Sword of the Sea will be released on August 19 on PS5 and PC

Journey creator Matt Nava returns to the desert aesthetic with new game Sword of the Sea. The game will be released on August 19, 2025, and will be available on PlayStation 5, and PC (via Steam and on the Epic Games Store).

Sword of the Sea: intuitive surfing through sands and waves

The main mechanic of Sword of the Sea is surfing across sand dunes. The player controls a character in a golden mask and fluttering robes, gliding over orange hills and turning the desert into crystal-clear waves. The controls are physics-based – the character reacts to the slightest movement of the stick, stopping as soon as it is released.

Gameplay requires more intuition than precision. Combining stunts, jumping, navigating giant chains, and activating sound energy bubbles to destroy vessels all work as one. Control instructions appear only briefly when new abilities are learned, after which the player is left alone with the world around him – without markers or guides.

Game world and structure – no interface, but a story

Sword of the Sea doesn’t have the usual signposts. Instead, the world around you leads the way, with ancient temples, hidden passageways, and glowing spheres guiding the way. One of the challenges is to collect orbs hidden on rooftops and in hidden corners to unlock new areas.

The environment changes as you explore: sand can suddenly turn into water, through which fish swim, leaving wet footprints in the air. In one scene, the player slides across the skeleton of a giant creature, collecting gold stones embedded in its vertebrae.

The environment changes as you explore: sand can suddenly turn into water, with fish swimming through it, leaving wet footprints in the air.

Matt Nava returns to himself – and the desert

Project director and Giant Squid Studios co-founder Matt Nava previously created Abzû and The Pathless, but until now had remained in the shadow of his best-known work, Journey. Sword of the Sea is his return to his own artistic language.

“I realized I just had to be myself and keep exploring what I was really close to,” Nava noted.

In the developer’s words, this game is “about the process of learning to surf, pushing your own limits and learning to let go of control.” The camera is purposely distant so that the focus shifts from the character to the world around them – a key difference from many modern games.

Soundtrack by Journey composer and dynamic musical accompaniment

The music for the game is once again composed by Austin Wintory, composer of the soundtracks for Journey, Abzû and The Pathless. As before, the music here is not just background music, but changes as the player progresses. It emphasizes plot development, progression, and emotional changes in the character arc.

Memory’s music is not just background music, but changes as the player progresses.

“It’s not just a track for a particular zone. The music in the game reflects where you are, what you’re learning and how you’re evolving,” Nava explained.

Sword of the Sea invites you not just to play, but to dissolve into a meditative rhythm, unlocking new levels of intuitive interaction with the game – without words or interface. We’ll have to wait until August 19th.”

The Sword of the Sea will be released on August 19 on PS5 and PC was first published on ITZine.ru.