Having been born in the late 90s, much of my childhood growing up included many things from that era that were passed down by my older sister and parents. I still remember fat-back televisions and VHS cassettes, SNES and the original PlayStation, and computers with disk drives. It isn’t a time I personally look back on, yearning for ‘the good ole days’, but it is a time I am thankful to have experienced. Video games were all physical with no microtransactions or paid DLCs. Animations took time due to many being hand-drawn, with no usage of things like AI generative tools. Cartoons had much more freedom in their jokes without the fear of offending anyone. These are things that I believe Captain Wayne – Vacation Desperation took to heart and this is something I can appreciate.
Captain Wayne – Vacation Desperation is an intense, retro shooter with great 90s appeal. Developed by Ciaran Games LLC and published by Silver Lining Interactive, the game was released on November 25th, 2025. The game’s star, Captain Wayne, is a pirate sporting a flashy pink jacket and a shotgun for an arm. As Captain Wayne, we must travel through eight expansive stages, mowing through groups of enemies. An endless mode, Riptide Rampage, is where players can collect trophies and beat high scores. The game is certainly packed full of intense combat with little time to rest—a perfect ‘vacation’ for someone like Captain Wayne. Through the course of the game, players can find new weapons, take on bosses and maybe even discover some secrets. So, grab your beer and buckets of chum, because it’s time to discuss Captain Wayne – Vacation Desperation!
The Story: A Free Vacation on Orca Isle
The story begins with Captain Wayne winning a free vacation to Orca Isle, home of the legendary Orca Stone. Captain Wayne jumps at the promise of a vacation and treasure, but players sense trouble as two goons listen in. Before Wayne can depart for the isle, detective Stanley Steel Press appears on his boat. He is investigating Captain Wayne for previous pilferies, which Wayne answers with a giant fist to his face, punching him off of his boat. Detective Stanley is hit with the same paper about the free vacation and vows to try and stop Wayne from stealing the Orca Stone.
Thus begins the adventure and serves as a premise for the game’s story. Later Wayne encounters other characters, such as King, a robot king who had his crown stolen (by Wayne who pawned it) and a mysterious voice, Davy Jones, who gifts Wayne a Skull of Power. Most of the enemies belong to the Killer Whales, a mercenary group, and take on fish/whale/humanoid appearances. The story stays simple, and the cutscenes drive it forward. I enjoyed that, for the most part, where we began a stage is where the previous cutscene ended. This helped create a reasonable flow of events and I never had the thought of ‘wait, how did we get here?’
Captain Wayne’s story is like an episode of a cartoon from the 90s. The game leans into absurdity, delivers humor, and refuses to take itself too seriously. The voice acting channels a retro charm—unpolished, with the kind of stereotypical tones you’d expect from its characters, such as a pirate or a detective. Ciaran Games LLC clearly had a vision they were going for. They wanted to write a story that feels like a 90s cartoon and I think they did a great job at doing so. I could easily see future Captain Wayne games playing like new episodes to the story. Seeing the overall very positive reviews on Steam, I can definitely see Captain Wayne’s saga continuing.
The Gameplay: Bullets, Booze & Blood
Captain Wayne – Vacation Desperation is a whole lot of action. For campaign, there is no central hub for you to pause and purchase upgrades. The action is non-stop and in abundance. Speaking of non-stop, constantly being on the move is important. Though Captain Wayne can pick up some booze to fill up his Gusto (his armor),enemies can easily take you down if you stand still. Most enemies are equipped with guns and the ones that do get up close pack a punch—literally. Wayne has a kick that not only knocks enemies down, but also serves as a quick movement ability. If you kick during a jump, you can cover a long distance quickly, allowing you to reposition. I thought it took some time getting used to, especially mid combat, but thankfully respawns take place at checkpoints rather than at the beginning of the stage.
Captain Wayne can get a small arsenal of weapons of his own. Starting off with a shotgun—he has a shotgun arm afterall—players will eventually come across other weapons such as a chain-gun for rapid fire or bottles of boom brew to light them up. The weapons are always available to you as long as you have the ammo. Of course, you can always resort to kicking and punching as well. Designers keep weapons simple and straightforward. Again, I think this feels reminiscent of early FPS boomer shooters. It’s relies more so on the action and violence rather than the fancy guns. Blood splatters from enemies will fill the map. The quick pace helps intensify the action. Even the seagulls want to get in on the action as they literally dive bomb you. The developers knew what they were doing and did it well.
The campaign stages have decent lengths, not too short and not too long. I also thought there was a nice flow to the stages and was never unsure of where to go next. Outside of eight campaign stages, there is also an endless mode called Riptide Rampage. With six different maps, this mode allows players to collect trophies and beat their high scores. I was never a high score chaser so this game mode isn’t for me, but I can certainly see the enjoyment in it. In all stages, both campaign and riptide, there are many secrets to discover as well. As is the case in other boomer shooters, some secrets are better or more hidden than others, but all are enjoyable to keep your eye out for.
The Graphics & Audio: A 90s Cartoon
I’ve already touched on most of what there is to say in this section so I’ll keep my thoughts short. As mentioned, the hand drawn cartoon art style is familiar to that of a cartoon from the 90s. This style mixed with the action and violence is super satisfying to look at. If you want over-the-top, high quality graphics, then this probably isn’t the game for you. Normally I might take a few points off for graphics, but because it’s intentional, I think it does it’s job effectively. I felt transported back to a 90s cartoon with flashy Captain Wayne as its star. I could see myself as a child watching an episode of Captain Wayne on a fatback TV, eating cereal on a Saturday morning.
Audio is decent as well. Outside of the voice acting which I talked about earlier, the music and other audio elements are what you expect. Explosions are loud and intense. Music ties in with the game’s action. Captain Wayne’s little comments during stages made me chuckle. Again, it feels similar to that of a 90s cartoon and is effective with that in mind. I did think the music was a bit too loud at first, but that’s an easy fix. I also really like the remixed pirate shanty tune when launching the game. If you know where I could find this, please let me know!
The Conclusion: Captain Wayne, A Pirate Legend
Overall, there’s not a whole lot to discuss when it comes to this game. Its short, simple and effective. On the flip side, there’s also not a whole lot to criticize either. Captain Wayne – Vacation Desperation knows what it wants to be. Ciaran Games LLC had a clear vision in mind when developing this game and I think they executed it well. I think for the right player, this could be a greatly enjoyable, albeit slightly short, experience. I can’t find a post-release roadmap from the developers, though it doesn’t feel like this game needs much. The game does well it’s supposed to do and isn’t horrendous in what could be improved. Would more stages or weapons be nice? Sure, but I don’t feel like this game needs it.
Captain Wayne probably won’t appeal to everyone and won’t have the longevity with just this one game, and I think that’s okay. For Ciaran Games LLC’s first game on Steam, the game does its job and has a clear image of what it wants to do. The developers could focus on making new Captain Wayne games, each one playing like a new episode in the series. I could see a future where there’s an “Ultimate Captain Wayne” bundle with five Captain Wayne games together at a cheaper price than buying them individually. Personally, I’m not sure I will be tuning in, as its not my genre of game. However, I’m still hopeful that this is just the beginning for Captain Wayne.
Arrghh, thank you for reading ye landlubbers!
