Dave The Diver Review

When Dave the Diver got a surprise drop onto Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S, I was instantly excited. Having already played the game on both Steam and Playstation 5, I was straight in for a third playthrough. I’ve always wondered whether Xbox players would ever get the opportunity to experience this indie masterpiece. You may gather immediately from the opening of this review what kind of opinions I have on the game. If you’re after a unique indie adventure that blends RPG mechanics alongside management and cooking sim gameplay, then this one will be your cup of tea.

Anyone For Sushi?

In Dave the Diver, you play as Dave himself. A chilled out diver who is in charge of the operation of a Sushi Bar named Bancho Sushi. Everything is pretty normal at first, you’re diving to catch fish to take back to the bar and serve up to customers. As time passes by though, you’ll be doing multiple favours for the media and others. Not just this though, you’ll be digging into some mysteries of the Sea and discovering some odd and unique scenarios. I won’t spoil any of this, since this is all story based goodness that knits well with the addictive gameplay loop. Whilst getting involved with other errands alongside the main purpose of running your Sushi Bar, the main purpose is bringing the bar up to scratch and gaining a good reputation.

A Moreish Gameplay Loop

In Dave the Diver, the game plays in two modes each day. You’ll be diving throughout the day, catching fish, exploring the ocean and completing quests. When diving, it isn’t just about reeling in as many fish as possible. You have to be mindful of every move you make. You can only dive to certain depths at the start, and you only have so much oxygen and space to carry what you find. As the game progresses, you’ll be able to upgrade your oxygen tank, diving suit and so on. This will allow you to dive deeper, spend longer in the water and carry more resources. Resource management is key, and you’ll soon figure out what you want to carry and what to leave behind.

Come nighttime, you’ll be needed at Bancho Sushi. At the start, you’ll be waiting on customers whilst you build up the business. As your reputation builds and you make more revenue, you’ll be able to hire and manage staff, speed up processes, advertise to gain more business and do up the interior to make your establishment more appealing. Progression is driven by upgrades and discoveries you make. Scavenging for materials and fish will allow you to unlock new recipes, and rare fish will make for premium dishes, which drive more revenue.

Visuals & Audio

Dave the Diver has wonderfully crafted 16-bit pixel art throughout its presentation, and it just looks sublime. Characters have personality. Diving into the ocean allows you to explore a vast array of fish and different areas. The colour palette is rich, and there is an incredible amount of detail in the different environments. I especially adored going back to the Sushi Bar after dives and interacting with the customers and decorating my business as I wished.

Audio is equally superb, and whilst there is no voice acting, the dialogue is engaging enough to read through everything. The soundtrack is varied, using upbeat melodies for most parts and then intense music for dives and boss fights. Mixing up the different tones like this always matches the atmosphere. Sound effects are immersive and blend well throughout the entirety of the game. This is one of those indie titles where you sit back and take in how well-polished every part of the game is.

Final Thoughts

Dave the Diver is one of my favourite indie titles of all time. If you haven’t played it yet and you’re on the fence, I say just buy it with no hesitation. Part of me is extremely jealous of anyone who plays this for the first time, as it is fantastic. There aren’t many indie games I’ve played through multiple times, but this one is an exception. With Xbox Play Anywhere functionality, I’ve managed to play this on my Xbox Series X, gaming laptop and Lenovo Legion Go. The game is polished and well-presented across all devices, with no visual hiccups. With plenty of content, including two free DLC packs, it’ll keep you busy for anything between 25-50 hours, depending on whether you want to achieve everything on offer. You can purchase a copy of Dave the Diver for Xbox HERE.

Thanks to the teams at Pressengine and MINTROCKET for providing a copy of Dave the Diver for review.