Fishing for Your Soul: Why Loan Shark is the Year’s Most Unsettling 30 Minutes on Xbox

The Bottom Line: Studio Ortica’s Loan Shark has finally migrated from Steam to Xbox Series X|S, bringing a suffocating blend of debt-driven dread and body horror to the console. At a lean 30-minute runtime and a budget-friendly £4.19 price point, it’s a masterclass in "short-form" horror that respects your time while ruining your sleep. If you’re looking for a relaxing weekend at the lake, stay far away from this one.

The Death of "Cozy" Fishing

We’ve spent decades playing fishing sims that prioritize the "zen" of the catch—titles like Bassmaster or Fishing Sim World are built for relaxation. But lately, we’ve seen a brilliant, darker shift in the meta. Following the trail blazed by Dredge and Iron Lung, Loan Shark strips away the peace and replaces it with desperation.

You aren't out there for sport; you’re out there because you’re drowning in debt. The "talking fish" trope is subverted here with Cagliuso, a creature that offers you a way out of your financial hole at the cost of your humanity. Our analysis suggests this works so well because it mirrors real-world anxieties—the crushing weight of obligation—and manifests it as a literal monster in the dark.

Mechanics That Bite Back

In most games, fishing is a minigame you do to unwind. In Loan Shark, the mechanics are designed to induce anxiety. We’ve broken down the core gameplay loop that makes this work:

• The Eye-Cam: Fly-fishing via an unsettling underwater perspective that forces you to watch threats approach in real-time.
• Precision Gutting: A risk-reward system where one slip of the knife means self-injury. It’s tactile, gross, and perfectly mirrors the protagonist's fraying nerves.
• The Clock: Every second spent on the water is a second the "Loan Shark" gets closer. It’s a relentless pace that prevents you from ever feeling safe.

Why the 30-Minute Runtime is a Power Move

The biggest mistake modern horror games make is "bloat." We’ve all played 20-hour horror titles that lose their edge by hour five. Loan Shark avoids this by being a "single-sitting" experience. It’s a concentrated dose of misery that doesn't overstay its welcome. By the time you realize how much trouble you're in, the credits are rolling, and the psychological impact is far heavier than if it had been dragged out with "fetch quests" or unnecessary filler.

While some players might balk at paying four quid for 30 minutes, we argue this is the "Information Gain" of the year: you are paying for quality over quantity. In an era of 100-hour open-world slogs, a game that knows exactly what it wants to say—and says it in the time it takes to eat lunch—is a breath of fresh (if slightly salty) air.

The Verdict: Cast Your Line, But Watch Your Fingers

We believe Loan Shark is an essential pick-up for anyone who appreciates the "new wave" of indie horror. It doesn't rely on cheap jump scares; it relies on the atmospheric dread of making bad decisions for what feel like the right reasons. It isn't on Game Pass yet, but at this price point, it doesn't need to be. Support the developers who are willing to get weird with the genre.

Senior Editor’s Tip: Play this with a good headset. The audio design—the creak of the boat, the wet slap of the fish, and Cagliuso’s surreal dialogue—is 70% of the experience. Just don't blame us when you start looking at your bank statement with the same fear you look at the dark water.