Mythwrecked: Ambrosia Island (PC) Review – Zeus Lips Sink Ships… Or Something

2024 has been another banner year for independent games. From gangbusters like Balatro to the most wonderful – and criminally underappreciated – go-getters like Farewell North, the indie scene can once again hold its head high with the sheer amount of quality content that’s been created for us greedy gamers this year.

To finish off 2024 then with a brand new game from the makers of Röki almost feels like we’re being spoiled and yet, here we are with Mythwrecked: Ambrosia Island, another certified winner to add to ever increasing pile of quality indie games you should absolutely give a go once you’re bored of punching Nazi’s in the face whilst wearing a fedora.

There’s an immediate wonder to a game like Mythwrecked. The visual style is captivating, luring you in with enough whimsy and wonder and certainly caught my eye. That interest was only garnered further by the concept; shipwrecked and washed ashore, you discover this island holds many a mystery through the lens of Greek mythology. To me, that’s always a fascinating sandbox to play in, and none more so than when a Greek god is asking me to run around an island and feed birds. It just feels right. 

You play as Alex, a young female looking to escape the humdrum of daily existence and explore a little more. She had intended to visit somewhere a little more less magic-y, instead ending up on an island where she is the key to unlocking the secrets hidden within after a storm wrecks the boat she was arriving on. The Greek gods trapped on this island seem to be suffering from a bout of amnesia, so it’s up to Alex to bring back their memories and restore peace to their island. As far as video games go that are laser-pointed in my direction, this was about as between the eyes as you could ever wish to be. 

And boy is there fun to be had. The aforementioned bird feeding was a nice little way to kick off Alex’s relationship with the gods that inhabit the island, and building up Alex’s new home – the island’s lighthouse – was a real treat that was particularly delightful as the game continued. It’s the characterisation of the gods that is the most engaging aspect of Mythwrecked, though. Hades wouldn’t look out of place in a My Chemical Romance tribute act, Athena probably yearns for a library similar to Beast’s and Zeus is one mobile phone and a Wi-Fi connection away from becoming a lifestyle influencer. It’s a whole lot of fun and portrays them in unique ways that makes this exploration of their mythology somewhat more engaging than most.

Alex isn’t immediately besties with everyone on the island, though, and you’ll need to build up your trust with each of the gods in order to gain clues and progress. This may involve doing particular chores for the gods or passing on messages, raising up their friendship levels in an Animal Crossing kind of way to gain their trust and become good friends. 

This will more than likely involve running around the whole island and ticking things off as you go. You’ll be searching for things, finding animals and secret areas that you couldn’t access beforehand in order to complete particular tasks, and whilst the back and forth can at times can become wearisome, it becomes entirely worth it once the friendship levels rise and you can progress through the game in meaningful ways.

Are you brushed up on Greek mythology? You may need the most basic of knowledge to complete certain tasks, or at least pay close attention to the clues that are passed to Alex before a task begins. I managed to power my way through (thanks God of War, I guess), and there’s certainly that feeling of relief when you figure out a puzzle that’s been staring at you for twenty minutes. Never happened to me, though. Honest. 

And whilst becoming best mates with Hades is a compelling enough drive to keep me going through Mythwrecked, I had a blast getting to know the gods and discovering more about the island throughout the games runtime. I felt compelled to get Alex off the island at first, knowing she wasn’t where she was supposed to be at first, by the end it was all about the island and the gods themselves, their aforementioned characterisation was so much fun, and in the end you want to do whatever you can for them and to learn the islands secrets. For me at least, it became less about Alex’s plight and more about the world she had to save. And now Hades is my best mate, that’s pretty freakin’ cool. 

Visually as mentioned above, Mythwrecked is a whole lot of lovely. From the general cel-shaded aesthetic to the day night cycle (something that plays into the gameplay in a particularly interesting way) and the designs of the gods – Hades is an emo, teehee -, it certainly looks the part and is an absolute treat to behold on my 4K monitors.

The crispness shines through and runs beautifully, though it probably should considering my rig. The audio is also delightful – especially at night, where it becomes lo-fi and ethereal – and the voiceovers are full of life and performed very well. I have noticed whilst playing the balance of the audio is sometimes a little off, and could probably do with a bit of a tweak but it’s nothing gamebreaking or frustrating enough to affect your enjoyment in any real way unless you’re particularly sensitive to audio balancing. I know you’re out there.

There’s an entire islands worth of stuff to enjoy here then, and Mythwrecked: Ambrosia Island is a wondrous follow up to Röki. The characters that inhabit the island simply want you to explore more and more, and it’s engaging enough to want to see this cel-shaded mystery to the very end. I was captivated. 

Mythwrecked: Ambrosia Island is available now on PC (review platform), Xbox One, Xbox Series S|X and Nintendo Switch.

Developer: Polygon Treehouse
Publisher: Whitehorn Games

Disclaimer: In order to complete this review, we were provided with a promotional copy of the game. For our full review policy, please go here.

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