History WMG / Abzu

* The architectural remains actually borrow from several famous ancient civilizations: Egyptian canon of proportions on murals, animal-headed statues, and obelisks; Mesopotamian tree of life and flower of life motifs and their tendency to write script directly over their murals; Greek-style pottery, Roman aqueducts, and gold-on-blue coloring clearly reminiscent of the Gate of Ishtar. The entrance to the ancient city even uses iconography from these civilizations to give a feel for what kinds of spaces they were meant to be (practical vs. religious). The remains are clearly a pastiche meant to evoke the ancient Mediterranean in general.

* The architectural remains actually borrow from several famous ancient civilizations: Egyptian canon of proportions on murals, animal-headed statues, and obelisks; Mesopotamian tree of life and flower of life motifs and their tendency to write script directly over their murals; Greek-style pottery, and Roman aqueducts. The entrance to the ancient city even uses iconography from these civilizations to give a feel for what kinds of spaces they were meant to be (practical vs. religious). The remains are clearly a pastiche meant to evoke the ancient Mediterranean in general.

* The architectural remains actually borrow from several famous ancient civilizations: Egyptian canon of proportions on murals, animal-headed statues, and obelisks; Mesopotamian tree of life motifs and their tendency to write script directly over their murals; Greek-style pottery, and Roman aqueducts. The entrance to the ancient city even uses iconography from these civilizations to give a feel for what kinds of spaces they were meant to be (practical vs. religious). The remains are clearly a pastiche meant to evoke the ancient Mediterranean in general.

[[WMG: Abzu takes place on a [[{{AfterTheEnd}} post apocalyptic]] FloodedFutureWorld]]

Given that we never saw any other Great White Sharks in the game, and the one we travelled with is very aggressive towards the malevolent machines, it's possible that Great White Sharks are wiped out to almost extinction, and the one you followed is the SoleSurvivor who developed a grudge against the machines that wiped out its species. Granted, it's a big ocean so there are probably more Great Whites out there, but given that we only saw one in the game itself implies that the species is critically or functionally endangered.

Given that we never saw any other Great White Sharks in the game, and the one we travelled with is very aggressive towards the malevolent machines, it's possible that Great White Sharks are wiped out to almost extinction, and the one you followed is the SoleSurvivor who developed a grudge against the machines that wiped out its species. Granted, it's a big ocean so there are probably more Great Whites out there, but given that we only saw one in the game itself implies that the species is critically endangered.

[[WMG: Abzu and ''VideoGame/{{ThePathless}}'' are in the same universe and [[spoiler: the Shark is a Tall One]]]]
In ''VideoGame/{{ThePathless}}'', it is implied that the Eagle Mother had a fifth child, as indicated by lore tablets mentioning a Basilla, the Eagle Mother having laid five eggs but only listing the four children in the game, and the decapitated statue [[spoiler: with the shark's head laying on the ground beside it]] in the are where the Hunter finds the eagle. [[spoiler: In addition to the secret room alluding to Abzu in the game, it implied that the Great White is in fact the Eagle Mother's fifth child.]] Exactly why she was excluded from the events of ''VideoGame/{{ThePathless}}'' is never mentioned, but it looks like she got ousted from the pantheon and [[UnPerson erased from history]] before the Godslayer's uprising.

The only exception, in fact, seems to be the Great White Shark, who destroys one of the diver's mini-subs seemingly out of spite on its second appearance, and does not let her so much as approach, let along ride it until much, much later. If we accept the conjecture that the Great White is the manifested will of the primal source, then the latter appears to have planned to destroy the harvesters all along, but needed the help of a humanoid creature to overcome the precursors' defenses. Combined with its understandable mistrust of all machines, this results in a kind of rivalry between the diver and the Great White as they race each other to the factory. Only after the diver repeatedly gives her energy back to the source to restore the wells and [[AndroclesLion saves the Great White from a mine]], does it acknowledge her as an ally in their undertaking, and the RivalsTeamUp at last.

* The Great White seems to be the only proactive entity other than the diver herself who determinedly pursues a long term goal, revealing an capacity for abstract thought and planning beyond that of even an intelligent animal.

