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[Maiden Voyage]

Release date: 22 October 2022 (Early Access); 28 June 2023 (Full Release)
Platforms: Steam, Consoles TBD
Developer: Mintrocket
Price: $19.99 USD
Languages: English, Japanese, Korean, Simplified Chinese

An adventure, RPG, management hybrid​

Explore and unravel the mysteries in the depths of the Blue Hole by day and run a successful exotic sushi restaurant by night.It’s easy to get hooked on the satisfying gameplay loop!

DAVE THE DIVER’ gameplay is largely divided into two types, ‘Blue Hole exploration’ and ‘Sushi restaurant operation.’

During the daytime, players can explore the Blue Hole twice, and each night after sunset players raise money by using ingredients from fish captured during the day, to operate the sushi restaurant. Players can use the funds raised at the sushi restaurant to upgrade equipment, then explore even deeper areas. Fish and ingredients caught in deeper areas can be sold at the sushi restaurant at an even higher price.

In this multi-genre game, ‘DAVE THE DIVER’ provides a sense of full and varied gameplay, and the items players have acquired disappear when players die during exploration, so it also provides a similar type of enjoyment to what rogue-like games provide

Casual combat and gathering gameplay with rogue-like elements​

Dive into the ever-changing Blue Hole and use a harpoon and other weapons to catch fish and various creatures. Upgrade and forge equipment with collected resources and sushi restaurant profits to prepare for the dangers that lurk in the unknown.
Running out of oxygen means leaving collected items and fish behind!

Eccentric characters with a lighthearted narrative​

Quirky but lovable characters and a story full of in-jokes, spoofs, and other humorous scenes provide an approachable and enjoyable gameplay experience.

Former arms dealer Cobra, discovers that every time he enters the Blue Hole the ecology and terrain change. He sees a money making opportunity.

Cobra convinces the ever-optimistic Dave (the playable protagonist) and Bancho, a sushi chef who specializes in cooking rare sea creatures, to open a sushi restaurant near this Blue Hole. While investigating the interior of the Blue Hole at the request of archeologist Bacon, Dave discovers that the descendants of ancient Sea People, who still live in the deep sea, are under threat.

Realizing that this will be catastrophic to not only the hidden village of the Sea People, but also to the Earth itself, Dave dives deeper to search for a solution to the problem.

A beautiful sea environment with attractive 2D/3D Art​

A combination of pixel and 3D graphics provides a stunning art style that showcases breathtaking underwater scenery. This oceanic adventure is set in the real marine environment of a Blue Hole filled with over 200 kinds of sea creatures.

Ample additional content to complement the main gameplay loop​

Minigames, side quests, and multiple storylines provide many hours of entertainment and varied gameplay.

​

SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS​

MINIMUM:

OS: Windows 7 64 bit​

Processor: Intel Core i3 Dual Core​

Memory: 8 GB RAM​

Graphics: NVIDIA Geforce GTS 450 / AMD Radeon HD 3850​

DirectX: Version 9.0​

Storage: 4 GB available space​

Sound Card: Windows Compatible Audio Device​

​

RECOMMENDED:

OS: Windows 10 64bit​

Processor: Intel Core i5~i7 Quad Core​

Memory: 8 GB RAM​

Graphics: NVIDIA Geforce GTX 750Ti / AMD Radeon R9 270x​

DirectX: Version 11​

Storage: 4 GB available space​

Sound Card: Windows Compatible Audio Device​

 

[Maiden Voyage]

For Steam Deck owners and Linux users, it's rated gold on ProtonDB

https://www.protondb.com/app/1868140/

 

[jshackles]

This looks awesome, I'll definitely keep this on my radar!

 

[Kuranghi]

Amazing OT mate, I want Delroy Lindo to play Bancho in the film adaptation.

 

[Holammer]

This screenshot has a lot of Baalbuddy Coomer energy. Instant wishlist when I saw it mentioned in the other thread.

 

[Maiden Voyage]

Well I sat down right after making the OT and started playing. 4 hours later... This game is quite good and very addictive for me. The gameplay loop is solid. The alternating between ocean exploration/combat and then restaurant management / dinner dash is done so well. There is no shortage of things to do for sure. Overall, the game feels very polished, albeit I am surprised the frame rate in the ocean section hovers between 30-50 fps. Everything else int he game is top notch.

I met the upgrade guy and I love the videos that go along with him. Here is my favorite one.

 

[Maiden Voyage]

Got to the hard cap on the main quest line in about 14 hours. Still tons of side stuff to do. There’s been a very surprising amount of depth that continues to layer on. I’m hooked on the gameplay loop. This one is a serious 10/10 contender. Only issues thus far are sub 20fps in the undersea village on Deck. General scuba mentioned in my last post remains.

