DAVE THE DIVER Early Access Review

pczone.co.uk:

I first played this game in Next Fest, which immediately hooked me. Luckily, this one lived up to and even surpassed all my expectations of what a casual action-adventure exploration game mash-up of diving and sushi restaurant management could achieve.

Dave is a catch-all character, your everyday obese diver who does what’s needed to complete the job, even when it makes him scared for his safety. There are several other characters, such as Dave’s dodgy, arms-dealing boss and the sushi chef, Bancho. All characters that pop in to make appearances are fun to interact with, and each has a distinct personality and reasons for speaking to you.

There is a main story running alongside all the smaller threads. It would be a spoiler to reveal too much, but it is engaging and balances environmental concerns with light-hearted fun. Plus, it involves a behemoth giant squid, so what’s not to like?

The world of Dave The Diver is brightly coloured, light-hearted, and fun. It balances ecological concerns with silliness cleverly and always feels dynamic and fresh as it throws new stories, characters, and game dynamics at you.

Humour is well pitched, though the dialogue is sometimes a little too far into the realm of caricatures, making it tolerably cheesy but one of the game’s weaker aspects. On the other hand, many different creatures populate the world. The player can discover and interact with playful dolphins, pirates, and merpeople. All these different characters give the world a dynamic, lived-in, exciting feel that motivates you to explore further and deeper.

The appearance of Dave The Diver is bright, cheery, and the perfect game for the pixel style, with the atmosphere and humour blending perfectly with the cute, appealing visuals.

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