The Good Life Reviews
Boring, pointless, and jammed with grating characters and obnoxious story beats, The Good Life doesn't live up to its name.
The Good Life comes with excellent narrative elements, but the entire experience is damaged by some weird design choices that result in mediocre gameplay. While this is hardly surprising for a game directed by SWERY, some of the ideas featured in The Good Life, like the cat and dog transformation mechanics, deserved a much better execution, as they feel shallow and not particularly interesting. With such flawed gameplay, only die-hard fans of the Japanese director will truly love The Good Life.
To enjoy The Good Life, you will need to be a big fan of Swery, and be able to inflict all the faults of the game on yourself to glimpse any semblance of truth!
Review in French | Read full review
The Good Life is a chaotic game, for better or worse you find so many elements that it can be overwhelming to keep up. If you are looking for a lightweight game that does not ask you questions, this is not the best option. In fact, the best thing you can do with The Good Life is to let yourself be dragged along.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
The Good Life is a product plagued by major problems on the playful and structural side. An extremely lacking title from a technical point of view, which brings to the screen a series of decidedly questionable game design choices, at the base of an adventure that, while trying to tell a story in its own mature way, often expires in tedium and struggles to sustain the interest of the player.
Review in Italian | Read full review
When everything is flowing in The Good Life, it feels like a touch of Animal Crossing with alternatingly quaint and irreverent British pastoral television, all with a burgeoning murder mystery underneath. Unfortunately, some of its rougher edges seem possibly related to the Switch itself and, although loading times are usually on the shorter side, their frequent appearance interrupts the flow even more. The Rainy Woods residents are charming and strange and there’s a numbingly pleasant feel to smalltown life and chores, but stiff controls and muddled design make it hard to find a good rhythm in The Good Life.
It may not be for everyone, but The Good Life is a celebration of all things SWERY.
Despite an interesting setting, tedious gameplay and poor performance makes The Good Life a disappointing outing for Swery.
The Good Life makes for a nice getaway, but don't plan on staying for too long.
But on the off chance you don't touch the things, are reading this, and have ever uttered or read the word "cottagecore" earnestly: this game is for you. Find the nearest friend, family member, or partner who is always talking about what a great deal Game Pass is and force them to download it for you. If you're already acquainted with interactive media, The Good Life is an unpredictable yet satisfying experience that seems to always be throwing the player some new curveball to keep things fresh-much like life itself.
If you’re a fan of SWERY’s previous output or have a lot of patience for fetch quests, there is reason enough to check out The Good Life, but it is a hard sell for pretty much anyone else.
The Good Life is a strange mix of photography-game and life-sim, and while it's not perfect, its flaws are covered by a weirdly charming premise.
This RPG life-sim adventure game might be barking mad, but it's got an intriguing story with unique gameplay. Investigate a mystery as a New York photojournalist in rural Britain, complete with eccentric characters and activities to keep you busy.
Despite having some interesting moments, The Good Life feels and plays like a crazy mess.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Looking past the obvious flaws in The Good Life, players will find a very unusual and engrossing mystery, with a lot of depth to the gameplay and witty characters. It’s a very personal game that presses the player to slow down and take it easy; to chill out and enjoy life.
Like any other game by Hidetaka Suehiro, The Good Life is a unique experience with simple yet engaging gameplay and solid story telling, offering a few hours of pure meditation.
Review in Persian | Read full review
Good life with dogs and cats... but how long? Game is boring too soon.
Review in Slovak | Read full review
If you already know and appreciate the work of director Hidetaka "Swery" Suehiro, there's a big chance you'll enjoy The Good Life. If you don't, there are plenty of other titles in the market that are more capable of entertaining you.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
The Good Life is a charming and unique "debt-repayment RPG" that sets itself apart with its humor and character, but its lackluster gameplay, bizarre tonality, and overall lack of polish make that charm wear off quickly.
If you’re familiar with SWERY games and enjoy them, definitely check this out. If you’re not, and you can’t stomach games that aren’t polished, maybe watch a play through online instead.