In the two days since launch the devs have made 6 hotfixes and updates. A lot of people don't understand how beneficial early access can be to test games on way more hardware configurations quickly and cheaply, especially for smaller devs like Misc games. They have to be some of the most passionate small dev teams out there, working quickly and effectively to make the game theyre proud of.

At this point, yes, there are some bugs, and it crashes occasionally, but its not full price, and knowing Misc, it will probably be patched up and running fine by next weekend. Its definitely more finished than not.

I was a big fan of FNA. So needless to say I was excited for this game. Especially for the Co-op multiplayer. Here is my experience with the game in the short time I have played it so far:

The tutorial was a struggle. They give you this rinky dink little row boat to do cargo and basic fishing missions with. You get thrown around and blown away from where you need to go constantly. The waves were so bad they were consistently sending my little dingy airborne.

There are no AI ships driving around like in FNA. This makes the world feel very empty. Almost like you are lost at sea all by yourself.

Once you complete the cargo mission you have to complete Hand line fishing. At first I thought it was going to be kind of interesting. Until it took me about 20 minutes to real up 1 fish because my line was constantly at risk of snapping.

Now I can buy my first boat. Awesome! No more rowboat for me! Well, once I bought the boat I missed my little dingy. The base boat is dreadfully slow. Takes large amounts of damage when bumping the dock. Even at low speeds around one knot or lower.

Everything I listed above I could have turned a blind eye to considering the game is early access. But what made me ultimately decide the write this negative review was the Online Co-op, or should I say lack there of............. When a friend joins your lobby, you are unable to work with one another on the same ship. I am, highly disappointing in the development team for this one. The Multiplayer might as well not even be in game if we cant work with each other!!!!!!!!!!

It really breaks my heart to say it, but I am on the verge of refunding this game at this point. I feel kind of cheated and ripped off. Hopefully things can change for the better soon.

This game should not have been released at this time. Plays like a early beta version. Looks okay, but in reality is missing many things.
Positive stuff:
1. Its nice that you can do other stuff than just fishing.
2. Graphics isn't bad. Textures on stones and terrain looks very nice.

Negative:
1. You are all alone in the world... There isn't a single boat except those who are docked. No people (npc), nothing moving. The world is very static. Not even seagulls are in the game if you don't count the odd seagull sound now and then. Northern parts of Norway have a lot of seagulls, and are hated in general. That doesn't mean I don't want to see it in a game.
2. Waves are strange. Sometimes you can see waves following your boat on your left or right. Or you can see waves that are completely parallell looking like a graphics bug. Or the wave behind your boat.. even your row boat has the huge wave because of your speed. Makes me wonder if the developers have been in a boat before.
3. Sound is minimal to say the least. Did the developers hire someone off the street to do the sounds for day of work?
4. The game is behaving like a senior alzheimer patient. It can't remember your cargo, it doesn't remember what your character looks like or the name of the boats. Not even the language you pick in the settings. For example if I quit and start the game after chosing Norwegian (devs are from Norway I think), it starts in English. But when I go out to the main menu it is back to Norwegian without me doing anything in the settings. And why on earth can a developer not get the date-format correct? If you live in Norway, the correct date-format should be like this: 24.05.2024 or 24.05.24, and the time should be in 24h format. Not too difficult to make correct is it? I think laziness is to blame.
5. Only a few boats. You start with a row boat, and can get a cargo-boat or fishing boat after that. If you want the 2 or 3 other boats you need tier 2 certificate, which takes an awful lot of time because the game crashes all the time, forcing you to start missions over and over.
6. I used about 12 hours ingame in the first non-upgraded boat to travel 13 km. It had a speed of 12-13 km/h, so it should have done it in 1 hour. At least 1 hour realtime, but it didn't. Its so slow that I have time to make dinner and watch a movie while I wait for something to happen. At least if the waves doesn't turn my boat around completely.
7. Boats take way too much damage. On the first cargo boat you have tires hanging on the side, but they don't protect your boat at all. You end up paying for repairs every time you are back to Røst.
8. Lights on the boat could be way better. Why do I have a search light (even upgraded it) that can light up less than 10 meters? What is the point of that? And why is there not a white lantern in the front? I suggest the developers take a look at the rules for lanterns and fix it. My cargo boat isn't a sailboat, it isn't longer than 50 m, so it shouldn't be necessary to have a white/yellow lantern in the back, only in the front (usually).
9. Multiplayer is not an easy thing. First of all if someone crash, its impossible to rejoin unless the host updates (if there is a small patch). And joining a host seems to crash the game a lot.
10. Skills. Most of the skills are not implemented yet. Why? Is it that hard to implement before release when this is a crucial part of the game?
11. It is listed as online co-op. It has NO co-op at all. 0, nothing at all. You can't go aboard your friends boat, you can't help to carry something. You have your own economy. And if you join a friend, you can't even use your own save game, making you start at scratch even if you have played for a long time in career mode.

