The Island: Castaway 2 (Mac) Review

As The Island: Castaway 2 begins, you are treated to a cryptic sequence featuring sailors from two different time periods, and their fateful trip to the island. Exactly how they will come to interact with the natives is yet to be seen.

You’ll play as Yati, a young native boy who was orphaned young and raised by the members of the tribe. Yati has been having disturbing visions, and even blacking out on occasion, and it is time for him to seek out some answers as to his past, and his future. At the same time, the elders of his tribe have decided that it is time for him to choose his path in life – Yati will try out the trades of carpenter, farmer, shaman, and more on his quest to uncover who he is, and who he wants to be.

At its core, The Island: Castaway 2 is an island sim, and the majority of your in game actions will center around a typical life on a tropical island. As a growing boy, Yati must eat often, so you’ll dedicate a good deal of time to gathering and preparing food, lest he grow weak and pass out. Thankfully, food is plentiful on the island, and fruit trees abound. While you can find all sorts of fruit literally laying on the ground for you to feast on, it takes a lot of it to fill Yati’s stomach, so learning to cook more substantial fare is an important skill. As you advance in the game, you learn more and more recipes that will make getting things done a much easier task.

In addition to using a campfire to cook, Yati will acquire a few other tools to make life on the island a bit simpler. A fishing pole can be used to hook fish from the dark waters, a net will snag carbs for a tasty meal, a bow and arrow will allow you to hunt the local wildlife, and so forth. All of these are pretty simple and straightforward to use, and significantly improve Yati’s chances at acquiring good food and advanced tools. At the beginning of the game, a good portion of the challenge comes from managing Yati’s bag, which has very limited capacity. As you advance you are given the opportunity to upgrade his bag as well as his other tools, as long as you have the cash to do so.

The Island: Castaway 2 offers colorful environments and and engaging island map that has a variety of interesting characters and mysterious areas to explore and interact with. Though there is an interesting story line to help move the action along, much like island life, there is no real hurry to get things done. You are limited only by Yati’s hunger as you explore your island home. You’ll meet all the inhabitants of the island (mortal and otherwise), hone your skills at cooking and trapping, and learn the secrets of this tropical hideaway, all in your own good time. It’s a very casual game, and completely appropriate for players of all ages and skill levels. As there is no real sense of urgency (even if Yati gets hungry and passes out, it isn’t a huge deal), and the controls are quite simple and easy to pick up, even the youngest of players can wander the shores and gather fruit to their hearts’ content.

The Island: Castaway 2 is a casual and colorful experience that is fun for gamers young and old, and of every skill level. With a variety of interesting characters, and a colorful island to explore, you’ll have no trouble losing yourself in this island paradise.