An adventure-filled fishing role-playing game by developers Black Salt Games and publisher Team17 has a demo out to play the first chapter on the Nintendo Switch. Dredge feels like it did all the right things for the players and it seems that the kinks have already been smoothed out.
Gameplay
It’s really easy to understand from the start with some really simple controls, even on the Nintendo Switch. You are a fish angler catching and selling fish to make money. You move with one stick and you rotate the camera with the other. You come up to small splashing areas where the fish are and you complete a small mini-game to catch the fish. There is a meter that comes up with small green notches where you try to catch your cursor on it to reel in the fish faster while keeping an eye out for the gold notches because if you get the gold notch it’s an instant catch and a trophy-sized fish. Different fish also have different meter shapes and notch sizes to make it easier or more difficult depending on the catch.
On the top of the screen, there is also a timer that shows you the time of day. You should pay attention to the clock because if you’re caught out after dark you might start to see things. At night time I would come and dock my ship and make my sales to the Fishmonger and stop by the Shipwright to purchase some upgrades for the ship. Upgrades can make your light better so it’s not so hard to navigate at night, or a better engine to move faster, or even a better fishing rod to catch bigger fish so you can make more money. There is also a Dry Dock that you can access at the main town of Greater Marrow where you can upgrade your hull to take more damage or increase your storage space.
The demo only lets you play through the first chapter and doesn’t allow you to make many upgrades, but I’m sure there is a lot to do. As of now, there is only one game mode but it seems that might be plenty because there are fish to discover, and if you look at your collection book it seems each fish has multiple types you can catch, so I’m sure there will be no hard time on keeping busy.
Expectations
It seems to be very well along in its development, and rightfully so, with a release around the corner. The only thing I can say I might like added to the game is some customization options. It would be nice to customize the way that your ship looks or even the docks that you are so often stopping at.
The fishing in the game could use a little bit more diversity in the catch mini-games because you are going to be doing a lot of it so doing the same circle over and over might get a little repetitive. But again, they only allow the first chapter to be played, so the diversity very well may already be there.
Verdict
Dredge is well on its way to being fully released. The gameplay was really smooth with simple controls and easily understood. The story catches your eye as there seems to be something sinister going on. For a fishing game, there seems to be plenty of gameplay to keep players wanting to play, so I am excited to see the full extent of the content that comes with the release of this game.
Dredge has a planned release date of March 30th with pre-orders available now. The title will be available for PC via Steam or GOG, Nintendo Switch, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, PlayStation 5, and PlayStation 4.
