I downloaded a few demos for this quarter’s Next Fest but played very few. Rather than trawling through categories to find interesting demos, I let Steam pick for me via the “Recommended for You” section. Having recently playing the likes of Hell is Us, Yuppie Psycho, along with a smattering of Devour and Outlast Trials, it is understandable that Steam suggested mostly horror titles.

One was a typing battle royale. Like playing Russian Roulette with Mavis Beacon. Sadly, I didn’t find it all that fun. Umigari caught my eye because there’s a big ole’ unsettling fish on the thumbnail. Horror and fishing? Sign me up!

Hmm what’s that? Have I heard of Dredge?

Yes! It’s even in my library, I really should play it some day…..Anyways, back to Umigari.

I started the demo awakens on a tiny island in the middle of the ocean. The only other inhabitant? A fish merchant who tells me to go catch some puffer fish so I can buy upgrades from him. Seems like he’s the enterprising type then.

Armed with a harpoon, off I went to spear some fish dutifully placing them in my ship so I could sell them to the Fish Merchant. Who, by the way, looks vaguely like a fish himself. I think it’s the eyes, those bulging, spaced out eyes.

I gathered enough fish to upgrade the reel speed of my harpoon and increased the boat’s speed. The rest of the money I used to gas up the boat and set off for a nearby island.

This too was a small island. It’s only inhabitant a school girl. She asked for a ride back to the island I just came from and got in the boat.

On the way, I catch some tuna, and right before we reach the island, the girl disappears! Maybe she didn’t like all the dead fish touching her feet. At least she left a map with a treasure chest and what looks like another gas station location.

The tuna sold for more than the pufferfish so I was able to upgrade my boats fuel capacity. I ventured off towards the treasure chest on the map which lead me to a sunken wind farm. I used my harpoon to hit the targets on the windmill blades to get them spinning. One of them dropped the treasure, a sonar system for the boat.

Much easier to catch those fish now that they can’t hide.

I purchased the final upgrades for the boat and harpoon. I’m assuming it’s the final ones for the demo.

I set off towards the next gas station. I didn’t take the most direct route which resulted in my boat running out of fuel and sending me back to the original island mere feet away from my destination.

Once againI set out, this time on a straight course. Along the way I spotted a massive fish the shape and size of a freight train breaching the surface. It didn’t seem to take notice of the small vessel right next to it. Lucky me.

As I once again approached my destination, I saw the burning husk of my previous vessel. What does this mean? Am I doomed to return to the Fish Merchant until I unravel the mysteries of this ocean? Wandering the oceans and facing it’s horrors until the end of time? I do not have time to ponder these questions. The boat needs gas, the Fish Merchant needs fish.

My fish were still aboard unharmed. I picked those up and sold them to the fish seller (the same one from before!) on the new island.

Across the way was a high school, half submerged. There were new fish to catch here. They looked strange from my boat, bigger, and wrapped in something. They were also very fast. I managed to land one and as pulled it out of the ocean, it was indeed wrapped in something, a jacket by the looks of it.

I ventured off the boat into the high school and that’s where I found even more of these clothed fish. I…I…I think these fish may have been people at one point. Now I’m harpooning them to sell for boat upgrades. Such is life in Umigari.

There wasn’t an option to save that I could find and I had to step away from the demo. It didn’t kick me out and I think there was at least a little more there to do. I didn’t feel like repeating the hour I’d already done and an hour is plenty of time with a demo for me.

Umigari is going on the wishlist. I’m intrigued to see where this one ends up. Are the fish actually people? What’s the deal with the Fish Merchant? Can I harpoon that giant, train sized, fish with my human sized harpoon? I kinda have to know.