Here are some screenshots from my Deck session:

And my best day of business so far:

 

[Meowtor]

absolutely blasted through this game and loved every minute of it. Can't wait for the next big update to continue story quests

 

[Maiden Voyage]

MacOS support and a few tweaks. Added a Tips app to the smartphone in case you missed a tutorial. Can retake photos for those missions. Glad to see optimization int he sea people village. I'll have to pop on my Deck today to see how the FPS performance is. It was previously hovering in the teens.

Full release is targeted for June 2023. The video below goes into details and a sneak peak for the full release at minute 5 in the video below.

DAVE THE DIVER - [Released - 3/14(Tue) Patch Notes] - Steam News

Greetings, Divers! 🐳 Check out the details of today's update that will fix the issues and improve the overall diving experience, which includes Mac support, new languages, lots of QOL improvements, and bug fixes! ◈ Updated Version Windows: v0.6.1.708 Mac: v0.6.1.55.mac ◈ Update Details [NEW...

store.steampowered.com

Greetings, Divers!

Check out the details of today's update that will fix the issues and improve the overall diving experience, which includes Mac support, new languages, lots of QOL improvements, and bug fixes!

◈ Updated Version

• Windows: v0.6.1.708
• Mac: v0.6.1.55.mac

◈ Update Details


[NEW FEATURES]


1) Mac OS Support
- You can now play Dave the Diver on Mac OS with this update.

[Minimum Requirements]

• OS: Catalina 10.15
• Processor: Intel Core i3 Quad-core 3.6GHz
• Memory: 8 GB RAM
• Graphics: Radeon Pro 555X
• Storage: 5GB

[Recommended Requirements]

• OS: Catalina 10.15
• Processor: M1 Octa-Core
• Memory: 16 GB RAM
• Storage: 5GB

2) Additional Languages
- 3 new languages added
* Supported Languages (7)
[Previous] Korean/Japanese/English/Chinese (Simplified)
[Newly added] German, Spanish, Chinese (Traditional)
- You can change the language in the title menu or on the in-game smartphone app.
* Detailed instructions can be found here: [FAQ: Language Settings].

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

3) Smartphone – Tips App

- You can now review pop-ups and tutorials that you missed in the newly added Tips app.

4) Retaking Photos at the Photo Spots

- If you don't like the photo you took at a photo spot, you can now retake it in the Photo app.

5) New Photo Spots and Marincas

- New photo spots and Marinca added
- Explore the Blue Hole to find new photo spots, take photos, and earn new cards!!



[IMPROVEMENTS]

1) Fish Farm Visuals

- Fish in the fish tank are more spread out so that they look more natural than their original overcrowded state. The tank will also expand with upgrades.

(Before Update)

(After Update)

2) Oxygen Alert

- Low oxygen warnings are now displayed based on the level of your tank upgrades and will not go off if there is still plenty of oxygen remaining.


3) Photo Spot Improvements

- Improved photo spot dialogue.
- Changed Opah's movement patterns and added obstructions in the Underwater Lake for improved photo spot experience.


4) Sea People village optimization

- Reduced loading time when entering and exiting buildings.
- Improved frame rates in the Sea People Village.


5) Diving Interactions

- Interaction UIs will no longer overlap when diving.


6) Resolution settings

- Resolution settings that do not match the user's hardware resolution will not be displayed in the menu.


7) Reduced Difficulty in Hold-Related QTE (Quick Time Events)

- The difficulty of QTEs that require you to pull or hold onto a specific object in the Blue Hole has been reduced, and some will become progressively easier if you fail several times.


8) Game File Integrity Verification Function

- Added a function to verify the integrity of game files since problems can occur if some files are modified or missing.
- If there are any modified or missing files, the game will close after an alert pop-up screen
* Please verify the integrity of game files or reinstall the game if the alert pop-up screen below appears.

9) Others

- Fixed an issue in which text occasionally does not display properly.
- Improved delayed outputs.
- You can now sort your recipes based on the number of dishes.
- Added a more detailed explanation about farm recovery.



