Recent reviews by TragicTheGathering

it's berry good

My first impression of Brighter Shores is it's very chill. It's charming, easy to love, and isn't asking for a lot in terms of skill - and you know what, sometimes that's exactly what we're looking for! I don't want to learn a rotation! I just want to smack my sword enough times until the bandit is dead! In a nutshell, Brighter Shores focuses on these short and sweet little "chapters", which can be completed in a single main story quest. So far, progressing through each chapter only required a little bit of a grind, and probably only a little bit more than what you would have been doing anyway, as you play through the game at your own pace. But for other quests, it might take a bit more work.

There is no denying that there is a grind involved. And you know, for the right player, this is perfect. And this is probably exactly what they're after. But a grind can actually be done well if the leveling is just quick enough, and offers just enough variety. And I do think Brighter Shores is on to that. While I can only really speak for the early levels (no more than 25 on any profession at the moment), I do notice that levels are gained at a fairly steady pace, and as you level, whether it is a combat profession, a crafting profession, or a gathering one, the game does offer enough variety where I am not forced to chop the same tree 7000 times or craft the same bacon sandwich 7000 times. In a nutshell, it moves you along, as you gain your levels, and as you move along to other areas, to do your little tasks, you meet others doing the same thing...and there's just something a bit charming about that.

The real question is, which I have yet to find an answer for, is about whether or not the grind is required. Will I ever need to be level 50? 500? My hope is that there will be rewards for those who want to go great lengths for shiny capes, but there will still be room for players who are just...chillin'.

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A masterpiece tbh

Minami Lane has some elements of city builders, but on a very small scale. In Minami Lane, it's about trying to build a street that best serves it's residents. In this game you will build shops, housing, parks, and other recreational buildings. The purpose of this game is to try and meet the needs of both young and older residents who live on the street. You'll notice that all residents have specific wants and needs. It's your job to try and find a way to make Minami Lane a great place to live for everyone.

Pros:

The art style is really cute, and beyond that, the game offers quite a lot of customization to make Minami Lane your own. Although a lot of the building is based on strategy, you are able to customize the colors and roofs of your buildings. Later on, you can also unlock and build another building that allows you to make those customizations anytime you want.

It's well designed in the way that it's short, but feels very robust and engaging while playing. I completed this game in approximately 15 hours, with 15/20 achievements completed. I do think the time it takes to complete the game is probably even shorter.

You can enjoy the game fast-paced, more engaged, or even as kind of an idler if you want. The game can really work for you, on your terms, and that's one of the cool things about it. Some of the time I raced through several days on max speed, ignoring the daily quests, while other times I gave more of my attention to pet every cat (yes, you can pet cats!!!), wave at every passerby on a bike, and read the thought bubbles of many residents.

It offers a very "cozy" amount of strategy - just enough to keep you engaged, but not so much that it's ever frustrating.

There is also a light touch of what you'd find in a hidden object game, and I think it a really cute and engaging addition to the game!

Cons:

I honestly really don't have any! It's quite perfectly done! Bravo to the devs!

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I have to say, I was immediately drawn in to this game, even within the first couple of minutes. Already I have logged 12 hours into Garden In! and every moment I've felt engaged and relaxed. I love to collect plants at home, so of course, I knew this would be something I'd enjoy.

In Garden In! your plants can't wither and die, so you can safely put the game down whenever you want or need to. The purpose of this game is to simply grow many different types of plants and build your plant encyclopedia.

You start off in a small studio space with a desk and a couple of shelves. From there you can fill your space with dozens of plants. As you water them, they flower and bloom. As you grow different plants, you can open up your encyclopedia and learn their scientific name, family free, and soil type. One of my favorite parts about this game is being able to keep track of every plant and enjoy the illustrations in the encyclopedia. The art style is really cute and colorful! As you gain achievements, which you can also track, you will unlock more furniture, decor, and even larger rooms!

The best part of all? You can pet them! Yes, you can pet your plants! When your plants are happy, they'll have little pink hearts above them, and that's when they'll want a little affection from their virtual plant Mom or Dad.

If you enjoy games where you can decorate your own little space, such as in the Sims, Animal Crossing, or even Disney Dreamlight Valley, I think you will really enjoy this cute little plant idler. It is, of course, just a small snippet in comparison to these other titles, but can really be enjoyed casually.

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Roots of Pacha is a pixel Farming and Life Sim, much like Stardew Valley. What makes this title unique is it's set in the Stone Age, where much of the game is based on exploring the early days of civilization. It featuring multiple clans, romancing characters, mounts, and a variety of simple puzzles and mini-games. It's very well received on Steam, with majority of reviews being "Very Positive", it is also recommended by Wholesome Games. It offers Online Co-op and Steam Achievements.

If you enjoy pixel graphics, you will definitely enjoy the pixel graphics in this game. It is so well done, including the animations. The dance animations (which you can "emote" at any time) is by far my favorite.