This is a very frustrating game. I would not recommend it. Maybe when its out of early access (EA still means it should be playable without crashing all the time), and the bugs are removed. Right now its an overpriced game with little value, especially if you want to get it for multiplayer.

*READ ME FOR TIPS*

First let’s remember this is an early access game. I have 100hrs in Fishing North Atlantic (FNA) so I am familiar with the base for this game. I’ve been waiting for this game to come out and would like to thank the devs for taking the time to ensure the game is on the most recent Unreal engine.

There are plenty of negative (thumbs down) reviews and I am not saying there are no issues, but let me see if I can help you through some at the very beginning of the game.

PC Specs:
AMD Ryzen 9 3900x overclocked 32%
Kraken X62 AIO
32gb DDR4 3200 CAS 14
EVGA 3090 FTW3

Let’s talk graphics as there are plenty of issues mentioned. FIRST THING, ensure you have updated your graphics drivers as NVIDIA had an updated and Ships at Sea (SaS) got some fixes. HOWEVER, NVIDIA states DLSS 2 for SaS but there is only an option for standard DLSS in the graphics settings. There IS screen stutter/tearing. However, you can reduce this greatly. I went through several graphics tests and found some tips/tricks. First thing, try and let the game set your graphics based off your system. Once this is done and you are out on the water in your row boat, scroll your mouse wheel until you have zoomed all the way out. This helped massively with the tearing/stuttering graphics. After this, you can play with your graphics settings to get it as good as you can/want it.

With graphics somewhat set, lets talk tips.
First big tip is DO NOT leave the game even if you save it during the tutorial. When you reload, the tutorial seems to be cancelled out.

Second, if you’ve never used a row boat in real life, this could be frustrating LOL. The devs tried to make it very close to the real thing and when the larger waves hit the port area (yes, it’s annoying but we gotta work through it for now), it can be very hard to control and keep straight. Do your best and remember you cannot turn while you are rowing forward or back. It is a slow process but you’ll get to your destination.

Third, this references the first fishing you do which is using the Jigger. When you row out to the tutorial’s recommended fishing spot, you’ll quickly notice that your little row boat does NOT anker while fishing. This can push that little row boat all over the place. However, you CAN row while the Jigger is in your hand and even while reeling in a fish. The tutorial can be somewhat confusing on how to fish like this so I will try to help (using stock key binding references). You “cast” by pressing “E.” Once the line is in the water, you tap/hold left mouse button to bounce/reel the line in. Once you see the red dot show up, stop reeling, wait for the red to turn green and click the left mouse button. You will have to do this several times to actually hook the fish. Once the fish is hooked, you will just be using left mouse to reel it in. If you played FNA and used the harpoon for any length of time, you will remember, the line went yellow and red and the tension on the line increased. This game does NOT do that. You need to ensure you pay attention to the sound of tension on the line. It is not a fast process to bring a fish to the boat while using the Jigger, be patient! Lastly, the game tutorial says to press “Q” to cancel or stop using the Jigger. This is to simply stop that “cast.” If you want to stop all together and row to a different spot, press “X.”

Fourth, now that you have fish in your boat (tutorial requires you catch 3), you will be asked to go to the dock and sell the fish. I’ll reference FNA again here. If you remember that game when you sell your catch, there is a way to track the money you made off that catch. This game (so far) does NOT have that. You can select to sell all your fish or select to sell just a certain amount. However, once the sale is complete, there is no obvious way to go back and see how much you made off that catch (at least so far as I have seen, or rather not seen LOL). There is a bank option at the door where you get your missions that allows you to take out loans, but I have not seen a sell log anywhere.

