In a couple of ways, Call of the Sea is the inverse of White Night, which i played this same month - primarily walking around solving puzzles while soaking in the atmosphere and story, as presented for the most part by the main character's monologue

Where White Night purposely removed all colour however, Call of the Sea seems to revel in the most vibrant colours it can manage. It's a much more appealing world because of it, inviting you to explore areas and absorb the sights - which are often gorgeously realised. Clearly it's got different aesthetic goals than White Night, which had a claustrophobic, oppressive sense of dread

The puzzles themselves are more involved (and satisfying) here, than in White Night, which makes sense because we don't have the survival horror elements to distract us. I enjoyed them all quite a bit, finding them non-obvious to start, and then logically resolving them with each new piece of information. I only once had to look up a hint, near the end, but it was because of a hidden(-ish) interaction prompt

The plot follows protagonist Norah, searching for her husband after his expedition to a lost island. She traces their footsteps, slowly uncovering their fate, while also discovering her own links to the mysterious island and its history. I quite enjoyed the whole tale, but the thematic pacing felt a bit disjointed - you can't really go back to conventional nature after the ritual by stormy sea - but maybe that's my own expectations

Anyway, lovely experience to end the year on (just pretend i didn't play Coromon after)