Almost nothing moves on the Obra Dinn, but it’s still one of the most lively video game boats I’ve been on. Its crew may be long gone, but that doesn’t stop them from having interesting voices and complex stories to tell — most of which involve horrific deaths. I’ve never played a game quite like Return of the Obra Dinn, but now that I have, all I want is more.
This investigative story skillfully straddles the line between an adventure game, a puzzle game, and a gruesome, supernatural, Moby Dick-themed version of Guess Who. At its core, it’s a detective game, but you’re not out on a mission for justice or vengeance. You’re just an insurance evaluator whose job it is to assess the long-since-done damage of a merchant ship called the Obra Dinn, which has mysteriously reappeared after four years lost at sea.