How to Fish has sold more than a million copies within two days of release, developer Dazed Games announced through the game’s Steam page. Dot Esports reported the milestone on August 23, three days after the game’s August 20 launch.
Dot Esports places the game in what players have taken to calling the friendslop category — co-op indie games built on deliberately absurd premises and physics-driven play. The outlet notes that golf, walking and, in one case, ruthless capitalism have all carried recent hits in the same mould, and that fishing is a late arrival to the category.
The premise is simple. Up to four players are stranded together on a small island and must learn to fish, sell their catches or gamble them for money, explore further islands and take on what the game calls fishy bosses.
What separates it from a conventional fishing simulator is the cartoon violence layered on top. Players can stab fish, trick-shot birds out of the sky and shoot fish with snipers the moment they leave the water. Landing shots on the local wildlife pays more, and that money buys better weaponry. Anything caught can be sold for cash or staked on a roulette table instead.
Player counts and price
Steam Charts recorded an all-time concurrent peak of 266,896 players at the time of Dot Esports’ report, a figure that was still moving when the outlet published. The price is likely part of the picture: the game is listed at $7.99, with a sale price of $4.95.
The sales figure comes from the developers rather than an independent tracker. Dot Esports attributes it to an announcement made on the game’s own Steam page, and no breakdown by platform or region was given.
Dazed Games has said more content and bug fixes are planned, though the studio gave no detail on either.
Yes, we’ll be adding more content! Yes, we’ll be fixing bugs!