Developer The Chinese Room Publisher Secret Mode Format PC (tested), PS5, Xbox Series Release June 18

Leaving the subtitles settings on their default ‘English’, we quickly discover that they apply a filter to the script. As Glaswegian protagonist Caz McLeary ponders how much he misses his ‘weans’ on the mainland, for instance, the text replaces the word with ‘kids’. Our first instinct is that this feels heavy-handed, sucking flavour from speech that strives to manifest a specific sense of place and time. Yet we soon realise that it’s not only optional (you can select a oneto-one transcript instead) but also likely essential for those less familiar with the game’s Caledonian dialects.

It’s one of a few areas, in fact, where Still Wakes The Deep makes small compromises so that it may commit full-bloodedly to the rest of its setting and concept.

The key to this firstperson horror tale for The Chinese Room is doubtless fidelity, which begins at the dialogue and spreads outwards. In Caz’s home-fromhome, the Beira D oil rig, chatter shuttles between crew members with a fierce rhythm, able to give no quarter to less accustomed ears precisely because the subtitles act as a safety net. The voice performances feel weighty and grounded as a result, and that extends to Caz’s actions as well, as his hands yank levers down with palpable pressure, or you drop into water and he sinks like a statue before you can heave him back up. Whether above or below sea level, it’s easy to imagine how cold he gets, too, thanks to some remarkable physics and audio work. The flutter of billowing tarpaulins is mesmerising as the North Sea wind skims the deck, driving the rain at an ungodly angle. The whistle and howl is joined by echoing strains of metal, hinting that the place might struggle to resist if a stiffer storm whipped up.