An amibitious Half-Life 2 mod, Water is a third-person puzzle game from the Half-Life Short Stories team featuring mermaids, fish-men, and a uniquely interesting tale that - as Ziseng Chen explains - is well worth your time.



Now in its seventh year of existence, the Source engine of Half-life 2 shows few signs of running out of (ahem) steam within the modding community. Even in the face of declining mod support from developers and the emergence of much prettier engines, the Source engine remains the go-to tool for modders looking to bring new experiences to people's gaming palettes. The latest Source mod to reveal its life-sustaining properties is Water, a third-person puzzle-adventure from the Half-life Short Stories team.

Players fill the proverbial shoes of the titular character, Water, a mermaid goddess in search of her sisters, Fire and Air. Through solving various puzzles in a city inhabited by quirky fish people and cantankerous crabs, players will experience a somewhat dystopic fantasy world controlled by the almighty “Reverend”. The premise and setting for the game is quite unique, which is often the case for this genre, and is a breath of fresh air for people who may feel like they're drowning in a sea of games sponsored by anti-Russian terrorist organisations.

The visual style of Water is distinct, and helps it avoid some of the Source engine's growing graphical limitations. The mod uses a clever colour palette that contrasts the grey drabness of industrialisation with the relative vibrancy of Water and her immediate surroundings. Splashes of coloured objects in the environment also help draw attention to points of interest. Probably one of the most striking visual motifs is how flashbacks in conversations are told. It's difficult to describe in words, but it evokes a feeling of reading a pop-up book similar to the opening scene in Shrek. Indeed, the whole game feels like playing a fairytale but with a kind of “Brothers Grimm” dark twist, which helps draw you into the world.


Gameplay offers some challenging puzzles to stimulate the grey matter. Ironically, while Water is arguably more human-like in appearance than any of the other inhabitants, she can't survive for long on land. Meanwhile, the fish men stroll around sucking in the O₂ like it ain't no thang, which means puzzles often require Water to seduce the fish men into doing her bidding. Just like in real life, some men are more resilient than others, so it may take more than a naked top half to heat their hot tub, so to speak. Water can also transform into her water form, which can bypass certain obstacles.

In addition to solving puzzles, players are required to play through several combat scenarios using a turn-based system similar to Pokemon, but without the undertones of animal cruelty. While simplistic, the combat serves its purpose of breaking up the flow of puzzle-solving and exploration. On the topic of exploration, navigating the canals of the city in third-person feels great. There's something inherently majestic in gliding full-tilt through the water, bursting through the surface and launching yourself into the air like a shoot dodging salmon in spawning season.

Overall, Water is an enjoyable mod that should please fans of the puzzle-adventure genre. Despite not having a great deal of prior experience with the genre, I can say that this is a mod worth checking out. Now that the so-called holiday release window for commercial games is over, I'm sure many of you are polishing off games you may have bought in preparation for potentially more games arriving on Christmas. Free is always a good price, so why not have a dip in Water in between Skyrim marathons? 'nodelingers can even get it unmetered!

Grab Water from the games.on.net file mirror right here.