FutureProject.TV

Following a map Bawbaggins recovered from the pirate ship, the party reaches a quiet beach marked by ancient standing stones and a carved riddle. Giant crabs interrupt the investigation, and somewhere in the chaos Runtar finds himself compelled to dance… before everything goes dark. When he wakes, the crabs are dead, the riddle is solved, and the stones have revealed a second map.

Not wanting to buy another game, I raided my six-year-old’s cartridge collection and rediscovered Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle. The story mode’s mix of puzzles and turn-based battles ended up being far more enjoyable than I expected.

When a whirlpool summons undead pirates and something vast beneath the waves, survival becomes the only goal. Gloom shields Runtar, a parrot terrorises Bawbaggins, and even a barrel of Chrisgles fails to soothe the deep. Sometimes victory means simply getting away.

After finishing Subnautica, I jumped straight into Below Zero—and found it far less challenging. With the Seatruck removing much of the survival tension, progression felt smoother, but also slightly less intense.

With Canton behind them, the party spends three quiet weeks at sea. As they sail toward the Feywild, Runtar reflects on what the town revealed, how his companions are changing, and whether kindness and attention might matter more than strength in the world ahead.

The fighting is over, but Canton hasn’t noticed. As the town smiles and carries on, Runtar struggles with what they chose not to say, how Gloom has changed, and what it means to leave a place that feels wrong behind.