Dave the Diver, a chill RPG about fishing and sushi, is one of 2023's biggest Steam success stories

Dave the Diver has launched out of early access to become one of Steam's biggest success stories in 2023.

Before it launched earlier this week out of early access, Dave the Diver averaged around 700 concurrent players per day, according to SteamDB. Now, just two days past launch, the new indie RPG has soared past 34,000 concurrent players, and it's only rising.

For the indie RPG to go from a relatively small player base to storming Steam's best-sellers list is a brilliant accomplishment, especially after maintaining an early access period. Dave the Diver looks like it's going down a treat with players, as a quick Twitter search attests.

"But what even is Dave the Diver?" I hear you ask. Well, it's a pretty chill underwater exploring RPG during the day, but at night it turns into a sushi restaurant management sim. Our titular diver has got two jobs on the go at once, taking his catch from the day and selling it to customers at night.

In our early access Dave the Diver preview from last year, we were immediately struck by just how ambitious the new indie game was, noting how both sides of the game were instantly rewarding on their own, and only got stronger the more they melded.

Check out our upcoming indie games guide for a look ahead at all the other small-time gems you should be keeping an eye on this year.

Hirun Cryer is a freelance reporter and writer with Gamesradar+ based out of U.K. After earning a degree in American History specializing in journalism, cinema, literature, and history, he stepped into the games writing world, with a focus on shooters, indie games, and RPGs, and has since been the recipient of the MCV 30 Under 30 award for 2021. In his spare time he freelances with other outlets around the industry, practices Japanese, and enjoys contemporary manga and anime.