Dredgeis unlike any game I’ve played - a cozy horror if such a thing exists (well, clearly it does now). This isn’t the kind of game that’s going to jump-scare you. You’ll never have the experience of taking a deep breath before you open a door or step out into the darkness of a foreboding forest. It’s a creeping crawling kind of horror that sneaks up on you. It tempts you with a mysterious setting and begs you to take the bait. It slowly lures you in just like the fish you’ll be catching off the side of your vessel.
In its opening moments, Dredge reels in the player with a simple loop. You’re the new angler in a town looking for a fisherman. You’re outfitted with a boat, the promise of money, and a bit of mystery. What happened to the other fisherfolk who supplied the town with food? Why is it unwise to stay out past dark? You’ll find yourself with more questions than answers as you play Dredge.
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It’s easy to find a rhythm in the beginning of the game. The soft music rocks you back and forth as waves graze against your boat, and it’s all perfectly calming. It’s the kind of game that benefits from headphones. Drown out the rest of the world and let yourself be submerged by the world of Dredge.
If you have a Switch or a Steam deck, you could even get cozy under the covers like you would with a good book (or, if you’re like me, you could periodically drop your controller on the sofa next to you as your eyes grow heavy).
On the surface, Dredge is a very compelling fishing game. You look for spots where valuable fish are plentiful, hope for a trophy fish, and manage your ship’s storage as you fit all of your fish in as tightly as possible. That is, until you pull up afreak fish with eight eyes. This will come as a shock to you, but the local fishmonger loves these monstrosities, and offers you more for such unearthly creatures. A local collector will have you chasing a red beam of light in the darkness. He’s after relics, but won’t exactly go into why they’re so important to him.
As you progress through the game’s story and explore further and further out from home, you’ll begin to see strange things. If you stay out overnight, you may see swarms of eyes on the horizon, or ghost ships patrolling the seas may spot you if your light’s on, and aim to ram your boat with their own.
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Sometimes a large fish will appear and rock your boat, causing damage you’ll need to repair, and at one point large tentacles erupted from the water and slammed down on my boat. Weirdo strangers ask for favors, and red lights chase you down from the horizon. Things are calm and cozy, until they’rereallynot.
On one particular voyage I stayed out all night. I assumed lasting until daylight would save me. With the sun comes safety, after all. Not quite. Because I didn’t dock and rest, my fisherman continued to hallucinate. If you do rest and take things slow, you’ll get plenty of chill moments between your encounters with Lovecraftian horrors. The game allows you to breathe and rest, but it also promises reward for those willing to risk the darkness. It tempts you with progress and rewards just beyond sunset. You aren’t often at the mercy of the game, but your own greed and temptation. In that way, it’s a bit like one of my favorite games, Darkest Dungeon.
Dredge is my new favorite game, fusing cozy and creepy in a totally unique way I haven’t experienced.
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