WILL: Follow the Light arrives as the debut title from indie developer TomorrowHead Studio, launched on 7 May 2026 for PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S. Built in Unreal Engine 5, it pitches itself as a first-person narrative adventure set across the harsh northern latitudes - a personal, storm-battered journey that looks stunning on a trailer. The reality, as the review from The Sixth Axis reveals, is a game of jarring extremes.
A Strong Opening That Sets an Impossible Bar
The game opens with Will navigating a small boat through a raging storm, massive waves crashing in from every direction. It is an immediate, atmospheric statement of intent - and, unfortunately, one the rest of the game struggles to live up to. The premise is compelling enough: Will is a lighthouse keeper whose town is devastated by a mudslide, and his son Thomas is missing. The urgency deflates early, however, when players discover Thomas was safely taken off the island by his grandfather before the disaster struck. What remains is a cross-island journey guided by lighthouse beams, with a series of puzzles standing between Will and his destination.
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Puzzles That Frustrate More Than Satisfy
The puzzle design is where WILL: Follow the Light loses most of its goodwill. Tasks include flipping fuses in the correct order, retrieving fuses from shelves in convoluted ways, and repairing a sail winch. The Sixth Axis notes that the final puzzle can be solved through pure trial and error, with colour-coded feedback removing any sense of real problem-solving. "At no real point is there a sense of satisfaction completing a puzzle," the review states, save for a late chapter involving an angry sperm whale.
WILL: Follow the Light is available now on PC via Steam - pick it up for AU$19.12 through the live price listings below.
The protagonist himself compounds the issue. Will delivers his lines with a flatness that drains urgency from scenes that demand it - reacting to a partially destroyed town and a missing son with something closer to mild inconvenience than panic. The game deals with weighty themes including death, grief, and strained relationships, and the emotional monotony makes those moments land poorly.
Where It Actually Shines
The game's highlights are clustered in its traversal sequences. Sailing across open water, navigating hazardous stretches of sea, and guiding a dog team through an avalanche are singled out as the moments where WILL: Follow the Light earns genuine praise. The ocean visuals are described as "near-lifelike," and these sections carry the energy the rest of the game needs. The problem is they are too infrequent, islands of excitement in a sea of repetition.
The atmosphere benefits from competent use of Unreal Engine 5, though the game runs roughly five hours from start to finish. For a debut release, reviewers do see potential in TomorrowHead Studio's foundations, noting it as "an excellent, albeit brief, offering" with room to grow.
Verdict
| Aspect | Verdict |
|---|---|
| Visuals / Sailing | Highlight - near-lifelike sea |
| Puzzle Design | Weak - trial and error |
| Protagonist | Flat delivery, low urgency |
| Themes | Grief, loss, relationships |
| Runtime | ~5 hours |
| Platforms | PC, PS5, Xbox Series X |
TomorrowHead Studio is a self-funded, self-publishing indie based in Spokane, Washington, driven by a passion for travel and a background in CGI. That pedigree shows in the visual craft - but a first-person adventure lives or dies on the quality of its interaction and its lead character, and on both counts WILL: Follow the Light falls short of its own high watermark. If TomorrowHead can channel more of the sailing and less of the fuse-flipping into their next project, a genuinely memorable experience is within reach.
