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Watch trailer on Steam ↗Kernelbay
Nexent Games · Published by Nexent Games · Official site ↗
Very Positive — 92% positive (83 reviews) · 23 achievements
Last updated 28 Sept 2026
A tiny, cozy idle fishing desktop companion about quiet progress, handcrafted islands, and stories hidden beneath the waves. Discover new species, upgrade your gear, customize your gears and let your fisher work peacefully in the background.
£2.69
Lowest price we've ever recorded
View on SteamPrices can lag the live Steam store — always confirm before buying.
Price history
Indie, Casual · 2026 · More under £5 games
Explore Kernelbay's tranquil waters as you build your island paradise and catch unique fish. This indie casual game from 2026 offers a peaceful way to upgrade gear and let your fisher work in the background.
About this game
"Kernelbay is a tiny, cozy idle fishing desktop companion for quiet little moments."
More than a simple idle game, Kernelbay is a tiny cozy desktop companion built around a relaxing yet layered progression system. Follow your fisher from a humble dock to a chain of mysterious islands scattered across calm, fantastical seas. As the fishing loop unfolds, you’ll unlock new licenses, upgrade your gear, customize your boat, and uncover small surprises along the way.
There is no rush. No pressure. Only the sea and the quiet rhythm of progression.
Each island holds its own story, told through the unique creatures that inhabit its waters. As you unlock new licenses and discover new species, you reveal the hidden life of every island, one catch at a time.
The journey begins from a small dock. The fisher sets sail, casts the rod, and catches fish automatically while you go about your day. When storage is full or the boat reaches its travel limit, the fisher returns to port to unload the catch and prepare for the next fishing session.
With each return, you invest in better boats, stronger fishing rods, expanded storage, and improved range to explore farther waters. The loop continues, always present but never intrusive.
What starts as a simple fishing loop slowly evolves. Unlock fishing licenses to discover new species. Explore handcrafted islands, each presented as a miniature diorama floating in the ocean. Every new island brings unique fish, resources, and progression layers that keep the journey fresh and rewarding.
Kernelbay lives quietly on your desktop. Each island features its own wallpaper, which can automatically change as you progress, blending the world of the game into your workspace.
A curated soundtrack of 12 tracks (2 per island) evolves with your journey, creating a calm and cohesive atmosphere.
Lightweight and optimized, Kernelbay uses minimal resources, letting you work, browse, or relax while it runs seamlessly in the background.
System Requirements
Will my PC run this? →Minimum
- Requires a 64-bit processor and operating system
- OS: Windows 10 or 11
- Processor: Intel Core i3-6100 / AMD FX-6300
- Memory: 8 GB RAM
- Graphics: NVIDIA GTX 750 Ti / AMD Radeon R7 260X (2GB VRAM)
- Storage: 500 MB available space
Recommended
- Requires a 64-bit processor and operating system
Supported Languages
Latest news
AnnouncementsOfficial
🎣Kernelbay Demo is now available!
If you were curious about Kernelbay but still unsure, you can now try a small bite of the game with our new demo.Kernelbay is a cozy idle fishing game 🎣 that lives on your desktop as a small overlay. Sail, catch fish, discover new species, upgrade your boat, and explore handcrafted islands while the game quietly keeps you company in the background.The demo is available now on Steam ⛵Give it a try and let us know what you think!Read full article on Community Announcements (Yari)Patch NotesOfficial
📦 Kernelbay Update (v0.9.10)
📦 v0.9.10 — Patch Notes Hello fishers! 🎣 The Kernelbay community is growing and we're doing our best to keep up with all of you! You keep sharing great ideas to make the game better, and we're working hard to include as many as we can in every release. Thank you so much for your feedback, it truly makes a difference! Improvements👻 You asked, we delivered! Added a new transparency toggle in the Deck Menu, switch between fully visible, 50% transparent, and hidden to customize how the island blends with your desktop (check the image below) 👓 Improved readability of several UI elements. 🚂 Improved performance when closing the app. As always, keep the feedback coming, it really helps us make Kernelbay better for everyone! Island transparency toggleRead full article on Community Announcements (Nexent Team)Patch NotesOfficial
📦 Kernelbay Update (v0.9.9)
📦 v0.9.9 — Patch Notes Hey everyone! Thank you for all the feedback since launch — we're listening! This update includes a couple of improvements based on your suggestions. Improvements ↔️ Increased island zoom by 25% for a closer and more detailed view! 🚣♀️ Updated character animations 🖌️ Minor graphical enhancements As always, keep the feedback coming, it really helps us make Kernelbay better for everyone!Read full article on Community Announcements (Nexent Team)Patch NotesOfficial
📦 Kernelbay Update (v0.9.8)
📦 v0.9.8 — Patch Notes Hey everyone! Thank you for your patience and for all the reports — this update addresses the multi-monitor issues many of you experienced on launch day. Bug Fixes Fixed an issue where the island or UI panels could become hidden when dragged outside of the screen boundaries Fixed an issue where the game would start with elements stuck on a secondary monitor, even after reinstalling New Features Added a screen switching helper to easily move Kernelbay between monitors If you're still experiencing any issues after updating, please let us know. Thank you for your support! 🐟Read full article on Community Announcements (Nexent Team)Patch NotesOfficial
📦 Kernelbay Update (v0.9.7)
📦 v0.9.7 — Patch NotesIn this update, we introduced several improvements based on feedback from content creators who had early access to the game. Your support has been invaluable, not only in helping the game reach more people, but also for the attention and care with which you explored the depths (pun intended) of Kernelbay! Thank you!🐟FeaturesAdded Windowed Mode with a persistent background. This is especially useful for streamers using OBS or similar tools to capture only the game window, avoiding a plain black background during streams🎣Fixes & improvementsAudio levels are now properly balancedFine-tuned gear stats across all tiersThe first achievement can now be unlocked correctly"Level" achievements have been updated with the correct valuesMinor graphical improvementsImproved readability of the Logbook description textIslands no longer rotate when dragging windows over themFish caught count now updates immediately when entering the Licenses tabUser wallpaper is correctly restored when game is closedRead full article on Community Announcements (Yari)
