Video Gamer is reader-supported. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Prices subject to change. Learn more
Dave the Diver is a fairly unassuming game at first glance, but it has gained a lot of attention both critically and from players.This is partially thanks to its pixel aesthetic that draws comparisons to Stardew Valley, because that’s the only 16-bit game, duh.
The aesthetic is nowhere near the top of the list of things to shout about when it comes to Dave though, because it has plenty of charms beneath surface level. The main one being how damn funny it is. A hilarious script is met with equally tickle-worthy cutscenes, and while a quirky cast of characters is the bread and butter of almost all the famous indie games, Dave the Diver takes it to the next level.
Dave himself is an obvious starting point, very much flagged as being an unlikely sort of hero with characters cracking jokes about his everyman appearance. Other characters such as the sushi chef Bancho, who clearly has a mysterious past that’s revealed over the course of the game. His skills in the kitchen, however, are unmatched, and illustrated by the use of cutscenes that are being called ‘phenomenal’ by the community at large.
The game doesn’t just play these characters for laughs though, as there’s touching moments too. Take Maki, for example; a schoolgirl who visits the sushi restaurant fairly early in the game and is a key part of how to get the bug net in Dave the Diver. She’s silent at first, only speaking through a hand puppet as she asks you to make her a specific dish. Eventually, you learn her father was killed when diving, and to cope she’s taken to speaking only through the hand puppet, and the message her late father leaves behind convinces her to join your restaurant as staff. It’s a lovely touch in what is a relatively light-hearted game up to that point.
It’s these characters that you grow fond of over time, even if they start off as stereotypes. Duff is one of these, as he is depicted as an overweight shut-in with an unhealthy obsession over an anime band. While this is somewhat played for laughs at first, as you progress through the game and start to get to know him, and how he deals with his solitude, you start to feel sympathy for him. This affinity towards the characters even stretches to the player character, given it sees Dave pulled, unintentionally, into running a sushi business while also exploring and uncovering a deep sea mystery, because like him, by the end you want to keep playing and helping out.
While the writing and characters are a major factor in Dave the Diver’s charm, it isn’t the sole reason for the success. The gameplay loop is immensely satisfying, starting off simple as you go diving to catch increasingly lucrative fish in order to serve them up to customers in your restaurant. It layers on additional complexities and challenges at a pace that is just right and stops the game from ever becoming repetitive or boring. Whether it’s the restaurant management, including hiring staff, training them up and then teaching them new skills to help run the restaurant, or the farming mini-game that comes into play later, letting you source ingredients even when you’re busy exploring the depths to uncover the secret behind the undersea civilisation.
Importantly, there’s always something to do in Dave the Diver. It’s a game that keeps you busy and never makes it feel like you’re doing busy work. And even if you’ve only got a short amount of time to dedicate to the game in a particular session, you can always come away feeling you’ve achieved something. Stardew Valley and Animal Crossing are two somewhat similar games that also nail this aspect, and the inspiration is clear to see.
Though Dave the Diver isn’t perfect, the charm goes a long way to papering over any cracks, such as its slightly irritating stealth mechanics in the latter stages of the adventure. It’s already clear that in a year of big-name blockbusters like Tears of the Kingdom and Starfield, there’s still plenty of room for a smaller title to come along and capture our imagination and give us the very definition of a feel good gaming experience. In an industry currently dominated by a games-as-a-service that might want to keep you playing, but more as a means to an end, Dave the Diver is refreshingly different. It harkens back to those times you’d find something a little bit quirky on Xbox Live Arcade that you couldn’t wait to tell your friends about. The AAA industry could stand to learn a lot about making games with as much character and charm as what comes across in Dave the Diver’s little pixelated world.
Dave the Diver is available now on PC via Steam, and will be coming to Nintendo Switch later this year.
Videogamer.com is reader-supported. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Learn more / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API / Last updated on 2024-04-18
