Dredge, as each me and a minimum of two of my coworkers have written earlier than, is sweet enjoyable. Its newest little bit of DLC, The Iron Rig, is purchase and enormous extra of that very same sort of enjoyable, however I can’t assist however really feel that, a minimum of from a story perspective, it had the potential to supply a bit greater than it does.
As you’ve in all probability gleaned from the title, the central premise of the Iron Rig is that an oil rig has popped as much as the north of the sport’s established islands. So, as you probably did with the ice-filled Pale Attain, it’s your job to move to this new landmark and see if it has a necessity for the best aquatic life and abominations within the land.
Once you arrive, you’ll study from the rig’s foreman that, as is the custom, one thing mysterious is afoot. The ships dispatched by the Ironhaven company which owns the rig to deliver the provides its staff have to get it correctly arrange and drilling have sunk, and nobody has the foggiest why. Thus begins one of many two central gameplay loops of the DLC – you head out, dredge up some crates belonging to the company, and produce them again to the rig to, on this event, unlock it as a house base.
All through your time with the Iron Rig, crate fetching and assembling will grow to be not simply your pastime, however your full-time job, particularly if you happen to’re the completionist type. You see, the containers are required each to improve the rig – progressively constructing it up by way of the development of latest modules like a manufacturing facility, foundry, and tech lab – and vogue numerous the boat and gear upgrades the vast majority of these modules can be utilized to create.
In the meantime, as soon as the rig’s drill is up and working, you’ll discover that each time the employees ship it plunging to the deep, it triggers an ideal large crack heading in the direction of one of many 4 locales which make up the bottom recreation’s archipelago, providing you with an excuse to soak up the superb design and vibes of those established areas once more. The place these large cracks finish, three or 4 patches of oil-like darkish liquid will pop up in several areas across the islands. These are the place you’ll be tasked with heading by the rig’s scientist to catch the beautiful sizable array of latest fish the DLC provides to Dredge’s already spectacular assortment of bizarre and, er, moist stuff to catch.
The brand new species dwelling within the depths are fairly fascinating, with the builders clearly having dug out some books about fossils for inspiration in making a bunch of critters that usually appear to be they may survive a nuclear apocalypse, eat you entire, or each. Naturally, they’ve all received nightmare gas aberration evil twins too. As you fish them up, you’ll must keep away from the bursting goo bubbles and further creature which function the hazards at midnight liquid patches.
Catching these darkish liquid fish does require some new rods, however these are a bit disappointing, as they’re simply the identical rods you had been utilizing for the assorted depths within the base recreation with some Ironhaven tech strapped to them. Plus, the darkish sludge itself is a useful crafting useful resource you’ll need to collect up by way of a brand new Syphon Web and take again to the rig.
The crate gathering/rig upgrading and darkish liquid fishing journeys go hand-in-hand all through every stage of the growth’s narrative because it progresses, with a pair extra wrinkles being thrown into the equation as extra drilling takes place and a typical company govt arrives to boss the employees about. The Iron Rig additionally provides an under-developed character from the bottom recreation a correct backstory, which is a pleasant contact.
Although, with out going into an excessive amount of element so as to keep away from spoilers, I did discover the way wherein the Iron Rig’s narrative arc concludes a bit anticlimactic. What transpires actually isn’t out of character with the remainder of the sport, but it surely’s constructed up so effectively by the occasions which precede it that it feels prefer it may have accomplished with a payoff that’s a bit extra impactful and memorable – because the ending to the bottom recreation is. As is, it feels just like the builders may need by chance written themselves right into a little bit of a nook with the rig’s plot, although I can even respect that this DLC is clearly meant to be performed simply as one thing that matches into the sport’s established story – not one thing that overshadows it or supplies any different story paths.
One which’s over with, you’ll be left with the duty of upgrading the rig to its full potential. A variety of these upgrades you possibly can vogue from doing so – a brand new hull, enhancements to skills, new bits of tech to enhance you’re craft’s catching and motion effectivity – are designed to be a little bit of an additional step for individuals who’ve already been taking part in some time and have assembled a reasonably elite vessel, and there’s nearly sufficient within the varied stat boosts they provide to make them value going for if you happen to’re on the lookout for stuff to do.
There are a few Iron Rig gear additions I’d undoubtedly advocate as important crafting – these being the online and a crab pot that collect dredge supplies quite than fish and the brand new varieties of bait. The previous will prevent from desperately looking round for flotsam as a lot everytime you’re attempting to improve your craft, whereas the latter – particularly the unique bait – makes the method of snagging any uncommon fish from the remainder of the sport which could have eluded you to this point rather a lot simpler. Oh, and you can also make tea that calms you down when issues get spooky at evening, which is good
General, if you happen to’re on the lookout for extra Dredge, or a motive to delve again into the sport for the primary time since The Pale Attain, The Iron Rig greater than possible has a minimum of a weekend value of enjoyable to give you. Even when it feels in locations prefer it may have been a bit extra than simply one other fish added to the catch of a superb and spooky web.
Dredge: The Iron Rig is ready to launch on August 15 for PC, PS5, PS4, Xbox Sequence X|S, Xbox One, and Nintendo Change. It was reviewed utilizing a PC key offered by the writer.