I came to catch crabs, but they started catching me. A review of the gloomy horror Crabmeat

I came to catch crabs, but they started catching me. A review of the gloomy horror Crabmeat

The game takes place in a dystopian world ruled by a fictional Feodarstvo. The main character borrowed money from the authorities to pay the rent, but did not manage to return the debt on time. As punishment, he was sent to Antarctica to catch king crabs. If the hero does not have time to fulfill the quota, he will be executed, and the debt will be hung on the family.

At the beginning, you will have to get used to the controls. All actions are tied to the mouse: movement, interaction with the environment, use of objects. After an hour, you will be able to adapt, after which even battles with crabs will become easy.

Image rights belong to Nicholas McDonnell, Mitchell Pasmans and Searching Interactive
Image rights belong to Nicholas McDonnell, Mitchell Pasmans and Searching Interactive

To control the issued vessel, you need to turn the steering wheel, set the speed, raise and lower the anchor. The map shows places where there are many crabs and where previous debtors have left traps. Progress is complicated by weather conditions and obstacles, collision with which leads to damage to the hull.

The developers have made crab fishing a well-developed process. You need to use bait, drop traps into the water, wait for the catch, lift the traps on board, separate the crabs suitable for the quota from the garbage. If you get the traps of previous debtors, you can find first-aid kits, keys to caches and lockers, cartridges.

Image rights belong to Nicholas McDonnell, Mitchell Pasmans and Searching Interactive
Image rights belong to Nicholas McDonnell, Mitchell Pasmans and Searching Interactive

Periodically, the ship is boarded by aggressive crabs, which go to spoil the equipment. If you do not get rid of them in time, then after the pests you will have to repair everything. With the cry "Craboniimo" one such bastard clung to the steering wheel, because of which I crashed into the bait replenishment station and almost drowned.

Before the attack, larger individuals scream like a witch from Left 4 Dead. You can fight them off with an axe or a shotgun. The damage from the shotgun is low, the cartridges are rare, and the reloading is slow - it is better to save it until the battle with the final boss.

Image rights belong to Nicholas McDonnell, Mitchell Pasmans and Searching Interactive
Image rights belong to Nicholas McDonnell, Mitchell Pasmans and Searching Interactive

There are timers on the ship that count down the time allotted for completing the task. Even if you play relaxed and make mistakes, you will be able to fulfill the quota long before the time expires. Also, propaganda materials of the Feodarstvo are scattered on the ship, in which any deviation from the norm is condemned.

Diagnosis

The small amount of content in Crabmeat is compensated by its quality. The execution of many actions is accompanied by unique animation, the process of catching crabs is replete with details, and the world is deeply developed. Even such nuances as the appearance of snow on board are taken into account.

At the moment, the game is passed too quickly. I want to believe that in the final version, the developers will add many unique endings - the world of the game is too interesting to say goodbye to it so easily.

Maksim Ivanov
23 Mar 14:11
Crabmeat
PC

Crabmeat

Выживание Хоррор
10 Mar 2026 г.
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