[BUG FIXES]

1) Boss Fight & Missions

FIXED – Issue with occasionally not being able to play the game normally after failing the “Escort Ramo” and “Calm the leatherback turtle” missions.
FIXED - Issue with not being able to let go of the anchor after grabbing it during the Giant Wolf Eel boss fight.
FIXED - Issue where divers sometimes get stuck on the map during the Truck Hermit Crab boss fight.
FIXED - Issue where Wolf Eel Gills are sometimes repeatedly acquired.
FIXED - Issue where cutscenes are not being shown when obtaining Sea People artifacts on certain maps of the “Sea People Artifact” mission.
FIXED - Issue where the “Not Enough Workers” mission sometimes gets cleared automatically.
FIXED - Issue where cutscenes are sometimes not being shown during the “Find the Pink Delivery Box” mission.
FIXED - Issue with Dave not being pulled away by the sea currents when using trap weapons during the Giant Squid Boss fight.
FIXED - Issue where the lunch boxes sometimes go missing during the “Deliver Mima’s Lunch Boxes” mission.
FIXED - Issue where seahorses sometimes don’t show up in the inventory during the “Catch the Runaway Seahorses” mission.
FIXED - Issue with Dave being unable to move before calling Bancho during the “Giant Squid Dish”, “Speak with the Guests” missions.
FIXED - Issue where the Giant Squid cutscenes sometimes don’t start.


2) Boat / Sushi Restaurant / Fish Farm / Farm

FIXED - Issue with occasionally not being able to dive during the day or in the evening.
FIXED - Issue where the game sometimes stops when crafting in the Weapon Shop.
FIXED - Issue where customers sometimes remain at the sushi bar and the restaurant doesn’t close.
FIXED – Issue where the clothes of the customers entering the Sushi Bar load a bit late.
FIXED – Issue where conversation icons appear over the heads of all the Sushi Bar staff.
FIXED – Issue where the population of fish in the fish farm remains at 100% even when some fish are moved to the Sushi Bar.


3) Underwater Exploration

FIXED – Issue where Dave sometimes remains fixed in one direction or repeats the same animations.
FIXED – Issue where Dave is shown as overloaded when he is not, or not being able to control Dave when he's overloaded.
FIXED – Issue where the game intermittently stops when taking photos in the photo spots.
FIXED – Issue where the screen sometimes remains zoomed in during QTEs.
FIXED – Issue where Dave is able to move into an area he isn’t supposed to enter.
FIXED – Issue where some melee weapons (samurai swords) were unable to apply a second hit when attacking twice quickly.
FIXED – Issue where items were placed in unintended locations in some areas.
FIXED – Issue where the damage reduction effect of the Eco-Health Bracelet was not applied normally.


4) Sea People Village

FIXED – Issue where weapons and item upgrades disappear when entering the Sea People Village.


5) Others

FIXED – Issue where sometimes the wrong sounds were output.
FIXED – Issue with the raindrop effects causing frame drops.
FIXED – Issue with the sound turning off after checking spam mail on your in-game Mail app.
FIXED – Issue with not being able to skip cutscenes when crafting weapons.
FIXED – Issue with UI sometimes not displaying properly.
FIXED – Issue with not being able to proceed normally after changing the screen mode setting on the Steam deck.

 

[firenskill2000]

Hope this game does a ton of business (judging by steam reviews it looks pretty good). These devs seem really on top of things and have put out a great game.

 

[SmokedMeat]

Pretty cool concept for a game! I’ll have to wishlist this one.

 

[Bragr]

It's polished and well-made, and it's smart with its unlocks which makes it interesting for a lot longer than I expected. It also nails the "collect loot and sell it" sort of game which has been popular in the last 2-3 years.

It's easily top 3 among the early-access games from 2022.

 

[Holammer]

Game is now 20% off during the Spring sale.
I don't think it'll get cheaper than that for a long time.

 

[Maiden Voyage]

Happy April Fools day

 

[Maiden Voyage]

Release Trailer--Releases on the 28th

 

[jshackles]

Game is out of Early Access now. I saw it got a giant full page banner on Steam today. Neat.

I still need to play this.

 

[EviLore]

MacOS support, you say...

 

[[Sigma]]

Release Trailer--Releases on the 28th

Trailer implies Dave has crabs btw


Game looks pretty cool.

 

[OverHeat]

Bought thx OP

 

[Maiden Voyage]

Sittign at 89 on Metacritic

DAVE THE DIVER Reviews

Welcome to 'DAVE THE DIVER', a marine adventure set in the mysterious Blue Hole. Explore the sea with Dave by day, and run a sushi restaurant at night. Uncover the secrets of the Blue Hole, and unwrap this deep sea mystery involving 3 friends, each with distinct personalities. New adventures await.

www.metacritic.com

 

[Herbspiceguy]

I'd try it, if it wasn't for Nexon and Nexon bullying Ironmace (Dark and Darker devs) with lawsuits.

 

[Gambit2483]

I could totally see myself playing this on Switch. Here's hoping they bring it over eventually

 

[digital_ghost]

 

[Guilty_AI]

Finally a game that accurately represents me and my body type.

