Recent reviews by Kimrazz

I was really excited for Wanderstop, especially as a huge fan of The Stanley Parable and The Beginner's Guide. Those games deeply shaped how I think about narrative in games, and the marketing leaned into that legacy, highlighting creator Davey Wreden and his struggles with burnout.

I expected something unexpected: a game disguised as a cozy tea-making sim but hiding a deeper twist. And in a way, that’s what I got: Wanderstop presents itself as cozy, but it’s actually about burnout, transformation, and learning to sit with discomfort. You play as Alta, a warrior forced to pause her quest and run a tea shop, serving strange visitors in a magical clearing. The setup becomes a clear allegory for dealing with burnout, emotional exhaustion, and accepting change.

There’s a lot to admire here: the handling of burnout feels personal and is also originally epxressed into gameplay. I also appreciated the game's quieter reflections: on letting go of people, learning to live with stillness, and finding peace in inaction. The art style is beautiful, and so is the soundtrack by C418.

That said, I struggled to connect. The narrative never really grabbed me, and I found the gameplay tedious. I didn’t care much for the characters or the tea-making mechanics, and despite its cozy label, it all felt a bit like a chore. The message of the game is clear, maybe too clear, leaving little room for interpretation.

In the end, while I respect what the game was trying to do, it left me disappointed. Maybe it just wasn’t meant for me.

This game is a raw gem.

First of all: don't go in expecting a fully polished horror experience with mind-bending puzzles or next-gen graphics.
This game was developed by a single dev in four months, and its purpose is to showcase the creatures and monsters he creates as part of his job.
So yes, the controls are a bit clunky, it has some graphical artifacts and optimization issues, and the gameplay essentially just consists in finding keys scattered throughout simple levels. Make sure you take this aspects into considerations before buying, or consider buying during sales.

With that out of the way, I really enjoyed the experience this game has to offer: you will wander through a mystical dark place, where you will have the opportunity to visit three "nightmares" and the spooky creatures inside them. I also really enjoyed the bits of humor and craziness, and the small easter eggs scattered around.

The creature designs, aesthetics and environments is where this game really really shines: the dev is clearly talanted and passionate about his work, and has been relentlessly working to improve the game even after launch. This kind of attitude is what makes game development so cool and I think it really deserves praise. As I said above, the game has a lot of problems here and there and more months of polishing would be required in my opinion (probably even the dev is aware of this), but it has all the potential to become a really cool short experience, worth even more than the current price-tag.

Finally, I think this game is a really cool and inspiring example of what can be achieved even by a single developer, with all the new creative tools we have available today. The dev admittedly used AI to generate voice-over and music: while I don't fully endorse this kind of generated content, this is an example of how AI can be used as a tool when backed by a careful and tasteful supervision (I would still prefer "real" music and voice actors in an hypothetical future, polished version of the game though).

TL:DR: Play the game, and enjoy the nightmares of the Amygdala! ;)