Oceanwork is an addictive little PS1 styled deep sea mining adventure where you are a prisoner who is forced to mine rare resources on an alien planet to earn your freedom.
Created for Ludum Dare 48 by Wakrus (creator of Ghost Study), Oceanwork is a PS1 styled adventure with incremental mining elements, where you have to earn your freedom. You start the game on a small offshore platform which contains a launchpad, a shop and a place to trade your resources. You need to dive down into the ocean and collect resources which you can then sell to earn cash which can be used to buy upgrades, and eventually your freedom and a flight off the planet.
You start out with a small air tank and basic diving equipment so you can’t dive deep or harvest much per trip. However, as you progress, the new equipment you buy can allow you to go deeper and stay underwater for longer. This is particularly handy as all of the really valuable resources are deep down. You always need to be sure to bet back to the platform before your air runs out though and you need to be careful to avoid going too deep or being caught by a shark.
It does have a fairly simple gameplay loop, but there’s something very addictive about Oceanwork’s deep sea mining gameplay. It does a good job of placing valuable resources tantalizingly close to the depth limits of your equipment and there’s also a secret ending if you’re brave enough to venture into its murky depths. A fun little reto styled mining adventure well worth diving into.
Controls: Mouse & Keyboard
Available On: Windows, Mac & Linux