Dave the Diver

I thought this was a cozy game, but this is a high tension game where you are either running away from sharks looking for more bullets/oxygen or trying to serve all the customers on time at the sushi restaurant. Most of the characters are charming even if they are a little annoying or weird (except Suwam, you started the game a douche, and you ended the game less of a douche, but still a douche) All the cutscenes were stylish and well animated, I never skipped any of Bancho's cutscenes, and they did a great job of capturing serene and mystical atmosphere of the ocean. The gameplay loop was extremely addicting, but I got tired of it around 30 hour mark. The second half of the game also introduces bunch of one-time mini-games, I didn't mind how gimmicky they were but more so that they are required to do if you want to advance the main story. I wouldn't recommend the DLC though, it sounds like it's mostly cosmetic and more mini-games.

It's a wonderful, calm, enjoyable, cute, and pleasant gaming experience. Free pun : Quite immersive. Deep too.

I want to recommend this game but the boss battles are genuinely ruining my ability to enjoy the experience. There are definitely more positives than negatives with this game but the negatives are GLARING. This is a game that tries to get you to do so many different things that you don't get to do the things you actually want to do. I thought this was the type of game where you could choose your play style and as someone that loves gathering materials and exploring, most of this game is right up my alley but there are boss battles that completely block your ability to progress unless you complete them. I'm not a fan of the fights in general but some of them, like the continuous random fights with an obnoxious environmentalist stereotype, are so tedious and completely disregard the equipment you've collected so far so you are forced to beat the boss in the exact way the game wants you to. Sorry I don't want to spend 30 minutes swimming around a guy in a circle only to die six times because I ran out of air. Like sure, it is a skill issue, but I bought this game because I though I could avoid doing hard fights. That is just not enjoyable for me. If I have to fight, I'd rather grind for gear or weapons to ensure my win rather than than getting stuck in boss battle I have to complete to make any progress without the option to level up first. I only have access to a laptop and the controls are already pretty awkward but when the game puts you in a position where you have to complete very specific maneuvers to make any progress it becomes obvious that this game was not made for a laptop. If thats true, don't give me the option to get it??? I really feel like these fights should be optional for better rewards or at least gave you the option to escape and return to them later or something. Besides the boss battles I really do enjoy this game but I simply cannot make progress anymore.