DREDGE Let's Play: How a Peaceful Fishing Game Turns into an Unsettling Cthulhu Story

The protagonist, a man, sees a job posting looking for a fisherman and heads to a certain port town. But he is enveloped in thick fog, strikes a reef just short of the harbor, and his boat is wrecked. The town provides him with an old boat, and he immediately heads out to sea.

The first catch is a fish the commentator describes as "a popular, accessible fish commonly found in places like the Pacific Ocean." Since a single fishing spot yields several of the same fish, the commentator decides to start by catching as many as possible. At another spot, they catch a cod. In this game, each fish takes up a different shape in the hold, and the cod is L-shaped. Seeing this, the commentator predicts that fish with even more awkward shapes will appear later.

The early-game loop is to sell fish at the fishmonger and use the money to pay back the loan (the cost of the boat) to the mayor. There are also shops where you can repair your boat or buy new fishing rods. Because there were areas where the current rod couldn't catch anything, the commentator wanted to get a new rod as soon as possible.

On day two, the previous day's catch pays for a new rod, opening up more fishing spots. A flounder is caught, but the commentator grumbles that since it takes up four squares, the hold will fill up fast. Approaching a long, thin fish shadow, the commentator guesses it's a conger eel, but it turns out to be a regular eel. There's no room left on the boat for it, though.

Upon visiting the usual fishmonger, a quest is triggered—an order for the very flounder and eel that had just been caught. Here, the commentator realizes that this game advances its story through quests.

Next asked for squid, the protagonist heads out to fish at night. Night is apparently a dangerous time, when reefs can suddenly appear right in front of you and your "panic level" gradually rises until you eventually die. At first, the commentator intends to catch only what's needed and then go straight back to sleep. In the end, though, they keep fishing until dawn.

During that time, crows attack the boat, stealing the squid caught that night one after another. Having lost most of the catch, the commentator sadly carries on fishing the next day.

On day five, just as life is settling into a routine, a grotesque-looking cod is caught. In the game it is described as "a cod that has borrowed eyes from a great being," and from here on, elements that can hardly be called "heartwarming" clearly come to the fore.

When the cod is gutted, a mysterious object is found inside. Summoned to discuss it, the protagonist heads to an island where a mysterious man lives. The island was supposed to be uninhabited. The man explains that he is collecting relics from a certain sunken ship. His purpose is unclear, but the commentator judges that he "seems like a nice person" and decides to help search for the relics.

The first target is a relic key said to be on the far side of the island. With the boat's lights upgraded, the protagonist proceeds while evading the "eyes" lurking in the night. A relic that appears to be the key is found, but it is so dark that the commentator feels close to going mad and quickly returns to the Collector.

Granted a mysterious power by the Collector, the protagonist can now use a boost ability to cross the open sea. Four relics remain, each in a different region.

The first destination is a village devastated by a landslide. The family crest being sought lies near the monster that destroyed the village. Chased by the monster, the commentator adopts a strategy of playing tag among the rocks, then turning around to grab only the crest in one swift move. After a hurried retreat, the monster goes back, and the crest is safely obtained.

The brothers who had fallen out because this crest was stolen reconcile as a result. Using explosives received from the older brother, the protagonist clears the rubble of the collapsed village and searches the location marked on the Collector's map. At first there's nothing but junk, but eventually the protagonist hauls up a relic that looks like a music box. After delivering it, the protagonist is given the power to warp to the Collector's island.

Over the course of the voyages so far, the commentator has picked up several messages in bottles. They contain letters in which a woman who married a fisherman writes about their married life. As the dates progress, the couple's situation grows strange, ultimately reaching a ruinous conclusion. The commentator remarks that what was supposed to be a heartwarming fishing game is starting to look ominous. Before they know it, it's day 27 in the game—nearly a month has passed.

In the lower-left region, a giant squid has settled at the center of an island. The protagonist cooperates with a local researcher, gathering fish as experimental samples in exchange for deep-sea fishing gear and a device to deter the squid. Starting a generator at an abandoned research outpost activates the repelling device, putting the squid to sleep for a while. Approaching the squid's lair without activating the device apparently results in an instant game over.

While the squid sleeps, the protagonist hauls up deep-sea weeds and a giant amphipod. The commentator says of the amphipod that "if you ignore things, it looks tasty to eat." The final relic retrieved is a ring. The commentator recalls that a letter read earlier mentioned a wedding ring studded with gems.

Next is a tropical region covered in mangroves. Here, the protagonist teams up with a survivor whose unit was wiped out to exterminate the monster that lives in the area. Bait is made from fish caught nearby, set in a trap, and the protagonist watches and waits. After a successful hunt, the protagonist goes to report, and a relic is found inside the monster's body. Only one relic remains.

In search of the last relic, the protagonist heads to a smoke-shrouded volcanic region. Here, a temple-like structure is found, and to undergo a trial, the protagonist travels to statues around the area offering fish. Using the explosives received earlier to clear a path, the protagonist navigates narrow waterways—which the commentator says are "like the back alleys of Japan"—taking care not to bump the hull. Hitting anything apparently damages the boat and breaks one of its functions.

Delivering fish to the statues yields an item called the "Infinite Flame." When the flame is offered to the old man first encountered in this region, a blue fire rises, and the old man bursts into flames and vanishes. The commentator shrugs it off with "Oh well," and obtains the last relic. The protagonist then quickly returns to report using a technique learned from the Collector.

With all the relics gathered, the protagonist sets out on the "final voyage" with the Collector. Muttering something, the Collector throws the collected relics into the sea one after another. The sea begins to churn, and a woman who appears to be his late wife emerges from the water. Here, the commentator finally understands why the Collector had been gathering the relics.

But as the commentator says, a resurrection ritual was never going to lead to a happy ending. Something indescribable rises from the sea, and the world is destroyed. However, according to the letters the wife left behind, she herself did not want this outcome. So the commentator turns back time to look for another ending.

In the do-over, the protagonist punches the Collector away and seizes the "Book of the Deep." The subtitles state that the Collector had been nothing more than "just a mirror" all along.

Throughout the voyages, an old man saying cryptic things had appeared several times. The protagonist returns to the original port town and talks to the lighthouse keeper, who seems to know what's going on. Then, waiting for the time to be right, the protagonist heads to the same place as the incident on that fateful day. With the lighthouse keeper lighting the way, the protagonist steels himself and proceeds. What the wife wanted was not resurrection but to return to the sea. To grant that wish, the protagonist throws the Book of the Deep into the sea.

As a result, the fog over the port town lifts, the world is not destroyed by the resurrection of an evil god, and peace is preserved. However, the protagonist himself is ultimately swallowed by a leviathan at the end. The commentator calls this "a somewhat bittersweet turn of events," but praises it as a favorite ending that captures the essence of the game well.

The commentator sums up that although they started the game as a heartwarming fishing game, the story told in fragments also has real depth, and it made for quite a good fishing experience. Behind this impression is the way the structure—with the letters in the bottles and the recovered relics leading directly into the final ritual and the choice of ending—gradually came into view through play.