Reviewer's Note: Given some of my pointed critiques, it's impossible to avoid SPOILERS altogether. Read on at your own risk.

If nothing else, Out of the Blue Games ranks among the most efficient developers of this generation; that said, such a declaration is funny for anyone who remembers the usual two-year release schedule for AAA developers during the first HD era. Beyond mere efficiency though, the Madrid-based studio is also deft in utilizing an inspired premise and building a specific game around it – whether that's The Truman Show's influence for American Arcadia or H.P. Lovecraft for Call of the Sea. The latter now acts as a Part 1 to this narrative puzzle adventure duology, but the end result cuts in both directions.

"Call of the Elder Gods" should clue anyone in that this sequel will delve more into the stranger. The prologue's mid-point has our new co-lead, Evie Drayton, bump into a prehistoric Dimetrodon chilling next to alien skyscrapers of some sort. A foreign voice of an unknown language echoes across this vast expanse calling for her to "save [its] race" while grabbing a mysterious statuette before she snaps back to her dorm room in 1957. She's been haunted by similar dreams for weeks now, desperate to find answers from a familiar face from Sea: Dr. Harry Everhart. Though this eventual pairing is broadcast by the box art, a familiar voice – seemingly from the ether – tags alongside them.



Anyone who completed Sea will initially meet Nora Everhart's return with some confusion – regardless of which choice you'd ultimately made at its conclusion; then again, as evidenced by the opening, this adventure enjoys playing with time and space. Even after the walking-sim prologue, we briefly step into Nora's shoes for a prequel sequence and puzzle appetizer. So, her inclusion doesn't feel awkwardly soldered-on and has great utility in principle. The original's more expositional dialogue is now often relegated to Cissy Jones' well-acted narrations of both unfolding plot points and the co-protagonists' inner thoughts. For a modest indie title of this scope ($25), it's an effective workaround from fully-animated cutscenes with scores of subtle animations that certain moments here would otherwise require.

The knee-capping problem is its execution rather than intent. Alfredo González-Barros Camba could've pared down her narration by half and it'd still be overstuffed. From butting into what are perfectly fine conversations to brief comedic gags, there's hardly ever a time for quiet down time. When Evie comments about Harry's statue of "a lovely woman", Nora has to gleefully respond with "she certainly has an eye for beauty!" For a game that's smart enough to let players toggle protagonists' auto-speak when picking up important items, you'd think someone would interrogate her unremitting interjections decelerating what's supposed to be a pulpy adventure.



Upgrading from absent clue-giver to active puzzle-solver as Harry is a welcome surprise – even if Yuri Lowenthal isn't a convincing old man. He initially doesn't share Evie's enthusiasm, especially given his distressing episodes, but they share a special tragedy: the loss of her father, Frank, during Harry's original expedition in the Pacific. An evil secret society prompts him to join forces and stop them from acquiring this mysterious eldritch figurine for their own mischievous purposes. From there, it taps into the pacing of a Thrilling Wonder Stories issue, as though someone had spun a globe a half-dozen times, stopped it with a finger, and determined those locations must be included somehow. A rare instance of Harry's backstory shows his involvement with American Intelligence during WWII, which gives context for his intimate knowledge of Enigma machine puzzles near the end.

Several puzzles are preceded by establishing background, which is impressive for such a wide variety. But the gist of them follows a familiar tempo: Evie and Harry walk – or briskly jog – about to collect clues for a bigger puzzle whilst also finishing a smaller set of them in between. Said clues can vary from deduction of important symbols to conveniently-scattered notes left by enemies to bypass a locked door, gate, or elevator; most of the classics are accounted for. The most important hints get handwriting or pictures inside Nora's journal to then process and so on and so forth. Like with Sea, it's a Myst-like where properly working through solutions (not running towards hints) also enables players to appreciate the art and world design.



On occasion, its appreciation for complexity goes a tad too far. The aforementioned secret society's boss has a kink for Egyptian history, which is reflected by the fastidious detail incorporated into his office's complex lock. Sniffing around to understand his lieutenants' hierarchical structure, codename designation, paired constellation, and so on, helps you appreciate the compendium of ancient history these designers relied on; that said, connecting those dots could've gone smoother if Evie was on the ball with journaling. Whether due to a unique bug or something else, certain contextual clues wouldn't be added, which then made me intuitively question their relevance. Of course, a little note-taking yourself can allay those frustrations, but that portion of the game isn't the best at visually relaying some crucial info either.

The batch of conundrums playing off the pair are often enjoyable yet inconsistent. One of the better overall challenges involves manipulating eldritch architecture through a series of sounds and exploring the extent of those possibilities. The other end is little more than Evie and Harry hitting a series of switches and generator panels to power up a hidden Nazi base. Some obstacles are deliberately designed to be speedbumps, but perhaps the better way to understand this is in their emphasis and degree. Though several of American Arcadia's paired puzzles don't reach Elder Gods' aforementioned sound example, the way Trevor & Angela's disparate abilities continually play off each other makes them both integral halves of a larger whole; here, swapping is more like a nice interchangeable tool to occasionally use. 



In the end, Call of the Elder Gods shows being more adventurous – whether in script, puzzle design, visuals, and even title – doesn't always translate to a better game. It's another first-person puzzler with a few clever tricks up its sleeve and a pleasant art style to boot. It shares much in common with its predecessor, but with a few new missteps alongside it. For a new-ish developer who's previously shown a deft hand at storytelling, it's incredible to see how such over-exposition was greenlit here. The same could also be said for not capturing the dual-protagonist potential Out of the Blue had more thoroughly executed before. Some unfortunate fumbles with, nonetheless, some of this team's best brainteasers to date.

Contractor by trade and writer by hobby, Lee's obnoxious criticisms have found a way to be featured across several gaming sites: N4G, VGChartz, Gaming Nexus, DarkStation, TechRaptor, and Cubed3! He started gaming in the mid-90s and has had the privilege in playing many games across a plethora of platforms. Reader warning: each click given to his articles only helps to inflate his Texas-sized ego. Proceed with caution.