REVIEW – I think there aren’t many games released nowadays, which aim to have exceptional humour. Thankfully, Octodad: Dadliest Catch is the exception, and it lets us control an… octopus! He’s having an even more twisted role: he is actually a father in a human family.

 

There is something that needs to be described, before I move on. You have to take some time to get used to control Octodad. Sure, the tentacles’ movement can be funny to see at first, but really, you do need to master the controls. For example, getting out to the kitchen can be quite a task to do at first – but you’ll get to learn the controls almost as it’s an intuition! However, despite all this, I spotted something: the game is short. Despite requiring the beginner course (as in learning the controls) in the start, I could manage to complete Dadlies Catch in around four hours. However, this isn’t a JRPG – so don’t expect 15-20 hours to play the game through.

You better not forget the fact as well that it’s an indie game after all. You cannot look at it as an AAA title; for that, there’s the work-in-progress The Order 1886. No; Octodad: Dadliest Catch is a product with a lower price tag, which should be taken from Store without any second thoughts. Just a tip: it has a bigger effect if you play the game in 30 minute portions! With this, the effect of the new game will stay with you right up until the end.

Effect?

Yes, Octodad has an adorable side. It isn’t an aggressive killing game, in fact, I wouldn’t call it a game that shows dangerous stuff. It’s typically a family friendly game, although the dad’s role isn’t really played well. It’s funny and makes you think simultaenously.

Why is it funny? Well, aside from the fact that it’s not 100% sure that you can pull Octodad’s moves off perfectly, its results can make you laugh a few times. Randomly hit that box of pizza during the shopping, or the indirectly touched glass on the edge of the desk – you just can’t not love it. This effect along with the controls give a nice taste to the metaphoric soup of gameplay.

Why does it make you think? Now think about it: you have two human children, and a human wife too, while you are an octopus! This itself can raise eyebrows. But don’t worry, this game does not contain any crazy, sick tentacle porn; we just control a weird father of a more twisted family. (And if you actually looked for the former, well… try hentai games. There are most likely games in this genre out there, but I don’t know any. Good luck finding something!)

Story?

I wouldn’t really call the story a big point of th game, but it still needs to be mentioned. Octopuses are eaten by human beings. There’s a chef. This chef would like to do a tasty dish, and for that, he requires an octopus. You.

Told ya: this isn’t anything special, but at least you have a story. I should mention the audio, while I am at it: this isn’t the best part of the game (but it’s still good!), but the commentary by some of the characters are really bringing that slapstick humour. They keep continuing the weird main character-not normal-yet still funny line. The music itself follows it as well: it just doesn’t even try to be funny, but succeeding at it (already on the title screen) is a plus.

Extras

Young Horses – they would be the devs – has managed to create the replayability factor somewhat. Aside from the option to choose from three difficulty levels (I’d recommend the second for the first run), there are also secret items scattered around. These would be ties. As a dad working in an office, not much of a surprise, right? And about roulette mode: this isn’t Russian Roulette, instead, this swaps the roles around big time after completing a task. Just for this, you should play the game through again!

As an extra, there must be some words said about cooperative. Don’t get shocked, you will not see two Octodads competing at each other! The controls get shared, so one player takes control of legs, and the other one goes for the other tentacles. Let’s face it: this can bring some ridiculous, funny moments. And with that, this game completes its task with nice marks: it tries to entertain with a new style, for not much money – as it costs around 15 bucks, it’s not even expensive.

Worth it

As negatives, I’d bring up getting stuck, the clipping issue, and the slightly ignored story. Getting stuck? Yes, it can happen sometimes, so when this happens, the tentacle movement can be looked as a prayer to continue the game without restarting. You either succeed or not! I haven’t mentioned clipping yet, but a few occasions with this happened though: some items got into the wall or the ground. Not a big issue, but can be seen clearly.

Overall it’s a game that should not be treated and taken seriously. Everyone should check it out once. Sure, PS4 deserves more (including exclusive titles in its library), but as the console is still early in its lifetime, this will definitely change!

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