Yvonne van Geloven's Reviews
Varenje – Don’t Touch the Berries is a good point-and-click adventure with very interesting scenes to puzzle through. The solutions to move things along and reach the next chapter aren’t always logical. But judging by the slide shows in between the chapters, logic wasn’t what the developers were going for. These scenes felt jarring for me, as the things I saw and the texts didn’t fit the world I had just perused intensively. This makes it a game I wouldn’t let younger children play alone. Just in case you are curious: Varenje is a whole-fruit preserve popular across Eastern Europe. Hence the reference to the raspberries. According to the info about the game, Grandmother’s raspberry jam is a remedy for all ills, and it’s certainly the solution to right everything in the end. If only it was…
Are you looking for something sweet, short and innovative? Then, this little hidden object adventure is for you, offering great gameplay. Shy Cats Hidden Orchestra stands out in its genre because of the novel way music is used. Finding all the cats, but also finding which Tired of peering at the screen? No problem, just move on to the next landscape, and no need to get frustrated by having to find them all. You might find, however, that you can’t resist taking one more good look. Do you feel the game should be longer? Well, next year, the Shy Dog Hidden Orchestra will start performing, too!
At first, being stuck in the first hours of The Winds of Anthos because I had trouble finding silver, I was a bit disappointed. However, the game took off after solving that, giving me so much to do that I didn’t have enough hours in the gaming day. The quality of life shortcuts, the searching mechanism and setting markers really add to the fun of gaming. All the elements of a farming simulation are there, but the game doesn’t go about it in the traditional way. Basic things like finding seeds to sow and Doc Jr.’s inventions make this a farming game that is different from the others. Harvest Moon: The Winds of Anthos has made a big leap since their last game, One World. And if you play past a slightly unbalanced start of the game, you will find many, many hours of enjoyable farming and exploring in an innovative way
Although the base game is 14 years old, Rune Factory 3 Special still holds up well to what we expect from current-day gaming. And maybe even more, as farming really is harder than farming in newer farming sims. A summer storm can just as easily obliterate all your crops and leave you broke. Some quality-of-life additions are missing, but the visuals look great, and the interaction with the villagers is great. You’ll have many hours of lovely gameplay ahead, especially after unlocking the Newlywed Modes. If you are a fan of Farming/Crafting RPGs, this is a must to complete your collection on the Switch. The storyline is great, and the magic adds depth to the battles and gameplay. After all, who doesn’t want a big pumpkin fighting alongside you or have an Elefun to water the crops?
If reading what I’ve described above gives you a headache just by reading it, then I’d say this game is not for you. But if you like brain teasers like this or are studying to learn logic gates, this is a game for you. I really liked being challenged this way, fiddling as long as needed until it all fit. A no-frills game, Pure Logic offers you more than 200 unique puzzles. In my opinion, it would be even better at home on a mobile device!
Fluffy Milo is a no-frills sokoban-type puzzle game that has been on Steam for over a year and has now made the jump to consoles. I must say I’m no ace at puzzle games, but the levels don’t seem super challenging to me. This means, however, that it’s casual gaming, and nice to pick up and play during a coffee break.
Nowadays, we are used to the grand adventures of Ryza and company, and you can’t escape the fact that Atelier Marie is a more basic game. It focuses less on battles and exploration, and there might come a point in those five years of gameplay when you really miss new things to explore or items to make. What makes this game worth playing? Managing time and money, setting your Fairies to work as efficiently as possible and working with friends. It’s the events that add colour to the storyline and will keep you engaged to meet as many of the criteria as you can. Gust did a great job bringing us the Atelier Marie Remake. It gives new life to a 26-year-old title, bringing a new kind of gameplay to the table for gamers used to the later Atelier games.
Everdream Valley is not flawless. There are some bugs, as is usual in this large game, where every little detail counts. But developer Mooneater is showing their commitment to the project by picking up the reported bugs and remedying them. That’s not to say that the bugs (aside from the ones that belong in the game) are plentiful; the only major one I encountered is that on Switch, you can’t move structures (yet). What I love far outweighs these things; I’m enjoying my time on my farm immensely. Plenty of different crops, fruit, animals and things to explore. The addition of the night visions, when you inhabit an animal’s mind, may seem like a strange thing to add, but it works. It gives Everdream Valley just a little extra!
Marvelous did a great job on the remake, STORY of SEASONS: A Wonderful Life is a good game, even 20 years after its origins. You should be aware that STORY of SEASONS: A Wonderful Life tells the story of a farmer’s life. At first, there isn’t a huge variety of crops, fish and things to dig up. Still, your focus should be on trying to make the farm profitable and socializing with the people in the valley. The first chapter is only the intro. New things are introduced in the other chapters as well. And while your family expands, the other people in the valley get older, too and have their own stories. The management part of the game is deep, maybe even deeper than later Story of Seasons games. Soil quality is important, for example, and sometimes crops just wilt without any indication. The quality of milk is important and not constant over the seasons, and you can influence it by breeding your cow after a certain time. Overall, I think the fans of Story of Seasons will be pleased!
Grow on the Go is a good addition to the gardening games out there. It focuses on managing your shop, growing plants in several different regions of the world and finding new varieties like shiny plants and out-of-the-ordinary colours. Some small bugs need ironing out, but for the price, this is a lovely gardening game. Look at the world from your storefront window, and make your customers happy while surrounded by your green cute friends.
