Recommended: Dave the Diver (Early access Review)

Undersea Gunslinger

• Developer: Mintrocket games

• Publisher:  Mintrocket games

• Release: 27 October 2022

• Format: PC, Nintendo Switch TBC

• Price: $28.99 NZD

Every now and then, a game comes along that combines cozy aesthetics, a stellar original soundtrack and a comedic cast of characters. Combined with its addictive gameplay loop, Dave the Diver manages to pull me in day after day to live (and fish!) in its world.

The premise is simple: spend your mornings and afternoons spearfishing and your evenings running and growing the Sushi restaurant, Bancho Sushi.

Dave the Diver is the debut game from development studio Mintrocket games, a company that launched on 3rd May 2022, as a division of Nexon Korea (who also published Maplestory).

Currently still in early access; Dave the Diver is two-thirds a semi-roguelike adventure with the expected loops of delving into a large area the game calls the “Blue hole” and collecting items and fish; then coming back to the surface to upgrade your gear. Generally venturing deeper with every run.

Look and feel

Presented in 2.5D and pixel graphics with Japanese aesthetics; the artists have done a great job at mixing these two mediums into some gorgeous scenes that really work well. The writing is humorous all the way through; but often has some stilted dialogue that feels a little stuff, this stiffness more than likely comes from the translation of the developers native Korean script into English.

The maps are not procedurally generated like other roguelikes, instead you will find yourself heading back to the same locations again and again; but aspects of levels do change as you progress further through the game.

Each dive you are on the look-out for ingredients to have on your restaurant's menu as well as searching for items to upgrade your gear or make each run easier such as new guns, underwater scooters and precious minerals. 

Weapons and combat

The weapons and harpoons all have a satisfying feel when shooting; with nice feedback and good sound design. There is a good variety of weapons in the game both lethal and non-lethal, from your basic underwater rifle and shotguns to tranquilizer darts and net launchers. You also have auxiliary item slots that you can use for utility items such as extra oxygen, underwater scooters or bombs. 

With combat, you must keep in mind the different weapons to use as these will affect the rank of the meat when fishing. Large guns may kill the sea creatures quicker; but at the cost of quality when bringing the meat back to your restaurant.

For you completionists out there, you will also be looking to complete your Pokedex-style card list of fish you’ve caught (Keep an eye out on the outfit of the character that introduces this for a neat easter egg).

You navigate the (above-water) world of Dave The Diver using a boat and your smartphone; the boat connects you to both Blue Hole and Bancho Sushi, and the phone connects you to the outside world.
The Smartphone acts as a hub where you navigate using the different apps to access gear upgrades, weapon crafting, the in-game social media app Cooksta (and a bunch of other apps; some of which are locked until launch).

Restaurant Management

When night falls; the second part of the game comes to life. A restaurant management sim with fast-paced gameplay and different mechanics that keep it fresh. 

You take care of curating the menu at Bancho Sushi using ingredients you’ve caught that morning, run recruitment campaigns to hire the best staff, learn and develop new recipes and also design the interior of Bancho Sushi.

The developers have done an excellent job at providing depth in both the roguelike aspect and the restaurant simulator part of this game and I was pleasantly surprised at how much content they managed to stuff into both packages.

Throughout the game you will bring your restaurant to social-media fame through the game's very own social app called “Cooksta" which rewards you as you climb into higher ranks. 

Top tiers such as Platinum and Diamond on Cooksta are currently locked during early access and will release on launch.

Dave The Diver’s cast are larger than life characters with humorous dialogue and unique personalities. New character introductions drive the story forward and provide objectives for you to focus on. Pushing you to uncover the secrets of the Blue Hole and while gaining fame for Bancho Sushi. 

During key moments or when upgrading items; there are cinematics that add a lot of visual style to the game and do look stunning.

The settings menu is lightweight and there are not a lot of options that can be changed, there is no ability to change keybinds which would have been nice to have; however this may be included in the full launch.

I played the game using a keyboard and mouse and found that menu navigation was clunky, it felt like the menus had been built with a controller in mind; as scrolling was not an option even where a scrollbar is present. 

Dave The Diver is currently available on Steam for $28.99

(This is also a perfect game for the Steam deck!)