. Though I suffered with the odd glitch of characters being initially blurry in conversation before they pulled into focus.
While finding Lou is a top priority, to do so meant I spent a lot of time crafting. Arguably, the majority of my time in the game was spent standing next to my machines waiting for them to plop out what I needed. I was eager to advance through the game though and that’s on me. If I’d slowed it down, there’s the offer of your own Grand Designs-esque moment, building your own humble abode on Lou’s Island. This part to me seemed a little pointless given I didn’t need sleep, rejuvenation, a hearty meal, or even to sit down.
I found myself asking: does it strike a perfect balance between adventure and crafting? I’d say it’s near-perfect. You’ll spend time repairing radio towers, which enables you to pick up quests from the job board, though these begin to feel a little less optional and a bit more necessary to advance through the game. Essentially, if you want to find Lou, you need to do a lot of crafting, but to find the materials you need to head out on an adventure.
But, it’s how you head out on this adventure that is a true asset to this title and that’s via your trusted seaplane. It really feels like Tiny Roar spent a lot of time thinking about how to incorporate the seaplane into the game. You need it to get around, but travel between islands doesn’t have to be repetitive. To start off, there are balloons with loot abundantly present in the sky that you can use as a fun distraction on the way to your next destination.
As you advance, radio towers also mean you can utilise Autopilot which allows you to bypass the seaplane altogether, if you want to. You can even add a bit of customisation to your seaplane, tying in nicely with the customisation you can use on yourself. Inventory wise, you’ve got a Zipper (another -er for the pile), but you’ve also got the cargo on your seaplane that comes in super handy considering your Zipper doesn’t have nearly enough space for all these materials you’re juggling.
I actually spent a fair amount of time flying around enjoying the pleasing mechanics and time trials, popping balloons and slamming into mountains just to enjoy how readily I bounced right off them. Your seaplane is not just a method of transport though, it’s also incorporated into the missions. Cleverly, you’ll refine your flying skills that’ll come in handy later down the line. I mentioned a storm, right?
Each island offers a somewhat puzzling terrain, but nothing troubling enough to upset your peaceful adventure. The vertical scaling can be a little hit-and-miss at times and I got myself stuck in crevices a few times with some overzealous cliff diving. Fortunately, the menu has a handy ‘Stuck’ button that returns you back to safety, even if I started throwing my immortality about willy-nilly all over again.
What surprised me the most about Lou’s Lagoon was how much there was to do. While I thought my time would mainly be taken up with pursuing the mystery of the disappearing uncle, there were actually plenty of quests to do on the side. Put it this way, after playing for 15 minutes, I’d already done 8 quests.
Ultimately, Lou’s Lagoon is a wonderful stress-free adventure. While Lou’s disappearance feels pressing, the lure to slow down and take in what the Limbo Archipelago has to offer is insatiable. In fact, the only thing I found stressful about the game was having to hold down a key to sprint. It’s full of charm, crafts, and calm.
