*thalassophobia intensifies*

im depressed now 10/10

The best way to sum up my feelings about this game is this:
It's an extraordinary story, trapped within the confines of a horror game.
The story is beautiful, the pacing is excellent, and it really left me thinking after it ended. I love it for that alone. HOWEVER...
the one exception is the monsters. Yes, they can be somewhat interesting to avoid at times, and yes, lore-wise their presence is necessary. I get that. But there are point where you think "when will this end?" not because of the tension and anxiety of waiting until it's safe to go- no, out of boredom and annoyance. There are a precious few times when the monsters serve well as a way to keep the player tense, but most of the time all it does is slow the player down. The puzzles, by the way, are quite fun to figure out, if not particularly difficult. I would love to replay the game, but when I think about all the time spent waiting for an enemy to inch past, my urge to play disappears. The game is still better off as a game than any other kind of media- the atmosphere it builds just wouldn't work otherwise- but the "gameplay" of sneaking around really hurts it.

For someone playing for the first time? I absolutely recommend. The story is just that good, and I doubt watching a playthrough of it would have nearly the impact. Just keep in mind that if any parts feel tedious or annoying, there's still a reason to keep moving forward. Just maybe not a second time.