Best Games Like Dave The Diver (2024)

Dave the Diver’s unique achievements in variety and style made it a hit when it was released in 2023, earning the game numerous accolades including a BAFTA Award or Best Game Design. Even with free DLC packs (including a Godzilla-based one), though, eventually a player’s time with Dave the Diver must come to an end, and finding another game like it is no easy task.

It’s safe to say that the list of “2D-platformer deep-sea-diving restaurant-simulator RPGs with harpoon combat and farming systems” is a short one. Nevertheless, for anybody finding themselves with a Dave-shaped hole in their heart looking to expand their horizons, here are some similarly-shaped games to help fill that void.

10 Abzu

Find Your Zen With Relaxing Scuba Diving

If the underwater settings of Dave the Diver were especially appealing to you, Abzu brings even more ocean exploration to the table. The game creates a relaxing and minimalist experience in the vein of titles such as Flower and Journey (several members of the original team behind Journey were actually on the development team for Abzu).

A chill and peaceful indie game that anybody can pick up and enjoy, Abzu shares Dave the Diver’s recognition of the beauty of scuba diving, as well as highlighting the importance of protecting the ecosystems of the ocean. Without spoiling anything, if you enjoyed the manatee-riding segments of Dave the Diver, then you’ll probably love the majority of Abzu.

9 Deep Rock Galactic

A Chaotic Workplace Adventure With Friends

If you’re looking to experience the unusual work-life of a new bearded adventurer, look no further than Deep Rock Galactic. Up to four players can go on intergalactic dwarven mining expeditions in online co-op, where tons of chaotic hijinks and roguelite fun are around every corner.

The most fun thing about Deep Rock Galactic is its variety of movement-based mechanics, with rail-grinding, grappling hooks, and jetpacks all at the player’s disposal. If you enjoyed the satisfying grinding and collectathon elements of Dave the Diver, or are just looking for a game that lets you drink mead and shoot monsters with your friends, Deep Rock Galactic is definitely worth checking out.

8 Graveyard Keeper

Keeping A Good Work-Death Balance

While obviously taking a darker approach to the “atypical job simulation” formula, Graveyard Keeper shares Dave the Diver’s light-hearted tone, attention to style, and chill atmosphere. A variety of tasks and responsibilities come with running a medieval-fantasy graveyard, not to mention the mysterious open world to explore.

Graveyard Keeper will stand out to Dave the Diver fans thanks to its gorgeous pixel graphics and day-to-day life sim gameplay. If you find yourself getting tired of focusing on one kind of work, there are plenty of other paths to productivity and success to journey on in Graveyard Keeper (as long as you don’t mind dealing with a corpse or two).

7 SteamWorld Dig

Become A Robotic Prospector In The Wild West

Dave the Diver fans who want a different 2D platformer/RPG with a fun grind should check out the steampunk-prospecting indie game SteamWorld Dig. This mining-based entry in the SteamWorld franchise features RPG elements in a different kind of dangerous workplace setting, with new gear and abilities to unlock as you go deeper and deeper into mine shafts of your own creation.

It’s up to players to set up their own ladders, torches, and teleporters as pathways to the surface as they harvest more and more materials, and there are plenty of beasts to battle and secrets to uncover under the surface of the strange desert world you live on.

6 Subnautica

Under The Sea Survival Crafting

The deep sea diving genre has an ironically shallow pool of options to choose from, but players looking for more undersea exploration are advised to point their periscopes at Subnautica. The sci-fi survival crafting game takes place almost entirely underwater, as players must scavenge and adapt to survive the crash-landing of their starship.

An alien ocean full of new flora and fauna to discover awaits in Subnautica, as well as an array of new gadgets and upgrades to help survive the vast waters of this strange new planet. Fans of Dave the Diver craving another adventure beneath the waves of the ocean will be pleased by Subnautica’s beautiful underwater graphics and three-dimensional diving gameplay.

5 Final Profit: A Shop RPG

Fight Capitalism With More Capitalism

This charming indie title provides a familiar experience for Dave the Diver fans, as players source materials, explore new ventures, and invest in upgrades for their own independent business. Final Profit features an engaging story and a surprisingly expansive economy system, allowing players to manage their businesses while exploring a vibrant and magical world.

Indie game fans will be enthralled by this self-published fantasy RPG from solo developer Brent Arnold, who not only designed and programmed the game but even composed the soundtrack. Final Profit is a hidden gem worth exploring for anyone looking to dive deeper into games with business management and RPG mechanics like those found in Dave the Diver.

4 Stardew Valley

A Cozy Farming Title You Can Play With Friends

Just like Dave the Diver, Stardew Valley combines farming, fishing, foraging, mining, and combat as key parts of running your local business, while also including life-sim RPG elements to keep you invested in your work. As relationships with your neighbors deepen, you’ll find more new items, upgrades, and gameplay opportunities being offered to you.

Stardew Valley achieves a cozy atmosphere that Dave the Diver fans are sure to appreciate, but also focuses on building, building creative farms, and time-based gameplay to create a unique but familiar experience. Expanding your farm, completing chores, maximizing profits, and decorating your town are all in a day’s work for you and up to three friends in local or online co-op.

3 Moonlighter

Dungeon Crawling And Shopkeeping Collide

Moonlighter is a combination of roguelike hack-and-slash and shopkeeping simulator, with players running their store and restocking by plundering dangerous dungeons. As you upgrade your small town, as well as your own shop, new characters arrive to help you in your adventures and improve your gear.

Finding the right balance in pricing your items for customers, performing maintenance while operating your business, and choosing the most productive and profitable inventory for the day are key elements in Moonlighter. Crucially, though, the choices you make inside your shop are only as good as the ones you make out in the field, where efficient dungeon crawling and surviving combat are necessary for success.

2 Rolling Hills: Make Sushi, Make Friends

Become The World's Best Sushi-Making Robot

For fans of the Diner Dash-style restaurant segments of Dave the Diver, enter Rolling Hills: a cute indie life sim in which you own, operate, and cook at your own sushi restaurant. This super-cozy title follows a robotic sushi chef who is tasked with taking over a small town’s sushi restaurant, and the game comes with plenty of new neighbors to befriend and recipes to unlock.

Dave the Diver and Rolling Hills share a plethora of restaurant-management mechanics, with players working to earn cash, positive reviews, and new upgrades and decorations for their local sushi spot. If you’re excited by the potential of a game in which sushi preparation meets Animal Crossing, Rolling Hills might be just what you’re looking for.

1 Dredge

Deadliest Catch Meets H.P. Lovecraft

At the top of the list is the only game to achieve its own licensed crossover into the universe of Dave the Diver: Dredge. In a coincidental twist of fate, both of these fishing/business-management/ocean exploration titles were released in 2023 to critical acclaim, leading to the announcement of the Dredge Content Pack for Dave the Diver at the 2024 Game Awards.

Dredge takes on a three-dimensional and creepier perspective, sure, but the player’s goal in both games is the same: collect fish, sell fish, upgrade gear, repeat. With a cast of strange characters, new locations and secrets to uncover, and a nautical backdrop to an intriguing story, Dredge is easily the best choice for players looking for a new game to fill the void left by Dave the Diver.