The mini-games adds so much variety and charm to the game. Fishing offers a mini-game, as well as taming wild animals by "attuning" to their spirits through song. This feature alone is probably my favorite so far. This mini-game involves playing a variety of different songs by flute in order to get the animals to trust you.

The progression might feel a little slow. I think, considering the setting of this game, it probably makes sense that it is slow. Additionally, there isn't much in terms of an explicit tutorial. Maybe that is also intentional?

The caves appear to be a focal point in resource gathering and it is very expansive, sort of designed as a maze.

Although I feel the game lacks guidance, it is also fairly simple enough where you can navigate it without feeling stuck or lost along the way. Crafting exists within the inventory menu, and the map opens up to different biomes as you progress through the game. Crafting stations expand as you "discover ideas", which unlocks through quests with different characters.

The world (and your clan) evolves over time as the clan gains Prosperity. As your clan gains Prosperity, new structures and improvements can be made. You can watch as your clan develops new ideas and evolves!

The currency system (Contribution) is really interesting and is well-developed into the story. Like mentioned above, Prosperity goes hand-in-hand with Contribution. Everything your character contributes (dropping items into a kind of "donation" box), as well as the entire clan, raises the clan's Prosperity. Your clan grows and becomes stronger by contributing items, and each item has a value. This value is then used as currency to exchange for medicine, tools, clothing, furniture (for your little hut!) and even buildings.

Overall, I think Roots of Pacha has a lot to offer if you can be patient and stay the course.

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Nova Lands is a factory building, exploration, and island management game designed around this super adorable pixel space themed universe. In this game, you're a cute little explorer who has just landed on a remote planet, and it's your job to bring industry and grow your community amongst the stars! As you progress through the game, you'll be able to build yourself your own little rocket ship, which will take you to the space station. It's up to you to bring this once thriving intergalactic marketplace back to life! "End game" involves crafting difficult items, shipping them off to be sold, and further growing and developing the space station. Meet cute characters with adorable art along the way!

What makes this title different from others in this genre is it really is designed to be casual, relaxing experience. If you've played other automation, factory building or management type games, you may recall that they can be quite stressful and overwhelming. Unlike other titles, such as Satisfactory, Nova Lands isn't as expansive, and therefore, likely much less stressful. It does not require a ton of strategy to master.

Beyond factory building, there is a lot more to be done in Nova Lands. As you continue to unlock other biomes and explore the planet, you'll discover monuments and their guardians. These are tough bosses to overcome. Here's the interesting thing about that, though - you don't have to fight them. You can, instead, befriend these guardians. How adorable is that?!

There is some combat in this game, but there are ways to develop your gaming experience to avoid as much combat as possible. As you unlock skills each level, you can make certain animals docile, as well as craft fighter bots to do the combat for you. Along with befriending the guardians, you can nearly skip most combat available in this game if you choose to.

If collectathons are your thing (games that involve creature collecting, or some kind of collection/museum activity) there is a bit of that too in Nova Lands!

Overall, I think Nova Lands is a great introduction to the factory building and automation genre, especially if you haven't tried them before. If you have, but you find those games kind of stressful or challenging, I recommend starting here. This is a great game to learn the genre! Also ALIENS! And space travel!

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Cozy Productivity? Yes Please!

Cozy Time is a productivity tracker, idler, and pomodoro focus timer available on Steam. Right away, I’d like to share that it is definitely more of an app than a game, but I still think it is well worth the small price tag ($2.99) just based on the cute aesthetic and usefulness alone!

Although there are other similar apps on Steam, such as Chill Corner and Virtual Cottage, there is something that Cozy Time has that the others do not – and that’s the cozy element. The animations, along with the music are very relaxing, and perfect for study, work, or chores. It also includes a to-do list, and various customization. You can upload your own background image and music. The music the developer used (many titles by Aakash Gandhi) are cozy piano ballads that I really enjoy and will definitely be adding to my own writing, working, or studying playlist!

Probably the most clever addition to Cozy Time is the user is rewarded from completing their tasks with points, which can then be used to decorate their room. As you continue to use the app, you can obtain more poses for your character, as well as upgrade your furniture, and unlock new pets. This reward system is motivating and makes Cozy Time very special.

Cozy Time also includes a calendar that tracks your daily activities within the app, as well as atmospheric changes, such as changing the weather and time of day within the app.

If you already use task and productivity trackers or apps, especially paid ones, I highly recommend giving Cozy Time a try! If you’re a fan of pomodoro timers (being productive for a set amount of time, such as 25 minutes, and then giving yourself a 5 minute rest), or have been interested in trying this time management method, I think this is a great introduction to that. You may be surprised how effective it is, for both perfectionists, and those who suffer from procrastination. Cozy Time encompasses many different elements to help the user avoid mental fatigue and burnout.

