Critical Fishing

Fun and surprisingly addictive fishing shoot'em-up - literally, weirdly enough. It doesn't overstay its welcome and doesn't waste your time. That's it. If you want to have fun play it.

Fun idea. Although there isn't really an ending, other than a vague goal Harpoon fish and gather resources. Then throw them in the air and use your weapons to shoot every fish you caught. These fish in turn drop money and you gain experience points. With this money you gradually unlock new mechanics, such as building new buildings, a minining laser to gather resources, a trader where you can buy building blueprints and resources, etc. You also can upgrade your sub, its abilities, and your weapons. Upgrading your weapons can also unlock new abilities and effects for your weapons. The game gives you a list of objectives that change and grow, with the ultimate goal being to build a rocketship. Its a fun game, but the game doesn't really do anything when you build the rocketship or finish all your objectives other than giving you a steam achievement. No "thank you for playing". No cut scene. Its kinda a bit of a sandbox in that way.

Critical Fishing is not really a fishing game in the traditional sense. Its a resource gathering collect-athon with shooting elements. The basic loop is split into four steps: - Dive underwater in a tiny submarine to gather fish and resources. - Launch those fish into the air and absolutely obliterate them with increasingly absurd weapons. - Use said resources to upgrade/progress. - Rinse and repeat. Critical Fishing cleverly paces it's progress/reward structure in a satisfying way, but after a while it starts to feel grindy, especially toward the endgame. It is a good game for it's incredibly low price. A good addition to any library. Great on the Steam Deck.