A cozy top-down fishing & exploration game. Wash up on a oddly shaped island, learn its waters, and get tangled up with the Muck; a race of mercury blobs who all share one body under whatever hat makes them somebody. One of them is named Doug, he was banished away around 650 years ago.

Solo-developed in Godot 4.7  |  Steam page APPROVED!  |  Currently in beta

Trailer

Devlog

The story so far

The island sits on top of an ancient kingdom, with it's only access point through a well within it's castle. Its people, the Muck, are one being made of “powder of infinite proportion”... no lineage, no death, just, as their king puts it, a reconstruction of what once was.

Doug "The Banished" is the only Muck who ever learned to feel joy. To a species that moves as one mind, that made him a problem, so King Roland made the decision to banish him to Fishy Island, in hopes that the spirit of the villagers within the mainland would spark a new flame of invigoration. King Roland, and a few of his more loyal of servants are the only — who stayed behind when the rest of the Muck migrated back down the well. Because of this, King Roland has kept Doug on the island ever since.

As the player, you strike a deal with Roland: offer items to the well in hopes of the Muck's return... saltwater fish, freshwater fish, wool, plates of pickled prawns, whatever the mainland will actually notice! And, in return he sends back the pieces of Doug's playground, one at a time. The slide. The seesaw, the monkey bars... etc. Raise it all back up, and maybe mend what got broken along the way.

“There is no death, there is only… a reconstruction of what once was, do you read me?”
— King Roland

What you do

  • Fishing that fights backCast, wait for the bite, then reel against the fish's pull before the line snaps. 30+ species across freshwater and saltwater, each with its own weight, fight and rarity roll! Ranging from: Normal, Silver, Gold, and Exotic.
  • The FindexEvery fish, tool and piece of junk you've ever pulled up, logged and searchable by habitat, with descriptions to boot.
  • Make somebody upCharacter creation with independently swappable bases, hair, eyes and every clothing layer, a favorite color the game remembers, and a companion who tags along for the journey, though you'll have to spot Mulbus' VERY well hidden portal on Fishy Island...
  • A village that talks backBranching dialogue, quests and a reputation system. Some villagers won't tell you their real name until they trust you, but it's easy enough to get them to love you as long as you follow the golden rule.
  • More than a fishing gameCooking, foraging, crab traps, pig and sheep pens, a coin economy and a general store stocked with questionable pickles, and far too much mayonnaise... There is something for everybody!
  • Your own pocket dimensionA little home you decorate — chests, shelves and
  • A world with weather to itDay/night cycle, beach music that fades in when you hit the sand, and a pixel world where trees go translucent as you walk behind them, who knows... There may even be some hidden paths behind that foliage
  • Quests“Doug's Dilemma,” “Onward, and Upward,” “Tailor Made,” “Stuck in a Pickle,” “I NEEEED IT!!” — with more on the way.

Multiple save slots + autosave. Built in Godot 4.7. All character and creature art is original, hand-drawn work.

Screenshots

The mainland village at dusk
The mainland village at dusk — tier 4/10 total phases of the island, the player takes the form of Chudd, Mulbus' mentor...
Dialogue with King Roland
An encounter with King Roland! Crown and all, he has exclaimed to us before of how he fears he is far too large to return to the Muckdom.
The fishing minigame
Reeling one in! Keep the fish in the catch zone, and watch that line tension.
Catching a Gold Ocean Sunfish
A Gold Ocean Sunfish, 295.4 kg. The rarer the tier, the harder the pull, easy as pie!
The Findex fish encyclopedia
The Findex, 200 fish caught and counting, Snuffalupogus included with many mythical fish of undisclosed nature! Ask around town, you never know what may get around...
The character creator
Character creation! Every layer swappable, pick a favorite color and a companion, as well as masculine, and feminine features.
The general store
The general store. Jarvis has everything you could ever need. But, the amount of mayonnaise always seems to outweigh everything else in his stock...
The title screen
Title screen! Been the stepping stone for this game's concept since day 1, and hasn't changed a bit, ahhh the good ol' days! As if there aren't MANY more ahead!

Doug's Playground is made by Riley Clark Doug, under the name Mercury Media.