Beyond Blue review: Blue Planet II, the game

iPad/iPhone (PC, Xbox One and PlayStation 4 versions forthcoming); E-Line Media

Realistic marine-diving game shines a light on the deep ocean

A mellow and overtly educational game about marine wildlife, Beyond Blue is an opportunity to submerge yourself in the expansive beauty of the Western Pacific. Futuristic technology enables our marine scientist to scan creatures, track whale calls and withstand the crushing pressures of the deep ocean as she follows a pod of sperm whales through seascapes taken from the BBC's Blue Planet II, from shallows to open ocean to the toxic deep-sea brine pool that gave me nightmares for weeks after seeing it on TV.

Atmospheric though these watery places are, there's no peril in this version of deep-sea diving, even when you try to manufacture it. Attempts to swim directly into the gaping mouth of a humpback or provoke a hammerhead shark yield nothing but the odd visual glitch. You can admire the impressively realistic sea life at leisure, panning drones around creatures to record their songs and examine their markings. Nonetheless, do not expect an entirely chill time beneath the waves. Inevitably for a game informed by the actual state of our oceans, there's a touch of sadness here.