If you know me, then you'll know that I love my Dorfromantik-likes. Chill, tile-based puzzling with a focus on nature? Count me in. So it's not a surprise that I've found myself playing Land Above Sea Below. It was available as a demo in the most recent Steam Next Fest, and now it's back as a free prologue.
In Land Above Sea Below, you start off with a Tree of Fall. You place tiles around the tree to grow your island, and the aim is to keep raising the height of your island to combat rising sea levels. Every seven tiles, a new season begins and the sea level rises. If your Tree of Fall gets flooded, it's game over.
The rules of Land Above Sea Below are what make this really special compared to other Dorformantik-likes. Each tile is of a certain biome, of which there are three in the prologue, and you'll only score points (and be able to raise tile height) by placing tiles of the same biome next to each other. To raise tile height though, you must place a tile next to three or more of the same biome type. This is called a synergy, and making synergies makes you extremely aware of the moves you're making and how they might affect you three turns down the line.
Seasons can be extended if you get a synergy of four or more, but you find yourself asking, can I get a synergy that high before the season ends? How many turns will I have to potentially waste just to raise my island another 10m higher? Biomes will only grow taller with synergies of the same type, so you can end up with separate bits of land mass you need to micromanage.
There are some special tile types to help keep your head above water. River tiles, which come in different shapes, will keep adjacent tiles of its biome above sea level at all times. However, putting a river down will separate any land it's between, effectively separating them into two separate land masses you'll need to keep making taller.
Thankfully, for each turn of the season you're told what biome and type of tile you'll get. This allows for some nice short-term planning, and adds a bit of risk and reward. If I work to build up a four tile synergy, I might get a tile at the end that I can't do anything with. Or do I play it safe and let the season end after seven turns?
The prologue ends after 10 seasons, but the full game will last for as long as you can keep the Tree of Fall afloat. There'll also be more biomes and special tiles, which promises even more strategic planning and deliberation. I'm really enjoying the higher degree of strategy Land Above Sea Below requires. You start out with a small number of turns and it only gets harder and harder to extend seasons as you continue growing your island.
Land Above Sea Below trades the cosy idyll of Dorfromantik for the harsh reality of global warming. And although time is very limited in the game, at least I can pretend like rising sea levels can easily be solved by my brain power alone.
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