To finish Dazed Games’ How to Fish on Steam, clear the island quest chain through the Volcano, kill the lava whale, return its tail to the scientist for the RHIB keys, then start the RHIB to trigger the ending.
How to Fish looks like a goofy physics fishing sim, but Dazed Games built a full shooter-adventure underneath it, and “finishing” means running its story from the crash site all the way to the Volcano on Island 5. Expect anywhere from five to twenty hours depending on how much you mess around, and know going in that the credits don’t roll the instant the last boss dies.
What counts as finishing How to Fish
The finish line is the We are so back achievement, and plenty of players trip over it because killing the final boss doesn’t award it. When the lava whale goes down it drops a tail, and that tail is the real key item. You have to carry it to the scientist, take the RHIB keys he hands back, then walk to the RHIB and start it — that last interaction is what plays the ending.
Key So treat the whole run as a five-island quest chain, where each island has one story beat that gates the next, rather than a boss rush. Do that and you won’t end up parked one interaction short of the credits.
The route through all five islands
| Stage | Objective |
|---|---|
| Island 1 | Kill the beer thief for the lighthouse keeper, then beat the boss for the boat keys |
| Island 2 | Upgrade the engine and finish the forest lady’s dinner by returning the piranha boss’s tail |
| Island 3 | Start the grill and help the vacationing tourist |
| Island 4 | Buy the top engine and defeat the terrorizing seagull boss |
| Island 5 (Volcano) | Kit the assault rifle, bait and kill the whale, then beat the lava whale |
| RHIB ending | Return the tail to the scientist, take the RHIB keys, and start the RHIB |
Every stage above unlocks the next, so there’s no skipping ahead — the sections below walk each island’s story beat in the order you’ll hit them, with the Volcano finale getting the most detail because that’s where the run is decided.
Setting up for a clean finish
Play co-op if you can. Bosses fall faster with more guns, but the real advantage is that teammates can revive each other instead of dying outright and losing the run. Keep food on you at all times too — eating heals, so a pocket full of cooked fish is what carries you through fights that would otherwise put you down. Early on, skip the pistol and buy the shotgun; it’s the weapon that stays useful across several islands.
The final boss is the one fight worth preparing for specifically. You’ll want a maxed assault rifle with every attachment applied and as big a reserve of lava-cooked fish as you can haul, because that fight is a war of attrition. One more thing: the Bean achievement — finishing the whole game inside an hour — is a separate speedrun goal that belongs on its own dedicated save. Don’t fold it into your first normal playthrough; keep the two runs on two different save files.
Clearing Islands 1 through 4
Island 1: kill the beer thief
Rage-bait the long-legged creature stealing the lighthouse keeper’s beer using an empty beer can, kill it, and bring it back to him.
Island 1: beat the boss for boat keys
The island’s boss drops a shell you cash in for the boat keys, which unlock sailing onward.
Island 2: upgrade the engine
Buy the $230 engine at the shack next to the old man so the boat can push to the next island.
Island 2: finish the forest lady’s dinner
Collect 3 leeches from the tall grass, give them to the lady for her boss lure, fish up and kill the piranha boss, then bring its tail back — the tail is the dinner that closes the quest.
Island 3: start the grill and help the tourist
Get the grill going with the island’s lure and help the vacationing tourist, the two beats that move you past Island 3.
Island 4: buy the best engine and beat the bird
Purchase the top-tier engine, then defend the islanders from the terrorizing seagull boss to open the way to the Volcano.
Finishing Island 5 and triggering the ending
Reach the Volcano
Sail to Island 5; the game hitches for a moment as the Volcano loads in, which is how you know you’ve arrived.
Lava-cook a stockpile
Lava cooks at a flat 1.5x with no timing risk, so cook everything you plan to sell and stack a large pile of cooked fish before either boss — you can’t over-prepare.
Max out the assault rifle
Apply every attachment to a single assault rifle; you need it fully kitted for the lava whale anyway.
Bait the whale
Give the scientist 5 fish of any kind — dynamite in the water is the fastest way to round them up — and he hands over the whale bait.
Fish up and kill the whale
It charges and launches into the sky to stomp you, so dodge, shoot, and eat to heal.
Throw the whale into the volcano
Dumping the dead whale into the volcano spawns the final boss.
Beat the lava whale
This lava-themed boss rolls, stomps, and fires lava meteorites across the arena — dodge the lava pools as much as the boss, and in phase 2 it stomps constantly and dives to shoot down at you.
Return the tail to the scientist
The lava whale drops a tail; carry it back to the scientist — your military contact in the hazmat suit — and he gives you the RHIB keys.
Start the RHIB
Starting the RHIB plays the ending, the tail buying your RHIB keys neatly mirroring the shell that bought your boat keys back on Island 1.
Walk into the lava whale fight with as many lava-cooked fish as you can carry — eating is your only real heal, and that stockpile is usually the difference between a clear and a wipe.
Cleanup after the ending
Finishing the game doesn’t lock you out of anything. The credits drop you back on Island 1 with every weapon, upgrade and skin you owned, and all five islands stay open to sail between freely. That’s deliberate, and it’s the smart moment to mop up the fiddlier achievements — fast boss kills, trick shots and creature-collection gaps are all trivial once you’re carrying endgame gear and can revisit any island at will.
The move, then, is to push straight through the story first and save the collectible-style goals for this post-game state, rather than burning boss attempts on them mid-run.
Skip the save-edit and Island 5 shortcuts
You may run across tricks that promise to teleport you to the Volcano — editing a save file’s island value, or sailing close to Island 5 and reconnecting to warp there. Leave them alone for a normal completion: the shortcut that jumped ahead to the final island was patched out and no longer works, so a run built on it can strand you. Play the islands in order and you’ll never hit that wall.
Related How to Fish guides
Frequently Asked Questions
How do you finish How to Fish on Steam?
To finish How to Fish by Dazed Games, kill the lava whale on Island 5, take the tail to the scientist, get the RHIB keys, start the RHIB, and watch the ending.
Does killing the final boss end the game?
No. The final boss drops a tail, and you must give that tail to the scientist to receive the RHIB keys and trigger the ending.
What is the final boss in How to Fish?
The final boss is the lava whale, a harder lava-themed version of the whale that rolls, stomps, fires lava meteorites, and becomes more aggressive in phase 2.
What gear should you use for the final boss?
Use a maxed assault rifle with all attachments and carry as many lava-cooked fish as you can for healing.
What achievement unlocks when you finish the game?
Finishing the game unlocks We are so back. Bean unlocks only if you finish the game within 1 hour.
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