Will: Follow the Light, Troubled Waters and Echoes from the Past - Review

Will: Follow the Light was certainly one of the most interesting games at the Future Games Show 2024, a story-driven first-person experience that takes us to dock in rather inhospitable places, navigating through waters animated by sudden squalls. Although the context is decidedly different, TomorrowHead's debut video game draws some of its inspiration from Firewatch, proposing an original plot that reflects on the meaning of love, a father's feeling who must find his son by setting off with the Molly (his personal boat) through the treacherous northern seas.

What we found ourselves facing is an overall interesting experience, which tells a courageous (though not very deep) and decidedly dangerous story, especially because (and those who sail know it perfectly) you don't mess with the sea. Will: Follow the Light is not a simple sailboat simulation, although in some ways we will have to learn some nautical notions, but rather a game that highlights family, the meaning of loss, and, of course, lighthouses.

The Strength of the Lighthouse Keeper!

As you may have guessed, Will: Follow the Light puts us in the shoes of the eponymous protagonist, the lighthouse keeper of an unidentified island located in the northern sea. Everything seems very peaceful, and some might even say that (probably) a keeper's life is decidedly quiet: but this would only prove to be a colossal mistake. Without knowing anything, nor the reasons why we are there, from the very first moments of the game we will have to face the stormy sea, taking the helm of the boat and setting the stern and bow sails. And if until then we knew nothing about how to fix the boom with the mainsail sheet and a stopper, suddenly these terms will flood our screen until we wake up at our station, on another solitary shift at the lighthouse.

However, as often happens, the routine will be interrupted by an unexpected radio message, forcing us to perform seemingly standard checks that will prove to be the harbinger of a sudden disaster. In fact, Will's city will be involved in an environmental catastrophe and his son (Thomas) has suddenly disappeared. Despair becomes almost heartbreaking, until we learn from surviving friends that the boy is with his grandfather, the lighthouse keeper's father. And from this moment on, the journey will begin, a nautical crossing in search of one's family that will bring out some skeletons in the closet, regrets, and truths hidden in the relationship with our loved ones. And these "truths" will come to light as we reach uninhabited islands accessible by sea and immense mountain ranges (only traversable with sled dogs). 

Will: Follow The Light is a linear experience, characterized by explorations, reading documents, discovering secrets, and collecting objects (such as boat models and tea boxes to savor). And to complete the experience, there are various puzzles scattered throughout the 6 chapters that will lead us to find (or save?) our son or perhaps ourselves. 

The various puzzles, arguably the most substantial aspect of the experience, proved to be overall interesting, ranging from intense searches for codes to unlock various padlocks, doors, and safes, to solving sequences to get power to the lighthouse's last generator. Not to mention phases where we were called upon to assemble a winch for the Molly (still the boat) or to repair the sled with sanders, hammers, and various other tools. These activities, we could say, break up the rhythm of the story which goes in only one direction but, ultimately, do not offer us anything so innovative.

Mostly, and this could be a plus for those who don't have much patience, the puzzles are not that difficult to solve and with a few attempts, you can figure them out with absolute ease. The aspect that makes you reflect the most, however, lies in the journey on the high seas, especially when you have to fight your own demons that could drag us deeper than necessary. 

A Not-So-Simple Crossing with the Molly

Between one area and another of Will: Follow The Light, we will often take the helm, an activity taught to us by our father. After charting the course on a specific map, also dynamically setting the coordinates, we can hoist the sails and prepare for crossings in calm and rough waters, while memories of our past will manifest in our minds. This activity, although pleasant in its simplicity, did not fully convince us: we would have liked more challenging phases, where Will had to battle the stormy sea to reach the next docking point (considering that the game starts precisely from a difficult period in the northern seas). 

And in fact, needless to say, at any time we can skip the journey and find ourselves at the arrival point that we should have followed through the nautical map. A choice made to favor players who only want to immerse themselves in the story without too much hassle but, let us say: what's the point of "skipping" the journey if it represents one of the strengths on which the experience is based? 

Despite everything, Will: Follow The Light offers melancholic and decidedly immersive Nordic glimpses. And if on the one hand we were enchanted by certain artistic expositions (like the aurora borealis, for example), on the other hand, the same cannot be said for the technical side, including a marked clumsiness in movements and in the realization of some characters very far from reality in their appearance. On PlayStation 5, the version we tested, we found several NPCs not exactly in shape, with deformed eyebrows and inexpressive eyes. We understand certain technical limitations, especially when it comes to a debut work for a development team, but you understand that seeing an immobile port captain with a teacup in hand for an indefinite time is not very credible.

Despite its limitations, Will: Follow The Light is an overall interesting experience, characterized by family dramas, various puzzles, and also offers the opportunity to reflect on certain issues. It's not a perfect adventure, that's true, and perhaps there's too much introspection, but the six hours spent with Will literally flew by.