Ever wanted to see a boat do a kickflip? That was the first impression I got when looking up Waves of Steel, a title that’s sat comfortably in Early Access since July of 2021. This naval combat simulator aims to provide a challenging one-versus-all battlefield where you rely on missiles, torpedos, anti-aircraft guns, and more to demand an engaging fight with a high skill ceiling.

At the same time, it’s a game with ample accessibility options. If things get too tough, you can change the game’s speed, add infinite ammo, or anything else to tailor the difficulty to your liking. So, how does this quirky naval sim end up when all is said and done?

Waves of Steel sees you take the helm for a ship bound for strenuous guerilla warfare. The campaign has short pick-up-and-play levels, with a backstory to boot through comicbook-esque cutscenes. It’s clear that only a small amount of the budget was used for these story bits, which can be appreciated as more time was spent on the combat.

Sadly, it doesn’t do many favors for those looking to sink their teeth into an original, captivating story. The game is fresh in my mind, but I could only name one character off the top of my head if you asked me. Regardless, no one is playing this game for the story. Waves of Steel‘s plot just serves as a backdrop for the missions where the real fun is waiting.

The challenge level in Waves of Steel is quite high, but not insurmountable. You’re not just tasked with landing as many shots as you can across your many weapon types. Enemy ships are not a pushover in the slightest, as they don’t just passively fire at you like in most games. Enemies are going to fire just as much as you, which is devastating in packs.

To survive, you’ll need to make use of all of your Specials, which are important moves like a speed boost, dodge, jump, and more. Luckily, health and ammo pickups appear at just the right times and will keep you alive if you can reach them before you’re sunk. In fact, I earned an achievement for taking enough damage to sink four of me, but thanks to these health drops, I made it to the end in one piece.

As missions complete in Waves of Steel, you’ll earn new parts to add to your ship. Unfortunately for a novice like me, the ship-building took a lot of attention and studying before I knew what I was doing. More than just a drag-and-drop, you’ll have to monitor your encumbrance and implement sub-systems to ensure everything is up-to-snuff.

While there’s fun in experimenting with which weapons feel the best, I feel like more time is spent on this menu than on the battlefield. Some players might see that as a positive, while others will want to maximize their time fighting other ships instead of focusing on their own.

As a first effort from TMA Games, Waves of Steel is going to impress the fanbase it caters to. It’s quite the niche fanbase, so I can’t picture this being a best-seller, but it is definitely a sign of a team that saw their project through and could have a bright future. Plenty of time can be spent in Free Play, as one can tailor the battle exactly to their liking there with a ship if they can get a grasp on the expansive shipbuilder. As a one-and-done campaign player, Waves of Steel is $19.99 for a few-hour affair and something I wouldn’t go out of my way to buy. Nevertheless, I’d keep an eye on TMA Games and recommend this to any naval combat fans.

A PC Review Copy of Waves of Steel was provided by TMA Games for this review.

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Waves of Steel

$19.99

6.5

Score

6.5/10

Pros

• Controls Feel Great
• Tons of Customization
• Strong Accessibility Options

Cons

• Rough Difficulty Spikes
• Unintuitive Ship Designer
• Weak Characters