 

[Holammer]

Checked Steam's stats page and noticed Dave at #11. That's 72,859 concurrent players worth and a quick look on SteamDB shows it's the all-time peak too.
For a comparison, Binding of Isaac Rebirth peaked at 70,701 while being a well known property. Not bad for a single player game with a pixel art aesthetic.

 

[Ogbert]

Game is fun.

Very simple. Could easily be a mobile game. But well done.

 

[GymWolf]

Reeee really loves this one so i thought it was trash

 

[Ar¢tos]

No release date for consoles yet....

 

[BadBurger]

No release date for consoles yet....

I was holding out for a date for PlayStation, finally decided to buy it to play on Deck today.

 

[Men_in_Boxes]

Can someone explain what this game is for me by using the (popular game) + (popular game) = Dave The Diver formula?

 

[EviLore]

Can someone explain what this game is for me by using the (popular game) + (popular game) = Dave The Diver formula?

Dark Souls + Dave The Diver = Dave The Diver

 

[Men_in_Boxes]

 

[yet_another_alt]

Dark Souls + Dave The Diver = Dave The Diver

Dark Souls is the video game equivalent of nothing. Soulsfans BTFO.

 

[OverHeat]

Where is the god damn tablet!!!!

 

[Dr.Morris79]

Bought, installed, cant wait to get five minutes to play it

 

[Big Baller]

Can you find the Titanic

 

[OverHeat]

Dark Souls + Dave The Diver = Dave The Diver

Great mix nice try gave you gold for the effort.

 

[Holammer]

Can someone explain what this game is for me by using the (popular game) + (popular game) = Dave The Diver formula?

Cult of the Lamb + Tapper = Dave The Diver.

 

[AeonGaidenRaiden]

Wait wait wait.....what you guys mean Dark Souls-like. I was about to buy the game but if this is some brutal game over screen every few minutess or rogue like indie, im out. What I saw from reviews, 10s of hours later you are still learning new game mechanics, lots of hidden stuff, adventure + sushi management etc.

 

[EviLore]

Wait wait wait.....what you guys mean Dark Souls-like. I was about to buy the game but if this is some brutal game over screen every few minutess or rogue like indie, im out.

Was a joke, since every indie game lists Dark Souls as an influence. Check out one of the trailers or gameplay on youtube for an accurate representation of what the game's like!

 

[davidjaffe]

Been playing it pretty nonstop since it came out. I adore it and- for me- it's easily top 5 game of the year. So much fun and such a fun, cool new world/characters to explore.

 

[OverHeat]

Been playing it pretty nonstop since it came out. I adore it and- for me- it's easily top 5 game of the year. So much fun and such a fun, cool new world/characters to explore.

Yep pretty great! The perfect handheld PC game.

 

[TwinB242]

Im not sure if this game is for me. Would you guys say its similar to Spiritfarer? I feel like thats one of the few management games that i've been able to enjoy.

 

[Thanati]

I tried it but returned it after an hour. The cooking part just got tedious for me. I was hoping for a game like the classic scuba diver on the speccy.

However, I can see so many people saying they love it. I hope it does really well for the team.

 

[M.W.]

I play this specifically on my Rog Ally, it's great.

 

[AeonGaidenRaiden]

Im gonna bite the bullet and try this. I wanna have something for my Macbook especially since I'm going to have a long international flight coming up soon. Hopefully, it clicks with me because a lot of indies people were praising I found them totally boring.

 

[Maiden Voyage]

I haven't touched it since the full release but I'm determined to not touch a single video game until the weather won't let me outdoors comfortably. When I do return, this is my #1.

I tried it but returned it after an hour. The cooking part just got tedious for me. I was hoping for a game like the classic scuba diver on the speccy.

However, I can see so many people saying they love it. I hope it does really well for the team.

Cooking part gets way easier when you can hire staff. Like lots of these games, you can automate the busy work. At least during the early access, new features were being added every 30-60 mins. I'm at around 16 hours in.

 

[SJRB]

Game is really great.

Gameplay, visual style and animations, how it keeps unlocking new features, exploration itself, music. Everything is just aces.

Only downside is that there's a lot of railroading at the start and a TON of menus to button-mash through. Half the stuff is just meaningless nonsense, maybe for creating an illusion of making the game seem bigger than it possibly is.

 

[tamago84]

i really wanted to enjoy this- but coming from stardew valley...the depth isn't there. maybe after a couple years.

 

[Maiden Voyage]

I don't normally post playthroughs in my OTs but my wife and I fell in love with Gab Smolders while watching her play through Elden Ring. I haven't watched yet, but will be doing so as future videos release.