Fifth, this will be my last tip for the tutorial area. When you go to buy the next boat, you have to click and HOLD the buy/purchase button for their count of 3 seconds to confirm the purchase, not a bad mechanic as this keeps one from accidentally buying a boat.

There are suggestions I have noted (up through the completion of the tutorial). I know others have listed some as well but I will list mine for you so you can have an idea.

- Add more keybindings for things like player inventory and boat menu.

- Look into keybindings. I have out of the way keys on the keyboard bound to my mouse to make things like picking items up easier. Left bracket is one of them and no matter how many times I go through the bindings and reset them, left bracket opens the pause menu.

- The waves at the ports/docks needs to be toned down for sure.

- The “waves” breaking over the bow of the row boat even on calmer water is definitely a bit much as well.

- As mentioned previously, saving and leaving during the tutorial seems to cancel out the tutorial.

- After saving and reloading the save, my characters clothing is not what I selected.
If you use invert Y on the mouse like me, when you reload your save, the game DOES remember it is checked invert in the settings but does NOT remember to have it inverted upon game load. It is easy to fix by just going back into and out of settings. Nothing even needs to be clicked on or off. Just pause menu > settings > then back to your game.

- The power drill does NOT always make noise when using. Since I had to do the tutorial twice, it actually took me to a different location the second time than the first to fix the port marker. The first time, I heard the sound of the drill but the second time I did not.

- Add a wallet or personal finances area to keep track of what a player has spent as well as what they have made. If it is already there, make it more apparent to every player on how to track their finances.

This is a very promising start to a game many of us have been watching since it was teased. I cannot wait to see the first update from the devs and see just how far this game can/will go. Based off the improvements, my wife will also be buying the game as the improvements come out and then I can leave a detailed review outlining the multiplayer side of the game. I truly hope this read has helped you and before leaving terrible reviews for the game, try some of the stuff listed below. As always, remember this is an early access game and I am sure the devs are hard at work making it as good as it can be. Thank you for reading.

Game in early development, so dont expect it to be perfect. Other than not having autopilot, I do like the game, and the variety of different task, and that its not only focused on fishing part :)

Can't wait to see more of the game

I really wanna like this game.
But currently it just feels way to early access to me, so recommending it is a bit hard.

I currently do not have much good to say about the game. Besides that i like the idea of it and how the ships feel. Even tho they are very very squishy. I wish they would be a tiny bit sturdier.

My main issues as of May 26th are:

The world just feels dead. No other Ships. No NPCs. Nothing.
The Transportation system is horrendous. You have the same deliveries over and over. For the same amount of XP and the same Amount of Cash.
I wish they would have greater variety and some element of randomness.

I can't say much about Fishing yet, since quite frankly, i haven't done much of it yet.
I can see some promise in this game, but there is currently just sooo much missing.

I really hope i can turn that thumb upwards as time progresses.

Dont Buy for multiplayer YET. right now you can only play on the same world in your own ships. you cant help friends move cargo you cant even pick some one elses stuff up. and on top of that you cant even board some one elses ship because you aren't the owner

Loving the game so far. The graphics are amazing! As a lot of people in the reviews have been complaining about, there are ofcourse bugs. However, please realise that this game is EARLY ACCESS, and has NOT been released. You must expect bugs, crashes and other issues. Read the early access disclaimers before buying if you are sensitive to bugs and crashes...

Will update my review with more information on the game once i get some more hours in, enjoying it a lot so far!

Maybe its too early to judge this game but I'm struggling with it. I have been waiting a while for this and I guess I was hoping for more "ship simulator" than "life simulator" on the sea. The Unreal water physics feel, well just un-real. The vessel handling is just clunky. Perhaps its too early in the game (3hrs at this point) and maybe the starter vessel is designed to be very basic but there is no water depth or weather information. Is wind and current actually having an effect? In its current state you might as well stick to the previous titles in the Fishing series.

