Dave the Diver

Dave the Diver made a big splash when it came out last year and it’s been on my radar ever since. It dropped onto PlayStation Plus Extra a few months ago, and I dived right in.

Dave the Diver (2023)

Completed

There’s a lot going on in Dave the Diver, but the game does a great job of easing you into the shallow end. The gameplay loop is basically diving for fish and resources twice a day, then running a sushi restaurant selling your catch in the evening. As you progress you will upgrade your equipment, letting you dive deeper and catch fish more easily.

The game is continuously unlocking new mechanics and features, which keeps things very fresh. There are a lot of different things to do besides diving and serving sushi. Some mechanics are introduced and then built upon, while others are one-off events. There are mechanics that you will encounter once and never again. I find this fascinating, since it’s so uncommon in games.

There’s an overarching story that unfolds throughout the game, as well as a number of side quests and storylines to follow. The characters are charming and the writing is funny and engaging.

The aesthetic is very cute and colorful, and the music is relaxing. The game is mostly chill and low-stress, although there are some tense moments when you’re diving deep and running out of air. Fortunately, the only thing you lose is your time, so the stakes aren’t too high.

The only time pressure (aside from running out of air) is from a few calendar events: VIP missions and themed parties. VIP missions require you to have certain ingredients ready, but if you don’t, it will postpone until you do. Parties are based on a particular ingredient theme, and you can make more money serving dishes that match the theme. This you can miss if you don’t have the right ingredients, but it’s not a big deal.

Some highlights:

• The cutscenes are incredible, they are so over-the-top and hilarious. I was not expecting this level of production value.

• The in-game phone is very well done, with a number of different apps that unlock as you progress. It’s a fun way to keep track of everything going on in the game.

Some mild complaints:

• I wanted detailed spreadsheets for my restaraunt, but it only shows the most popular dish and how much money you made each day. Ultimately I realized that it doesn’t matter that much, you can basically just serve the most expensive dish and you’ll be fine. But I still wanted to see the numbers! I think this is a personal problem.

• I couldn’t upgrade my weapons all the way because I couldn’t find the right materials. There are a ton of different weapon upgrade paths in the game but I only build a few of them. Ultimately it didn’t matter though, which makes me wonder why there are so many options.

• Late game, you have enough air to dive for a very long time, which makes accidentally dying and losing a huge amount of time (and fish) incredibly frustrating. It’s not a huge deal gameplay-wise, but the few times it happened were infuriating. I want to say there should be a late-game upgrade that prevents this, but I’m not sure how it would work.

• I’ve been mulling over whether the game would be better if it was more focused on the diving and restaurant. Ultimately, my suspicion is that the core gameplay loop would get boring if it was the only thing you were doing, so a variety of activities are necessary to keep things from getting stale. I guess this isn’t really a complaint, but it’s something I thought about a lot while playing. Like, tending the farm isn’t that fun, but it’s a nice break from diving so maybe it’s necessary.

Nitpicking aside, I had a great time with Dave the Diver. I love playing games that give me a unique experience that I wasn’t expecting, and this game definitely delivered on that front. Recommended!