Dave The Diver

Dave the Diver is a 2023 video game developed and published by Mintrocket. Twice per in-game day, with the option to dive again during the evening unlocked later on in the game, players dive into the Blue Hole in search of fish, sealife and various other materials. Dave is equipped with a harpoon gun for attacking and reeling in fish, and can use various guns, melee weapons, harpoon attachments and items that can be found during each diving session. If he runs out of oxygen before he can return to the surface, the diving session will end prematurely and only one resource that was found can be taken back. Players can also unlock additional means for catching sealife as the game progresses, such as fishing nets and drones. At the end of each in-game day, Dave helps sushi chef Bancho run the restaurant, using fish gathered from diving sessions to craft sushi and other menu items. Occasionally, special customers and VIP guests will appear, requiring the player to gather specific ingredients to create their desired dish. Clearing these requests unlocks additional features, such as staff to assist in the restaurant and a farm to grow rice and vegetables. Players will need to solve puzzles to unlock new areas that contain different fish, which are valued at a higher price. The game follows Dave, a diver who is approached by his friend Cobra into starting up a sushi restaurant venture with the skilled chef Bancho. Setting up location at the Blue Hole, a spot said to contain fish from all over the world, Dave is tasked with fishing for ingredients during the day, and helping Bancho with the restaurant at night. During his escapades, Dave comes across a race of sea people which leads him to the mystery behind the random earthquakes that have been occurring. Dave the Diver was initially announced as a mobile game in 2018 by Nexon Mobile subsidiaries NeoPle and Studio 42 in collaboration with National Geographic to "bring awareness to all the beauty the ocean has and how it's slowly fading away," before being reannounced in May 2022 as the first game by Nexon subsidiary Mintrocket. The game's director Jaeho Hwang based the initial concept on a real-life restaurant on Jeju Island, whose owner dives for ingredients during the day and serves them during the evening. The DLC adds a fog weather event in which the player can dredge for valuable items and catch unique types of fish.