Crush Depth

TheAwakening
Dec 7, 2025
2 min read

Overview

Crush Depth follows the likes of SOMA, where the protagonist, Riley, is sent to the depths of the ocean responding to a distress call on the Eclipse Station. Soon you find what happened because there is something set loose down there. It’s a short horror puzzle game with impeccable voice acting, low-poly graphics, and hide-and-seek gameplay. While it is short in duration, it has the right amount of content, and it's cheap.

Gameplay

Taking down the only elevator cargo, our job is to extract the inactive core of the station while avoiding the only danger that lurks inside it. Moving underwater is self-explanatory, but our speed is slow. We can sprint but not for long, so it's best to save it for emergencies.

Our only tools are our flashlight and the flares we can find across the station. The flares don’t help too much, and we can only hold one, but they can be used as a distraction for a short time. The flashlight is infinite, giving the total darkness we face. To explore the place, there are maps distributed in every section, but only as reference, as we can’t take one.

The only puzzle here is to restore power by interacting with the power boxes. It's fairly simple: rotate the blocks so they connect from the power source to the complete circuit. Connections can be of a single, two, or three entrances, and you must determine the right circuit. Restoring power will open the gate towards the next area of the station. There may be more than one box to restore, however some boxes are locked, and a keycard is required.

Once you reach a certain point, the reason for the downfall of the station begins to chase you in places that are big enough to roam. A huge monster that can and will kill you since it moves faster underwater. Your only hope is to enter small spaces such as vents or small corridors where it cannot follow you. Luckily your diving suit warns you with a red dot how close this being is. Plan accordingly. If you cannot shake it off and you have a flare, you can lob it to the other end of the room as a distraction (unless it has seen you first).

There are pieces of lore within logs found in your path, revealing what happened to everyone. It is clear when you see the why soon enough.

Audio & Graphics

It amazes me how simple and old school the graphics are in an indie title. There is also good physics, and the effects caused by motion are simple but effective. The audio suppression works perfectly too. The minimalistic HUD, rather than an inventory or a map screen, matches the ambience within the whole game. Not enough soundtracks are featured here, only in key moments.