Recent reviews by okilubb

Updated for 08 October 2020 Feature Update.

You REALLY SHOULDN'T play Big Farm Story, at least not in its current early access state.

I bought the game because I play the Big Farm Mobile Harvest on Android and getting to level 15 in this game grants me a substantial amount of gold (the cash currency) and a helpful decoration. The value of gold to price paid is very good, however, if you don't play Big Farm Mobile Harvest, then I don't recommend this game at all. If you do play and are getting this game for the gold and deco too, please know it's not going to be the most pleasant grind to level 15. (Also, save your money, don't buy the premium edition, it's absolutely not worth it.)

The Short:

• Oh! Cute!
  
• Clicking for everything
  
• I don't want a mobile game, I thought bought a computer game...

Quick Tips:

• Take all the gathering/ability perks when they show up so you can get more products.
  
• Don't sell anything to the farm box unless your inventory is full.

The Long:
I love farming games.
From Harvest Moon back on SNES to Rune Story to the wide array of things to get done in Stardew Valley to customizing oh so much in My Time at Portia.
I even play and enjoy Big Farm Mobile Harvest on my phone made by this same developer.

But oh, where to begin with Big Farm Story ... how about by looking at the few positives:

1. Absolutely adorable graphics -> The style is cute and fun feeling all around from the characters down to the scenery.
   
2. Customize your place -> It's not completely freestyle, but you can change the look of your buildings and some furniture both in your house and around your farm. Adds a nice bit of personalization. (It's still early access and seems pretty clear they intend to add more.)
   
3. The level ups -> Now I do not know if the choices are static or random (I don't think my sanity could handle levelling up another character), but the fact you get 3 choices for your level up perk to choose from makes the game something you can tailor more to your own playstyle.

Alright, there really wasn't much else to compliment, so on to the problems.
Please note that I am not including any bug/glitch related items as these are expected in an Early Access game. But you should expect to encounter some if you decide to purchase and play. They are however, addressing bugs and glitches with hotfixes and updates. Please be sure to report bugs and glitches using the Support button in-game.

I am pretty disappointed with my purchase of Big Farm Story.

• The level ups -> Because this was also a pro, I'm going to slip it in at the beginning of the cons. As I said, I do not know if the choices are static or random, but if they are random, a playthrough could get totally screwed over by just not getting functional perk choices. Although it seems like you have a choice of 3, due to the insane costs involved when choosing certain perks, gameplay would progress much slower, in my opinion, if you selected those first. Also, I do not enjoy that they force you to choose certain perks in order to complete quests. Either have a quest for each possible perk and have it start up when the perk is selected or don't have any quests tied to the level up perks. Receiving a quest that I can't complete for 3 levels, only because the perk I needed didn't show up is frustrating, to say the least.
  
• The Gameplay -> It's a pretty decent mobile game, except it's not a mobile game and they're charging $20 for it. It is very clear from the beginning that this is a game developed by people who make mobile games of the pay-to-win/idle variety. Only, they haven't implemented the pay-to-win structure here yet... So many mechanics feel built around the possibility of spending real-world money to speed them up but you are unable to do so (nor should you at this price tag), so you end up just waiting all the time.
  
• The Story -> It's flat, super simplistic and overall very lacking. It really doesn't count as a cohesive story as it's currently just discreet quests to teach aspects of the game. I do realize it is early access, but with a name like "Big Farm Story", you would expect that it would be a priority.
  
• The NPCs -> They are also flat and serve no other function than whatever they do for specific quests. You can still open a dialogue with them, only to be greeted with the sole conversation option of "End Conversation" (Should that really count as a conversation needing an end? XD)
  
• Controls -> Shouldn't really be plural. You LMB everything. There are a few keyboard inputs to quick access certain info screens, but they could not be there and it wouldn't change the game any. It's a computer game, isn't it? Why can't we WASD for movement? Am I expected to be so bored with this game that they make sure my other hand is free to play mobile games at the same time?
  
• The Weird Hybrid System -> The game has two types of products. Type 1: Governed by real-time passing. Type 2: Respawns only at the start of a new in-game day. Time in the game NEVER stops. Also, you cannot advance to the next day manually; you have to wait for it to get there itself. This means if you've gathered everything and your farm plots are full but it's only midday, you can't do anything else in the game until it gets through the rest of the day. (Yes I know fish can respawn but that's only 3-5 nodes and it takes less than a minute to gather them.) This also points to the mobile game aspect; it feels like they expect you to close out the game and open it back up again for a short period several times a day. That's just not what computer games are for. This also ties into the next bit...
  
