Dave the Diver (Zero Punctuation)

This week on Zero Punctuation, Yahtzee reviewed Dave the Diver.

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[DanGamingFan]

That "small child covered in jam" comparison might be the nicest child analogy he's ever made. As for the game, While all the different mechanics can be a bit much, I still love this game. The charismatic characters, the art style, and how it does everything possible to keep things fresh. It's just so endlessly charming.

[Aussie_Jesus_Christ]

my favourite part of this game was the characters. from the weapons dealer who sleeps with an anime body pillow every night and looks like every moderator stereotype put together to the chef who, in the process of looking about as unfunny as possible, is one of the funniest characters relying on just his animations alone. There's also the manager guy who looks like he draws biceps on with a sharpie so he feels good about flexing to himself, but he doesn't really have much impact on the rest of the game...

[huhhuhhuh]

The game doesn’t always come together as it tries to do too much. However, it has a lot of heart. It’s clearly a passion project of the devs. And this is something that is missing from most big games that are conceptualized and created as revenue-generating, market-fitting products. This is why people love it.

[DavidCosmanCozySmash]

Damn, as a dad who plays games and has preK kids, I related so much when you showed a kid covered in jam running away from his mom trying to comb his hair, as he touches all the furniture. Just a guess, but I think you're talking from experience here too lmao. Thank you for the very relatable comparison and laughs.

[CushionSapp]

As the review went on, I kept thinking "This is reminding me of his review of Horace." And then he brought up Horace, and I started to wonder if this game was going to end up having the same issues he had with that one that left him feeling down about Horace. Though it seems like he left Dave the Diver with a more positive mindset than when he left Horace.

[fynaglin]

I do enjoy the irony of one of the most expensive sushi in Dave the Diver turns out to be vegetable sushi.

[WonderfulWorldOfSuit]

Yahtzee seems to be getting nicer in his depictions of kids nowadays. It's sweet to see how he's grown

[HonkeyKongLive]

I legitimately thought this was just a meme game. This sounds like a hell of an experience lmao

[shawnconway]

I think what makes this a cozy game is Dave is a genuinely decent guy? Like he's not complex its true but he's genuinely likeable and not in a 'isn't my oc super likeable and without flaws' way. He's a guy we don't mind spending the game with. Whereas a lot of protagonists you start to hate after 20 hours, Dave never gets tiresome.

[Neephoid]

Not sure if folks realize this, but Dave the Diver is actually a sneaky AAA game masquerading as an indie.

It was made by a developer with 7, 000 employees and a billion dollars of yearly revenue. It’s an excellent game regardless, but it’s worth keeping in mind when we defend it as an indie.

[catkaboodle]

The irony is that MINTROCKET, the Korean studio that made this game, is currently owned by Nexon. That is the Japanese corporation that also owns MapleStory and proudly claims to have introduced microtransactions to the western market. Yahtzee's Picture of Dorian Gray comparison is more accurate than he realized...

[Sound_Tech]

I've recently gotten into the game after several recommendations, and I've really enjoyed it. It does throw a hundred mechanics at you, though. By day 5, I swear they'd introduced the 6th upgrade station and the 7th side objective/mechanic. I'm like, 'I'll get back to that' and continue with what I was doing. It's pretty chill otherwise.

[Rincewindl]

I like how Dave's size is never played off as an overly mean joke. Duff comments on it and Dave retorts about "glass houses" but that's all I remember. As an "ovoid shaped" man, Dave is a major mood.

[claytonrios]

Dave seems like the kind of guy you could get a beer with and talk about life with and it would be very enjoyable.

[SomeGal]

5:01 I don't know if he pronounced "Coelacanth" like that on purpose or not but it's hilarious either way

[ABASE]

I’ve really been enjoying Dave the Diver.

Is Yahtzee’s review fair? Yes. Is the game about a million times more fun, interesting and charming than any AAA spunk gargle wee-wee release? Also yes.

[HireMichaelEverson]

I like how this game doesn't have the endless feedback loop of games like Stardew and it has an actual stopping point. Hang out as long as you like, but if you want to finish it, the door is right there.

[maducc]

"Like a small child covered in jam". Hmm, I think I've heard that before. Something about an apocalypse. With jam in it...

[masterofdoom]

LESGO DAVE

Jokes aside the game is so full of heart and charm, something that cannot be added in after the fact, that the thing the game suffers from CAN be added in after the fact which is depth and perhaps a tad more focus. It's the endearing soul of it all that makes me happy to see what happens with Dave in the time to come now that they're rolling in money having crossed 1 million sales.

[lyooyiylklykyokyklky]

The use of the R-Type for the horizontal shooter was magical and I thank you for it.