This game offers a wider selection of job types other than fishing, but the experience as it stands on EA is very unpolished and unsatisfying. The loading of cargo is also clunky. You can stack jobs from the mission office but can't get return mission after travelling to your destination.

I think I will come back in a few months and after a few more updates and see were we stand.

I cannot in good faith recommend this game at this time. I'm not, not recommending, or recommending. I'm in the middle. Here's the thing, Misc Games has two previous games that I've played in this genre, so they're in their wheelhouse. I'm not entirely sure that this was ready for early access. Typically early access games from the ones I've played are missing much of the game, but the available mechanics and whatnot are usually working ok. I expected the same from this, however, they did not deliver on this IMHO.

Pros:

• Great graphics and scenery
  
• Available things to do other than fishing (This was the selling point for me)
  
• Water overall is well done

Mixed:

• While the map size is 1 to 1, that is relevant for real time. Time scale sort of doesn't make sense, I get it and understand why it's like that, it's really only relevant for time it takes for missions to be completed and how much fuel is burned. So the time it takes in-game to travel <20 NM was well over 12 hours, which means technically my average speed would have only been 1-1.5 knots, even though my average speed at that time was above 8.5 knots.
  
• When I steer the boat in a direction, when I reach my desired direction and release the key, the boat bounces back in the opposite direction anywhere from 10-30 degrees. So in order to change course to where I want, I have to oversteer the boat. This happens while turning either port or starboard, and it seems the wind and waves have no effect on this happening. Not sure if this is how small medium boats handle. I've steered small pleasure crafts and a 134M long Frigate, so I don't know about small cargo boats or fishing vessels.
  
• No wind indicator.
  
• Mini-map appears to have no adjustments for zoom level or otherwise, and seems it cannot be toggled on/off.
  
• Plotted routes are calculated using three decimal places when measuring feet. So the map screen becomes cluttered with numbers like 2,500.003 ft. Just for reference, 0.003 feet is approximately 1mm.
  
• Plotted courses cannot be saved. With the number of small islands sometimes not visible on the map, it's tricky and takes time to plot a course that you use for a regular route.
  
• Unsure how much benefit some skills give. For example, the eco skill to use 10% less fuel. This is not reflected on the litres per hour on the HUD.

Cons:

• Longer delivery distance isn't worth it at all based on cost of fuel and time it takes.
  
• Boats appear to be pushed around much too easy.
  
• Tires or bumpers are for aesthetics only, they appear to not protect the ship from damage.
  
• Waves in the harbour are similar to open water. There are usually water breaks in harbours to prevent rough water around docks or jetties.
  
• The autopilot screen (useful in the cabin information for immersion) is not visible during the day. Only visible at night.
  
• It's unclear which are the main fuel depots (unlimited fuel) on the map screen. Apparently there are two of them.
  
• Sunrise/sunset times do not match what they should be in the region based on real world data.

Just a few bugs: There are more, just some I jotted down while playing.

• On one screen, ship power is listed in litres and fuel capacity doesn't have a unit
  
• On the HUD, in progress cargo delivery remaining time doesn't update. If you click tab and look at missions, the remaining time updates there correctly.
  
• The calendar date doesn't update when the clock rolls over midnight.
  
• I've seen the calendar date change at noon instead of midnight
  
• Sometimes the calendar date resets to April 1st when loading a game.
  
• I've seen the date roll over to April 3rd around noon, and then when I entered the shipyard it rolled back to April 2nd.
  
• The 'working' clock in the boat cabin doesn't match the time on the HUD.
  
• During mid game, the date and time format changed. Probably when I alt-tabbed out and then it took my PC date and time format instead. Would be nice if the format just used that in the first place and not changed during gameplay.
  
• Keybindings for the search light do not work while in search light mode.
  
• The date I completed my latest cargo delivery doesn't match the current date on the HUD. My delivery says it completed on 3 April, however, the HUD still says 2 April.
  
• Saves show playtime, but does not actually track it so it says zero.
  
• Ship name isn't saved.
  
  That's about all I have for now. The game itself is fun to play, but based on some things above I don't feel like I'm ready to recommend it as it definitely appears to me that it wasn't quite ready for early access yet.
  
  Will update this review when improvements are made.