As a recent returning student, I’ve been looking for ways to optimize my study routine, and I have a good feeling that this app will prove to be very helpful!

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Wylde Flowers is a ~cottage cozy~ farming and life sim, where you play as a young witch named Tara. After her fiance dumps her, and she loses her job as a journalist, she decides to ditch the city life for Fairhaven. By day, Fairhaven is a charming coastal town. By night, well, that’s when the *magic* happens!

After about 50 hours of gameplay, and almost through the coven questline, I realized that Wylde Flowers was the best example of how sometimes a game can really surprise you! This is a game I often glanced at, but had never purchased. When I finally got my hands on it, I was so glad I did. I’ve been playing this off and on for almost a week, while fighting off a nasty bug. As someone who does not manage being sick very well, this game offered me the calm and relaxation when I really needed it.

I’d also like to note that it was the Uplifting Adventures Game Bundle by Humble Bundle, curated by Wholesome Games, that finally gave me a chance to experience such a great game. The bundle is still on sale for 10 more days! (ends 12/20/23) And the minimum price for the entire 8-item bundle is $20. Pay more to support Save the Children.

Pros:

It’s beautiful. It is truly a magical, delightful escape, and I can see myself putting in many more hours to escape to the magical world of Fairhaven and Ravenwood Hollow. The art style is very charming, very cottage-core, or perhaps ~cottage cozy~ !
Fairies, goblins, and werewolves (and yes, you can even romance the werewolf…!) Potions, incantations, and a crystal ball! It’s all the witchy magical stuff that makes this game so special.
The magic and spell casting is so charming, but all of the crafting in this game is very well done. There are tons of crafting stations, magical included, but it doesn’t feel overwhelming or confusing at all. It does not feel like a grind, either. Taking the time to craft, including magical items, really does pay off. Think incantation that lets you shape shift into a cat for a day, or casting a spell that allows you to auto-loot all harvestables!
Fishing is simple, but unique. Not only is there a ton of fish to discover, but fishing can also provide cooking recipes as well. Fish is a staple in a lot of recipes and it’s a great way to make money in the game.
There is no tool wheel. No-need for swapping tools. The upgraded tool doesn’t break. Amazing.
Fantastic writing. Diverse and interesting characters with well-developed backgrounds. So much representation! There is a lot of story to be enjoyed here.
Did I mention you can marry a werewolf, from Alaska, who owns a bookshop? Because I feel like that’s a very important piece of information…

Cons:

You might forget what sleep is and stay up until 6 am living your best cottage-cozy life (while gazing lovingly at your werewolf bookworm husband…)
That’s it.

In a nutshell, I hope you consider giving Wylde Flowers a chance – I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised and perhaps even smitten.

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Everydream Valley is a cozy farming sim. It is one of many “on my way to fix up my grandpa’s trashed farm” and let’s start with the fences and chickens. Although there are definitely a lot of farming and life sims out there, this one does in fact check that cozy box. It is hands down one of the cutest and coziest I’ve played!

Pros:

-It’s freakin’ adorable! All the farm animals make me feel warm and fuzzy inside. Aesthetics alone, it’s got me coming back for more!
-Not only are they cute, but they TALK! (in your dreams – just like IRL heh)
-It’s very simple, straight-forward, easy to follow. There is a lot of guidance from your grandparents, whom are your guide as you progress through the game.
-Everything is accessible through the merchant. This can save time, especially when it comes to farming and exploring the map (the long way) when it comes to fulfilling quest objectives.
-Sawing wood, sheering wool and milking cows include a little mini-game! You can also skip this mini-game and 1-click auto-sheer wool, auto-milk cows, or auto-cut wood instead. This will give you less materials, but the option is there!
-There are also mini-games while you “dream” at night. This adds a little extra flavor to otherwise repetitive gameplay.

Cons:

-Progression is slow. This, for me, is what ultimately led me to put the game down after 36 hours of game play.
-Fast Travel…sucks. The owl is a cute (even cozy) concept, but it’s just not very effective at getting around the map. I was also 30+ hours in, and pretty far into the map before I even picked up my first owl. You need 2 owls to fast travel between 2 locations.
-It takes long to access your first mountable animal (pigs!) so it’s a lot of running back and forth to your farm, which after a while, gets quite repetitive and tiresome.
-Inventory could have been designed better, such as craft from chests, and better inventory management and sorting.
-The Treehouse takes very long to access (I didn’t even get far enough to obtain it *sad bear noises*) but I’ve picked up tons of furniture items for it, which I can’t place or use.
-Character creation and design isn’t my favorite. It feels lacking, and could really benefit from expanding these options, including in-game clothing options.

Ultimately, I think you should give Everdream Valley a try. If you’re all about cozy, you will enjoy this. It may even be more your pace than it has been for me! It also looks like the developers have been releasing updates, and hopefully, in time, there will be more content and items available.

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