A long time ago on a planet covered mostly by oceans, the humanoid {{Precursors}} had discovered a massive source of [[GreenRocks primal energy]] deep under the oceanic crust. This energy possesses a dual nature as both a super-condensed form of seawater (which cannot be swum through) and as a primordial soup from which all (marine) life originates. It can likewise exist in two distinct states: in the blue state, e.g. in the hidden pools, it is free-flowing and live-giving; in the red, e.g. in all machines and in the primal source itself, it is stored and compressed, but can also be used for other tasks.

The precursors had learned to gather the primal energy into (red) jars and to use it for their own purposes, but initially, always returned it to the sea afterwards, as they had probably noticed that drawing out energy reduced both the overall ocean levels (because it is super-dense water) and the biodiversity of marine creatures (because it is, at the same time, the foundation of all marine life). Thus, upon returning to the sea, the energy [[CreatingLife broke down into shoals of sea animals]] and massive quantities of water. There are also indications, that the precursors venerated a particular sea creature, the [[ThreateningShark Great White Shark]], who may be the physical manifestation of the [[GodWasMyCopilot will of the primal energy source itself]] (see below).

A long time ago on a planet covered mostly by oceans, the humanoid {{Precursors}} had discovered a massive source of [[GreenRocks primal energy]] deep under the oceanic crust. This primal energy has a dual nature as both a super-condensed form of seawater (that cannot be swum through) and as a primordial soup from which all (marine) life originates. It can likewise exist in two states: in the blue state, e.g. in the hidden pools, the energy is free-flowing and live-giving; in the red state, e.g. in all machines and the primal source itself, it is stored and compressed, but can be used for other tasks.

The precursors have learned to gather the primal energy into (red) jars and use it for their own purposes, but initially, have always returned it to the sea, as they have probably noticed that drawing energy reduced the overall ocean levels (because primal energy is super-dense water) and the biodiversity of the marine life (because it is, at the same time, the foundation of all marine life). Thus, upon returning to the sea, the energy [[CreatingLife broke down into shoals of sea creatures]] and massive quantities of water. There are also indications, that the precursors venerated a particular sea creature, the [[ThreateningShark Great White Shark]], who may be the physical manifestation of the [[GodWasMyCopilot will of the primal energy source itself]].

Over time, the precursors have built harvester machines to extract the primal energy from the ocean and particularly, the primal source more efficiently. These tetrahedral underwater machines could store the energy and use to power colossal (also tetrahedral) factories that produced more primal energy-powered machines for the precursors, with which they have build grand cities. One of these factories is found near the sunken city built over the primal source, and another, far in the north, alongside several more dormant harvesters.
Unfortunately, the harvesters soon proved to be ''too'' efficient, as the places where they operated (seen in the game as the underwater wells), became entirely devoid of primal energy and, thus, life, and hostile to any creatures that entered. The surrounding areas of such wells also seem to have been artificially closed off from the rest of the ocean floor with triangular gates by the precursors. It can also be inferred that the sea levels dropped considerably, as more and more sea water was condensed and locked up as usable primal energy within the harvesters.

It is unclear why the precursors' civilization eventually collapsed. We find their {{Atlantis}}-like great city built over the primal source completely deserted, but mostly intact below kilometers of water (albeit with pockets of air trapped inside -- a testament to the precursors' engineering). Maybe they have abandoned the planet (or, at least, its seas) of their own volition, to atone for its almost-destruction? In any case, before they left, they had constructed at least one humanoid diving machine, powered by the primal energy, programmed to gradually remediate the oceans and the marine life by returning the energy to its source.
However, at some point, the harvesters seem to have [[TurnedAgainstTheirMasters rebelled against the will of the precursors]], probably realizing that restoring the oceans would require their own destruction to release the massive amounts of sea water/energy they now stored, and began manufacturing large numbers of (tetrahedral) sea mines to deter any attacker.[[note]]Indeed, the mines don't seem to react to the proximity of any marine creature other than the diver and the Great White Shark -- the only two entities with the will to destroy the harvesters.[[/note]]

The game opens with the diver floating in the ocean, perhaps reactivating after a long standby. She proceeds to carry out her programming, restoring life from the hidden pools, diving into the wells to return primal energy to the source, and gradually coming closer to the harvester factory where she was originally produced. Along the way, she discovers the friendly mini-submarines, produced alongside her to assist her, all of which seem to be out of power after a long time without recharge.[[note]]Interestingly, the first mini-sub [[RedEyesTakeWarning briefly glows red]] upon reactivation, as it scans the diver, before switching the blue and cheerfully following her around. This seems to indicate a certain wariness, if not hostility, towards fellow machines, perhaps caused by the harvesters' rebellion?[[/note]] She also observes that all but one marine creature [[FriendToAllLivingThings view her without apprehension, with the smaller ones following her around, and the bigger ones letting her ride them,]] -- perhaps they are conditioned to understand that she and her kind are only there to help.

