If you loved Dredge's calm days but not its nights, play Cast n Chill (a little boat, a logbook and pure calm) or Moonglow Bay (fish, cook and save a seaside town). For more story under the sea, try Dave the Diver. For open water and your own boats, try Sail Forth. Below are 10 cozy picks with the same loop of fishing, upgrading and sailing, and an honest note on what each one keeps from Dredge. We checked every game on October 29, 2026.
At a glance
| Game | Best for | Length | Platforms |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cast n Chill | Players who want the fishing and nothing else | About 16 to 18 hours | PC, Mac, Switch 2 |
| Moonglow Bay | Players who want a town and a story with their fishing | About 19 hours (HowLongToBeat) | PC, Switch, PS4, PS5, Xbox |
| Dave the Diver | Players who want lots of story and surprises | About 23 to 25 hours | PC, Mac, Switch, PS4, PS5, Xbox |
| Sail Forth | Players who loved exploring with their own boat | About 16 hours for the main story (HowLongToBeat) | PC, Mac, Linux, Switch, PS4, PS5, Xbox |
| Fishing Paradiso | Players who want a fishing RPG they can finish in a weekend | About 6 hours | PC, Mac, Linux, Switch |
| A Short Sail | Dredge fans who want the hold grid and night fishing without the fear | Not shared yet | PC (Windows), Mac, Web, Steam Deck |
| Webfishing | Friends who want a cozy place to hang out online | Open-ended | PC (Windows) |
| Spiritfarer | Players who liked Dredge's melancholy but not its fear | About 26 hours for the main story (HowLongToBeat) | PC, Mac, Linux, Switch, PS4, Xbox One, iOS, Android |
| ABZU | Players who loved the sea more than the fishing | About 2 hours (HowLongToBeat) | PC, Switch, PS4, Xbox One |
| Raft | Friends who want to build a home on the sea together | Open-ended | PC, PS5, Xbox Series X |
| Dredge | The original, for comparison: calm days, scary nights and a grid-style hold | Varies | PC, Mac, Nintendo Switch, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, iOS, Android |
What people love about Dredge
In Dredge, you captain a small fishing boat around a chain of remote islands. You catch fish, fit them into a grid-style hold, sell them in port and upgrade your boat. That loop is calm and easy to sink into. Then night falls, the fog rolls in, and things in the water start to watch you.
Developer: Black Salt Games | Year: 2023 | Platforms: PC, Mac, Switch, PS4, PS5, Xbox, iOS, Android | Length: about 9.5 hours (HowLongToBeat) | Steam Deck: Verified | Steam page
So “Dredge, but cozy” usually means you want to keep the boat, the fishing, the upgrades and the mystery of the sea, and lose the panic and the monsters. We wrote about why that dark mix works in dark cozy games. This list goes the other way: games that keep the calm and drop the dread. For fishing games of every kind, see our full list of cozy fishing games.
Our picks
- Calmest boat fishing: Cast n Chill
- Closest loop to Dredge: Moonglow Bay
- Best story: Dave the Diver
- Best open sea: Sail Forth
- Best short fishing game: Fishing Paradiso
- Best with friends: Webfishing
- Our own game: A Short Sail (in development, not ranked)
Boat fishing, minus the fear
Cast n Chill
Who it is for: players who want the fishing and nothing else.
You drive a little boat through side-scrolling pixel-art waters, catch fish, fill a logbook and buy upgrades for your rod and boat. You choose a pet to come along. An idle mode lets the game fish by itself, so it also works on a second screen.
What it keeps from Dredge: the boat, the upgrades and the joy of a new fish. What it drops: all danger and almost all story.
The downside: it is light on story, and that is the point. If you want a mystery, look elsewhere.
Developer: Wombat Brawler | Year: 2025 | Platforms: PC, Mac, Switch 2 | Length: about 16 to 18 hours | Steam Deck: Verified | Steam page
Moonglow Bay
Who it is for: players who want a town and a story with their fishing.
You are a new fisher in a seaside town that has seen better days. You fish from your boat, cook your catch, sell it, and use the money to help rebuild the town. The bay has old legends about strange sea creatures to chase. A local co-op mode lets a second player join on the same screen.
What it keeps from Dredge: a boat, a coast to learn, upgrades and legends in the deep. What it drops: the horror. The tone is warm, though the story starts with a loss.
The downside: the cooking can repeat, and some players found the voxel art and pace slow.
Developer: Bunnyhug | Year: 2021 | Platforms: PC, Switch, PS4, PS5, Xbox | Length: about 19 hours (HowLongToBeat) | Steam Deck: Playable | Steam page
Fishing Paradiso
Who it is for: players who want a fishing RPG they can finish in a weekend.
You set out to become a master angler in a sunny, tropical setting. You visit new fishing spots, befriend a cheerful cast and catch bigger and stranger fish.
What it keeps from Dredge: a fish collection and new waters to unlock. What it drops: the boat upgrades and the dark.
The downside: the main story is short, and it is simple next to Dredge.
Developer: Odencat | Year: 2022 | Platforms: PC, Mac, Linux, Switch | Length: about 6 hours | Steam Deck: Playable | Steam page
A Short Sail
Who it is for: Dredge fans who want the hold grid and night fishing without the fear.
A Short Sail is a cozy sailing game where you are a little tabby cat with a sailboat. It shares a lot with Dredge: you pack letters, parcels and fish into a grid in your hold, and different fish bite in different waters and at different hours, so you go out again after dark, when your lantern glows. A few fish are rare shiny ones. Rain and storms roll in over the sea.