• Idle Game -> It's really not a farming game... Until later when you have done the grind to afford the additional farm plots, farming is a much smaller aspect of the game than a name like "Big Farm Story" would lead you to believe. The market contracts are also problematic. If you can't produce what it's asking for, you can 'recycle' for a new one. But that new one takes real-world time to load in, and that time increases with every level you gain or the market itself gains. On the phone game, you can watch an ad to speed along the timer. In this game, you can't. You just get to wait. There is no saying "I'm done with this day, let's get on with it" and advancing to the new day, you just have to sit and wait for the timers to tick down. (I know I mentioned that already, but it bears repeating.)
  
• The Grind -> Oh my goodness... The cost of things is ridiculous. 600 gold to unlock your 3rd farm plot might not seem like a lot until you take into consideration that most of what you can sell gives you only 1 gold at the farm box or up to 3 gold if you get a market contract for it. Plus, planting anything nets you ONLY ONE single crop to use/sell. And everything needs gold. Repairing the buildings. Upgrading the buildings. Unlocking the plots. Increasing your inventory (there are 5 different kinds and they all have to be increased separately).
  
• Extra clicking for no reason -> This pops up in several areas but deserves its own point. If, when I click on an empty farm plot, the only option is to plow, why do I have to tell it to plow? Why not simply have the action for the empty farm plot be plow it. Same with a seeded plot (water) and ripe crop (harvest). I also think this should apply to those "End Conversation" only 'dialogues'.
  
• The Pets -> While cute and now nameable, the leveling system for the pets just adds to the grind of game. They do NOT level based on being your companion nor by finding things for you. They are only leveled with increasing amounts of treats.

If you made it through all that, congrats. And thank you. Hopefully this helped you out in some way, shape or form to not waste your time or spend your money on Big Farm Story.

You REALLY SHOULDN'T play Inside the Gear.

I don't remember how much I paid (I'm sure it was on sale though), and I don't think it was worth it. At under a $1, it might be low enough that I wouldn't care so much. But really, save your money.

The Short:

• Puzzle concepts are definitely interesting and potentially challenging
  
• Physics game with higly questionable physics (absurd at times)
  
• No mouse or controller support
  
• Sound is awful (but there is always mute)
  
• Name suggests something more mechanical than actual experience

Quick Tips:

• If at first you don't succeed, try again, or you know, just hit the button again and get different results with the same setup.
  
• Using your brain is important ... just maybe not for this game.

The Long:
Oh, where to begin ... how about by looking at the few positives:

1. Cheap -> Even at full price the game is $5 (USD). Some people might even consider that price as a 'throw away' game. I, on the other hand, don't think it's worth that price, and you get very limited gameplay. Took me 2.5 hours to finish all the levels (I did get stuck twice and I wouldn't say I enjoyed those 2.5 hours), and there's no replay value, achievements, anything really.
   
2. Challenging -> The puzzles themselves are actually quite good in concept and difficulty level, but there isn't a logical organization to the difficulty so you'll go from a puzzle where you get stuck to a puzzle that is extremely simple. A learning curve sequence would have made more sense.
   
3. Laughs -> Did have a couple of good laughs at how the lifesaver (it looks more like a lifesaver candy than a gear) reacted in different situations.

Alright, there really wasn't much else to compliment, on to the problems.

I can't accurately describe how disappointed I am with my purchase of Inside the gear.

• Physics -> Or rather, the altered physics governing the game. I understand that we don't know the material properties of the objects in question, but even taking that into account doesn't excuse the atrocious interaction of the objects with 'physics'. Not even gravity works correctly or consistently in the game...
  
• Solutions -> Many of the puzzles gave the impression that solving them involved a lot less of using any kind of physics and more just positioning the objects where the dev intended.
  
• Consistency -> Relates to the other items as well. But when playing a physics game and there are no changing variables (wind speed for instance), then the same setup should yield the same results. This is not the case with this game. Using the exact same setup will yield either the same, similar or even WILDLY DIFFERENT results... WTF?
  
• Sounds -> They are pretty bad, and if you choose to mute them, you'll miss out on clues to whether the lifesaver is still moving or not.
  
• Controls -> No controller or mouse support. Not the worst thing in the world, but does make things more frustrating. There is also no way to 'fine tune' the position of the items. Had the rest of the game been enjoyable, I would not have cared about this.

If you made it through all that, congrats. And thank you. Hopefully this helped you out in some way, shape or form to not suffer with Inside the Gear.

You REALLY SHOULD play NEO Scavenger. (If you enjoy survival and rouge-like games especially.)

If the price is too much for you, wishlist it and grab it on sale, but it's well worth the full price. I bought it at full price for myself and have grabbed several copies at various prices for friends. (PS: There's a free demo so you can try it without buying it.)

