Dredgea “dark fishing adventure” where players search for fish and fortune but stumble upon something, well, pretty foul on their journey, will be released on March 30, developer Black Salt Games and publisher Team 17 announced on Friday. Dredge is on its way to Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Windows PC, Xbox One and Xbox Series X. Switch owners can expect a free demo for Dredge
Black Salt Games’ horror fishing RPG puts the player in the role of a fisherman exploring a remote archipelago for a variety of fish and hidden treasures. Players encounter islanders who give quests and learn about their past while upgrading their ship, learning new skills and encountering increasingly unusual sea creatures. In Lovecraftian fashion, players must have strong mental toughness to withstand the horrors that await them at sea.
As mentioned in Polygon’s handy preview of Dredge
In addition to fish, monsters also lurk under the waves. Some of these sneak aboard and infect your prey. Other, larger creatures will simply try to smash your hull, which will not only damage your boat and cause you to lose cargo, but also increase your panic.
When your panic sets in Dredge increases, you become much more vulnerable to being boarded by monsters. Rocks will also appear randomly as you sail, with the explanation that you won’t be able to see them until the last minute because it’s dark and you’re not thinking straight. You can mitigate this by turning on your boat lights, but of course this also makes you more visible to the monsters. All of these little systems are intelligently linked together to create an experience that quickly oscillates between stillness and chaos, and darts from stillness to terror as if it’s nobody’s business.
Cash Dredge‘s launch trailer for a taste of things to come.