But it is cozy all the way through. You deliver mail, make friends across the islands, and build your home island. There are no timers and no fighting on foot. There are gentle sea battles against storms and living waves, so it is not danger-free, but nothing stalks you in the dark. You can play alone or online with friends. It comes out in Q1 2027, and you can play the free demo at play.ashortsail.com.
Developer: Yos Riady | Platforms: PC (Windows), Mac, Web, Steam Deck | Length: not shared yet | Free demo at play.ashortsail.com | Play the demo
Under the sea, with a smile
Dave the Diver
Who it is for: players who want lots of story and surprises.
By day, Dave dives into a changing ocean to catch fish. By night, he runs a sushi bar with what he caught. The game keeps adding new minigames, characters and twists. It is funny where Dredge is grim.
What it keeps from Dredge: the sea’s mystery and a loop of catch, sell and upgrade. What it drops: the dread, but not all danger: some sea creatures fight back, like sharks.
The downside: it is busier than calm, and restaurant service can get hectic until you hire staff.
Developer: MINTROCKET | Year: 2023 | Platforms: PC, Mac, Switch, PS4, PS5, Xbox | Length: about 23 to 25 hours | Steam Deck: Verified | Steam page
ABZU
Who it is for: players who loved the sea more than the fishing.
You are a diver in a huge, colorful ocean. You swim with whales and schools of fish and uncover an old mystery under the waves. There are no words.
What it keeps from Dredge: a mysterious ocean with secrets below. What it drops: fishing, the boat and the fear.
The downside: it is very short, and there is no fishing.
Developer: Giant Squid | Year: 2016 | Platforms: PC, Switch, PS4, Xbox One | Length: about 2 hours (HowLongToBeat) | Steam Deck: Verified | Steam page
Open water and a home on the sea
Sail Forth
Who it is for: players who loved exploring with their own boat.
You sail a bright ocean of islands, find new places and build up a fleet of ships. The world is open, and the sea is the main character.
What it keeps from Dredge: a boat, islands and upgrades. What it drops: the horror. It is cheerful and bright.
The downside: there are ship battles with cannons, and the story is light.
Developer: Festive Vector | Year: 2022 | Platforms: PC, Mac, Linux, Switch, PS4, PS5, Xbox | Length: about 16 hours for the main story (HowLongToBeat) | Steam Deck: Verified | Steam page
Spiritfarer
Who it is for: players who liked Dredge’s melancholy but not its fear.
You are Stella, a ferrymaster for spirits. You build your boat into a home, sail between islands, fish, cook and care for your passengers before you say goodbye. More in games like Spiritfarer.
What it keeps from Dredge: a boat to upgrade, islands and fishing. What it drops: the threat. It is sad, not scary.
The downside: it is long, the goodbyes hit hard, and the boat chores get busy in the middle.
Developer: Thunder Lotus | Year: 2020 | Platforms: PC, Mac, Linux, Switch, PS4, Xbox One, iOS, Android | Length: about 26 hours for the main story (HowLongToBeat) | Steam Deck: Verified | Steam page
Raft
Who it is for: friends who want to build a home on the sea together.
You start on a tiny raft in the open ocean. You hook floating junk, build your raft bigger and sail to islands. It is a survival game, but Peaceful mode makes the shark passive, so it does not bite you or your raft. You pick the mode when you make a world.
What it keeps from Dredge: the open sea, a boat you grow and some mystery. What it drops: the danger, in Peaceful mode.
The downside: you still need food and water, and you cannot change the mode later.
Developer: Redbeet Interactive | Year: 2022 | Platforms: PC, PS5, Xbox Series X|S | Length: open-ended | Steam Deck: Playable | Steam page
With friends
Webfishing
Who it is for: friends who want a cozy place to hang out online.
You are a little animal on a shared island. You fish, earn cash, buy cosmetics and chat with other players. The developer calls it a chatroom-focused fishing game. See more in games like Webfishing.
What it keeps from Dredge: the joy of a good catch. What it drops: the boat, the story and the danger.
The downside: it shines with people around, and the Steam version is Windows only.
Developer: lamedeveloper | Year: 2024 | Platforms: PC (Windows) | Length: open-ended | Steam Deck: Playable | Steam page
Related guides
- Cozy fishing games
- Dark cozy games
- Relaxing boat games
- Cozy ocean games
- Cozy sailing games
- Games like Spiritfarer
Questions
Is Dredge a cozy game?
Only partly. The days are calm fishing trips, but the nights bring fog, sea monsters and a creepy story. It is cozy-adjacent, and that mix is why people love it.
What is a cozy game like Dredge without horror?
Cast n Chill is the calmest pick: you fish from a little boat, fill a logbook and buy upgrades, and nothing hunts you. Moonglow Bay is a good pick if you want a story and a town too.
Are there cozy fishing games with a boat?
Yes. Cast n Chill, Moonglow Bay and Fishing Paradiso all have boats or boat trips. Sail Forth is about sailing your own fleet, and Dave the Diver has you dive from a boat.
What is the closest game to Dredge?
Moonglow Bay has the closest loop: fish from a boat, sell and cook your catch, and upgrade, with sea legends to chase. It has no horror and no night danger.
How long is Dredge?
About 9.5 hours for the main story, according to HowLongToBeat.