Playing Loop8: Summer of Gods, I debated about which rating to give. Often I know even from the start which way my verdict will go, but not so this time. At first, the town felt so barren, and I often felt like I was just clicking away. Suggesting as much as I could towards everyone I met. Eventually, I began to see how I should play the game, paying more attention to relationships and whose friendship I wanted the most. Plus, I did my best to max my stats with activities. I liked the battles; I would have loved more of them, not just on the days that the gate to the underworld was open. But what made me keep on doubting my verdict was the feeling of being an outsider. Sure, I tried to get closer to my classmates by making the right suggestions, but I would have loved more real background stories and feeling. When I suggest “Get to know better”, I really want to know the person! I am going for I Like It, as I feel Loop8: Summer of Gods has more potential. To get the A Lot added to the I Like It, I would have needed more fleshed-out characters to relate to, making forming an emotional bond less a matter of clicking away and more of really wanting to know them more!
To be honest, I had a hard time coming to a conclusion for Fairy Fencer F: Refrain Chord. I liked the battles, loved the music and disliked the banter between the characters. I mean, I really don’t want to read all about Harley wanting to do a body check to research the Fairies, about Eryn losing her panties during the night and if Fang found them and so on. It might be comedy to some, but not my kind of humour and I even found it off-putting. The story was interesting, however, and the battles made up for it. I liked the turn-based strategic battles and all the special stat-raising possibilities there are to make the battles as interesting as possible. The glittering colours on the battlefield from Aria’s songs weren’t to my liking; I found it hard to discern the characters and where to place their attack. But the idea of adding music as a tactic is nice.
You get 100 math puzzles to exercise your brain for a small price. The Answer is 42 is a minimalist game where you focus on the puzzle at hand. No timer, no scores to beat, just you and your goal to make coloured pathways that always accumulate to 42. Is 42 the Answer to the Ultimate Question of Life, The Universe, and Everything? I don’t know, but I do know this is a good math puzzle with no frills.
Alekon was a surprising game for me. I didn’t know what the game would be like playing a photography game, as it’s my first one. Exploring Alekon is lovely. I enjoyed finding new Fictions, or new poses for Fictions I already had in Dream’s Doorstep. The mini-games are imaginative and fun if you are into them. The quests often made me smile. For example, who thinks of a quest for you to translate an application to join Captain’s crew in pirate speak? Alekon is a fresh uptake on a photography game, with great text writing and lots of humour.
With the third, and, judging from the title, last Atelier Ryza game, Gust has done it again. Atelier Ryza 3: Alchemist of the End & the Secret Key is another gaming experience the fans will absolutely love. And even if you’re not a fan yet, this is an excellent title to jump into; watch the prologue in the game and see that the Atelier games are wonderful adventure RPGs. The main quest will keep you occupied for many, many hours with an excellent story, mysteries to solve, making stuff with alchemy and fighting monsters. It’s easy to get lost in this huge world and ‘smell the roses’. But unless you’re in a hurry, that may even be the best way to play, as it will give you many, many hours of good gaming fun. What could be better, travelling with friends on another grand adventure?
The fact that Choice of Life – Middle Ages 2 is released is good news for the fans of the first instalment. The charm of the first title is maintained, and this time more is added in content, making the story a little longer. The replayability is still there, as choices you make on the world map and the ones you make in picking cards influence the story. The game isn’t on the same level as Sorcery!, where you were actually reading a book. This is much more staccato, but the storyline is entertaining, even though I wasn’t a fan of the crude humour. And I feel that it’s not always logical to die from picking certain cards. But if you’re a fan of the first game, you’re gonna love this one too. And if it’s all new to you, this is a good entry point as you don’t have to play the first game to enjoy this one.
Cuddly Forest Friends, with its interaction with Gesshizu is great for younger children. The little drawings next to the choices you need to make will help with playing it even if reading is challenging. For adults, I feel there’s too little actual influence you have on the gameplay, and the daily game loop quickly became repetitive. The developers did a good job of giving the critters personalities; I did have my favourites, like the Capybara and the Porcupine. I couldn’t help but smile at them, sulking when they lost a mini-game. They remind me of the Tamagotchi I had many years ago, though the Gesshizu are much more accommodating in that they don’t actually die!
Garden In! does scratch the gardening itch without getting your hands dirty. More than that, it is a casual game that will appeal to fans of the simulation genre. There is a nice collection of seeds to collect and bring into bloom; there are various rooms to work in, and things to take into account, like soil and the sort of vase or pot you use. By growing more and more plants, you can fulfil your achievements and get even more customization options. I love this game. As I couldn’t play it on the Steam Deck, I can only wish Garden In! will eventually make its way to the Nintendo Switch as well, where it will be a day-one buy for me!
Although I don’t like cleaning in real life, cleaning in the Fresh Start Cleaning Simulator had me glued to the screen. There’s something so satisfying about washing all the muck and rubbish away and give the animals their beautiful habitat back. No big challenges; just getting in the zone of cleaning and watching everything look lovely again. Although you can collect achievements in the game, this isn’t the game for you if you want a challenge. Fresh Start Cleaning Simulator mimics real life’s workings in a very satisfying way with lovely graphics and satisfying little puzzle elements. A pity the first-person view made me nauseous, but that is entirely personal.
The My Universe games are aimed at kids, and I’m sure the young ones will love taking care of their Baby Dragon. It’s fun to see what Dragon Baby you get to take care of, though I do wonder if the gameplay loop doesn’t get boring after you’ve delivered a series of dragons. Still, I hesitated whether to add an I Like it a Lot to this review of My Universe – My Baby Dragon. Ultimately, I chose a slightly lower I Like It because the controls didn’t sit well with me.