Whisker Waters is a cute fishing-focused RPG where you play as a cat in a world of other cats, bears, and birds. Explore a lovely world full of beautiful vistas as you take on some serious fishing expeditions. Learn how to master the art of fishing through a variety of mini games and tool upgrades. Gather quests from the folks who inhabit the towns, and build relationships with them. Even learn the distinct narratives each area you visit possesses! 

Finally, a Fishing Focused Cozy Game

I know there are tons of different fishing games out there, but none ever seemed to quite scratch that cozy, casual gaming experience itch. Many focus on just fishing, or the RPG games only use it as a side activity instead of the main activity. Whisker Waters ticks all of those boxes, though. Fishing is the name of the game, though you’re also exploring the world, getting to know other people (or animals, really), finishing quests, and solving mysteries. It’s the fully-involved type of game I’ve wanted. 

I find the fishing aspect of this game quite interesting, too. As the Steam page says, fishing is easy to learn, but difficult to master. And that holds true. Casting your line into the water is as simple as a few clicks. You can aim where in the water you want the bobber to land, and how far away from the shore it lands. Then, when a fish is hooked on your line, simply line up the pointer with the green bar and keep it in the green bar to reel in your catch. Easy! It’s when the mini games start showing up where things get a little more complicated. There’s a whole host of different mini games you might encounter while fishing in order to get the fish. Untangle from the reeds, pull the fish out from the rocks, sudden whirlpools, and more. It’s a pretty engaging experience that can change depending on the fish you’re catching, which kept me on my toes. 

There’s More to Love

Start your adventure with a very lovely intro story scene that really sets the stage for this adventure. You also get to customize your very own cat character. In Whisker Waters, You can choose from several different fur colors and patterns, ear and eye shapes, and even the size of the fluff on your face. It’s possibly the cutest character creator I’ve come across. Plus, as you play the game you do come across accessories you can equip to your character to make it even more unique. 

The environments are gorgeous, too. From the lush grass and greenery to the beautifully clear ponds, lakes, and rivers, it’s easy to get absorbed in your surroundings. Plus, there are some unusual creatures wandering around. And the fish are also well done. There’s a variety of them to be found across the different fishing spots in each area. They’re all unique looking from the surface, which helps with quick identification when trying to fish for specific types. 

What I Had Problems With

This truly is a lovely game that could benefit from some optimization efforts. I initially struggled playing because the camera moved so wildly and it triggered my motion sickness. I finally figured out it was because you can control the camera with the mouse, but the camera also moves on its own as you move your character. It really needs to be one or the other, and preferably mouse-controlled over movement-based. The camera also gets stuck on objects, or zooms into your back so close because of objects behind you that you can’t see what’s going on. Better camera operation would greatly improve the gaming experience. 

I would like to see the quest system of Whisker Waters receive some reworking, too. They’re fine and interesting on their own, but once you’ve accepted them, good luck. You better have read and memorized exactly what to do and where to go, because the quest log does not give you hints on how to complete nor are there map markers for fetch quests. For the fishing quests where you have to catch certain fish, it’s fine, as your fishing log records what areas, types of water, and time of day the fish can be found. Otherwise, you just have to run around and hope for the best. 

Final Thoughts

I enjoy this game, truly. It’s adorable, playing as a cat is great, and the focus on fishing is refreshing. It does have some issues, but I’m confident the developers will remedy many of the problems players have brought up. In fact, they’ve already released a hotfix patch to address some of the easier issues. I look forward to what other fixes they have in store for Whisker Waters!

I give it:

You can find Whisker Waters on Steam, Nintendo Switch, and PlayStation now!