The only exception, in fact, seems to be the Great White Shark, who destroys one of the diver's mini-subs seemingly out of spite on its second appearance, and does not let her so much as approach, let along ride it until much, much later. If we accept the conjecture that the Great White is the manifested will of the primal source, then it appears that the source planned to destroy the harvesters all along, but needed the help of a humanoid creature to overcome the precursors' defenses. Combined with its understandable mistrust of all machines, this resulted in a kind of rivalry between the diver and the Great White as they raced each other towards the factory. Only after the diver repeatedly gives her energy back to the source to restore the wells and [[AndroclesLion saves the Great White from a mine]], does it acknowledge her as an ally in their undertaking, and the RivalsTeamUp at last.

At the end of the game, the source resurrects the Great White with the energy the diver brought back to it, also restoring her own body with a couple enhancements, and transports them both to the arctic, where four standalone harvesters are idling, along with a harvester factory. The diver and the Great White destroy the harvesters with their newfound power, releasing marine life and raising the global sea levels, which allows them to reach and destroy the factory, as well, fulfilling their mission (at least, in this part of the ocean).

!!The Great White is a manifestation of the will of the primal source

So, a long time ago on a planet covered mostly by oceans, a somewhat advanced civilization discovered deep underground a massive source of energy, accessible through a number of wells in the oceanic crust. Using the wells, these precursors pumped the energy up to power their massive and advanced civilization, until it started endangering the ocean itself: in particular, the ocean floor around the wells became essentially uninhabitable and devoid of life. Realizing what they were doing, the precursors retreated from the ocean (if not from the planet entirely), leaving behind automated systems like scout mini-subs and a few (if not a single one) humanoid diving construct in order to gradually restore the ocean and, most crucially, to return the energy taken from the primal source back to it by diving into the wells.

Throughout the game, you do just that: swim through different portions of the ocean, releasing fish to increase biodiversity, and, upon discovering another well, return small portions of the primal energy to their source, restoring life around the well (accidentally, this also explains why the sea creatures are so lenient to your touch: they know that your kind is there to help and never to hurt). The role of the sea mines, particularly the central mine, and the apparent mini-sub production factory is more ambiguous, however. It can be that at some point, the production factory rebelled against its purpose and started producing mines instead, or it can be a sign of some kind of war, probably involving the precursors. It's also important that all mini-subs you find are pinned to the ocean floor with what looks like metal spikes and need to be rebooted, as if they were attacked by someone.

Throughout the game, you do just that: swim through different portions of the ocean, releasing fish to increase biodiversity, and, upon discovering another well, return small portions of the primal energy to their source, restoring life around the well. The role of the sea mines, particularly the central mine, and the apparent mini-sub production factory is more ambiguous, however. It can be that at some point, the production factory rebelled against its purpose and started producing mines instead, or it can be a sign of some kind of war, probably involving the precursors. It's also important that all mini-subs you find are pinned to the ocean floor with what looks like metal spikes and need to be rebooted, as if they were attacked by someone.

Given that we never saw any other Great White Sharks in the game, and the one we travelled with is very aggressive towards the malevolent machines, it's possible that Great White Sharks are wiped out to almost extinction, and the one you followed is the SoleSurvivor who developed a grudge against the machines that wiped out its species. Granted, it's a big ocean so there are probably more Great Whites out there, but given that we only saw one in the game itself implies that the species is critically endangered.

[[WMG: The Great White Shark is the [[LastOfHisKind Last Of Its Kind.]]]]

[[WMG: The Great White Shark is the [[LastOfHisKind Last Of Its Kind.]]

But talks about different civilizations. Journey talks about an arid civilization that collapse in infighting over a precious resource. They made war machines and tried to steal potential replacements from other civilizations. Abzu talks about an ocean based civilization that went abandoned, leaving behind ruins and other devices. They were in the defensive but in the process damaged the environment around them and so made sure to leave behind a legacy that would help heal the ocean once the war was over.