This makes Sea of Solitude lose some of its emotional impact. The developers, therefore, fill in every room for interpretation and take away a chance to interpret the feelings of the characters yourself. While none of the dialogues are unrealistic or unbelievable, they are superfluous most of the time - you understand the story without them. Unfortunately, this rather hurts the game, as the text feels pretty clumsy when it comes to explaining the feelings and situations.

However, the action-adventure doesn't stop there and inserts story snippets and dialogues that are supposed to explain backgrounds. Purely on the metaphorical level, Sea of Solitude manages to wonderfully represent feelings like loneliness and forlornness, depression, as well as a fear of loss and attachment. The schoolyard bullies that plague brother Sunny turn into gruesome shadows chasing us and whispering their threats. A sea monster gliding underneath the water surface represents Kay's fear of the unknown. The mother, who wants to control everything, appears as an octopus with supporting, but also oppressing tentacles. The game has a robust basic idea, which is implemented very well: The father, who always wants to please everyone, for example, has become a huge, monster-like chameleon. Kay meets several characters on her journey, which help her remember and process the events of her past - a flying girl, who appears to be the happy version of the protagonist and her little brother, who glides through the air resembling a giant crow bird. They are dangerous creatures ready to devour you if you are careless. The quarrels between her parents, the emotional isolation of a friend and the terrible experiences of her brother haunt Kay as enormous monsters that she now has to face. In it, she is accompanied by the monsters of her own past - literally. The city, her hometown, is not a realistic setting, but a kind of dream world. Players take control of Kay, the young protagonist who makes her way through a flooded city. It manages without high scores, without competition. The game is created by German Indie developer Jo-Mei and challenges gamers to deal with their own feelings, but also with those of other people.

But there are also games, like the action-adventure Sea of Solitude, which builds a stunning world around our innermost fears, deliberately playing with our fears, worries, and desires. Video games rarely treat profound emotional issues, as feelings don't match too well with the noise of big battles, impressive hero stories or rescuing the world.

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