The Short:

• Incredibly addictive and fun ... you may be surprised at how easily it sucks you in
  
• File save is bit of a con, but there are steps you can take to prevent game loss
  
• Learn from experience and past mistakes
  
• RNG hates everyone sometimes

Quick Tips:

• Reading is important ... be sure you do that.
  
• Using your brain is important ... be sure you do that too.
  
• Your first character WILL die ... and so will many more. Expect it and enjoy the ride.
  
• Until you get some experience with the game, I recommend stacking your skills to how you want to play then branch off and try other skills later.
  i.e. If you prefer to avoid combat, take hiding, athletics (running away) and tracking (seeing where others are/have been).

The Long:
I wanted to first address some of the issues presented in the couple negative reviews I saw in the hopes that it presents some additional perspective.

1. "It's too hard" -> Grow up. You can't (and shouldn't) expect to win a game on your first time out. There's a learning curve. It's a fantastic addition to the game.
   
2. "The Interface" -> It is different, yes. It can be difficult sometimes, yes. But every game out there has a different UI from one another. Just takes some getting used to.
   
3. "Too random" -> Honestly, I think this makes each time you play so wonderfully different than the last ... But for a large amount of the random items you get an indication of how things will go. What items will you get? What enemies? Will you find food or starve? There's dice rolls involved, and sometimes it sucks. A lot. (After saving to buy a really expensive item, only to die just outside the city to a creature type I had defeated several times in the past... I was so angry. It even managed to stop me from playing ... for like a day. Then it was a 'how can I do this better' situation.) Sometimes sh*t happens, we just have to pick up and keep going.
   
4. "Permadeath" -> ?? ... It's a SURVIVAL game ... If there was no permadeath, then there would be no survival! If dying means nothing, then surviving means nothing...
   
5. "Save game system" -> Yep, it's flash. Yes, it can get wiped if you clear your web files. Yes, it can't save if you have flash blocked. It's not perfect, but it's how this particular game was made. Over 100 hours played (plus 10 or so on the demo before I purchased it), and I have not had any issue with losing a saved game.
   
6. "Poor graphics" -> Ok. Yes, it's not the out-of-this-world 3D modeled everything that make for pretty cutscenes, but I don't think the graphics detract from the gameplay experience. Look at it one of two ways: It's charmingly retro, OR It's a post-apocalyptic game where civilization has collapsed and tech is very limited so this was what could be produced ;)
   
7. Some info lacking -> Not in the reviews I saw, but definitely an issue I had with the game. Additional info about certain items should be available from NPCs at least. I can understand the character not instantly knowing all the information about a particular item (weapon for instance), but a guard probably should or a shopkeep. Why can't I ask them so I don't have to guess it's effective range or drawbacks?

I think those were the main things that caught my eye. Now on to the good stuff!

I wish under "Do you recommend this game?" there was an option for "Abso-freaking-lutely!"
I love this game. I'm not even sure I could explain exactly why. But I do.
It's single player only, but my friends and I have mused at how this could work multi-player. (We have no clue.) But for now, it's entertaining to narrate little stories about our adventures while we play. (One friend turned to cannibalism... oh the stories with those playthroughs...)

• There is lots of... -> There's lots of items. There's lots of ways to use items. There's lots of status effects. There's lots of ways to die. There's lots of ways to live. There's lots of area to explore. There's lots of places to scavenge. There's lots of pockets and bags. There's lots of ways to interact.
  
• Common sense is useful... -> Drinking dirty water might make you sick. Eating rotten food will very probably make you sick. A sling's effective range isn't as far as a rifle's. A meat cleaver will hurt more than a fist. Freezing is bad. Wearing a left shoe on my right foot will give me blisters. A tree provides a better hiding spot than bare, open ground. Etc...
  
• Living is hard... -> This is no piece of cake. Nor should it be. Surviving in a post-apocalyptic world on your own with nothing but a hospital gown would be VERY difficult, if not impossible, for most. NEO Scavenger brings this reality to us with rng, some punishing encounters and permadeath. The better suited you are for battle, the better you will do, but victory is never guaranteed.
  
• That's not how it went last time... -> Ah, good old RNG. Always remembered for being infuriating and not for the times you should have died, but didn't. Just as places, items, scavenge results, etc... are random, so are the creatures/NPCs. Their stats can vary from one to another even if they are the same type (although the same types will have a range for stats). It keeps the game varied as you really don't know if that creature will attack viciously or run after a few wounds.
  
• What happens next... -> The story and writing are quite enjoyable. Drawing you in and making you want to keep coming back and progress to find out what's going to happen. There's the occassional, "wtf did that just say?" But overall, it's a definite pro. Like I said, reading is important.

If you made it through all that, congrats. And thank you. Hopefully this helped you out in some way, shape or form to enjoy NEO Scavenger.