I’ve made mention in the past of using Madden as my “clean slate” game. The one I go to when I don’t really want to think about what I’m doing. And for a while, it’s existed as my main game for that particular context. But now I have a new game, Cast n Chill, an indie idle fishing game from developer Wombat Brawler. And I’m gonna have a hard time putting this down for a long time.‘Cast n Chill’ brought the calm right to meOne thing I was most interested in was how Cast n Chill would feel over extended playtime. It’s for sure a great game for a quick cast or two. But what I found was that it felt like I was getting in the boat and going out on my own and just zoning out. You can control the game with your mouse and keyboard or a controller. All credit to Wombat Brawler for making both control schemes viable. I don’t have one that I think is better than the other. You start the game paddling out into the water, finding your spot, and casting out into the water. Once you get a fish on your line, much like in real life, you can’t really fight it too much. If the fish is giving you some serious pull, you have to stop reeling and let it work its way back to you, if it does at all. Sometimes, the fish will take your line out well beyond its capabilities, and you’ll have to settle for the smaller fish.That settling is only temporary, though, because Cast n Chill doesn’t force you into an unnecessary grind. You can rack up money for solid upgrades pretty quickly. You can buy different lures, rods, and upgrade line strength as well as line length. And you’re going to need those lures. As some fish only respond to certain ones. Your dog will be right beside you the whole time, and yes, you can pet it. And you should. I might be reading too much into it, but it seems the more I pet the dog, the more willing he is to bark to let me know we might have something good in the water. Man’s best friend indeed.the atmosphere is hitting in pixel formThe pixel art style in Cast n Chill is perfect for this style of game. And it is legitimately beautiful. I was blown away by the water effect that Wombat Brawler managed to animate in it. It’s like a painting, the longer I look at it, the better it looks. I kept staring at it, trying to break the illusion, and it just wasn’t happening. It holds up. Even the fish themselves, after a while, you can start telling the difference and identifying them by look without even catching them first.The sound design in Cast n Chill, though, is the real triumph. The sound of the water as the boat travels through it, the silence that gets broken up by the sound of your line being reeled in, it’s incredible. And it goes a long way towards immersing you in the game. The game has an idle mode that allows you to just sit back and let the fish come to you, and it’ll do all the work. While this is a great function and part of the game’s mechanics, I prefer the active mode. Moving the lures up and down and actually feeling the push and pull when I get one on the line.I just want to get back to ‘cast n chill’Cast n Chill is exactly the type of game needed to slow things down. So, I mentioned in my brief preview of the game that “Cast n Chill seems to evoke all the calm and relaxation a fishing trip provides.” Well, we can remove “seems” from that. It absolutely does. From art style to sound design, to the gameplay itself, this is a game that hits all the right notes and makes me want to chase every legendary fish, every upgrade, and every license. If I can’t get away for a weekend, I might as well Cast n Chill.Verdict: Best In Its ClassCast n Chill is available now on PC. A code was provided by the publisher for review. Reviewed on PC.The post Cast n Chill is an Idle (and Active) Fishing Game That Has Become My New Go-To When I Want to Relax (Review) appeared first on VICE.