The Good Life Reviews
The Good Life is a peculiar and endearing game that some will love and others won’t. I quite like it, as the setting, characters, and various activities are as pleasing as they are immersive. There are a few frustrating parts and performance issues, but they can’t hold back my overall enjoyment of The Good Life.
While there's still some ramshackle charm and memorable silliness to be had, The Good Life takes every opportunity to sell itself short and make playing it a frustrating, repetitive, and user-antagonistic experience.
The Good Life kept my attention longer than it should. I was willing to brave through the mundane just to see what unfolds and what bitchy retort Naomi has in store for the weirdos in Rainy Woods.
The Good Life is the new work by Yukio Futatsugi and Hidetaka 'Swery' Suehiro although we will see many more typical elements of the latter's games. We will have to uncover the secrets hidden in the British town of Rainy Woods while enjoying a whole country life simulator. Too bad the end result is clouded by an obvious lack of rhythm and somewhat debatable playable mechanics. Despite everything, The Good Life is worth a look, especially if we like Swery's work.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
It’s quite expansive and filled with things to do, the plot twists are intriguing and engaging, and Naomi does smooth her edges down the further along you get, though she never totally hits for me. If you need a good dose of high strangeness coupled with a lot of things to do, there’s no better time to move to Rainy Woods and get a peek into The Good Life.
There is just a lot to do in The Good Life, which means that players can potentially sink upwards of forty-plus hours taking pictures or running mundane, everyday tasks. And while I like life simulators, I don’t like them when they can barely run at over 3 FPS.
The Good Life can be summed up as one of the more polished SWERY experiences. For some, that explains all they need to know; for everyone else, it’s like a fun, repetitive, sweet and sour mixture between Little Dragons Cafe, Animal Crossing, Harvest Moon, Pokemon Snap, No More Heroes III, and Katamari Damacy. So few games leave me at a loss for words like The Good Life did, yet this is somehow one of my longest articles. As a gamedev and reviewer, I’m confused. As a gamer, I’m content.
While there is a lot to love about The Good Life, the slow pace, lack of action and the gameplay loop comprised of fetch quests isn't going to be for everyone. It's a lot more niche than it initially seems. The Good Life is a recommendation for fans of the more "punk" titles from directors such as Swery, Suda 51, and Onion Games/Love-de-lic. Those who enjoyed the quirky and obscure Simple Series of PS2 will likely enjoy it too. Its archaic formula may not be for all, but it has more heart than all of the AAA games combined.
The Good Life is an experience that can be quite frustrating for some players. Representing the life of an ordinary worker in a bizarre setting, the game weighs its hand on elements of management that are sure to displease a fair amount of people. However, for those who manage to go further, taking advantage of all the charisma of the game and its unusual proposal, there is a beautiful experience to be found here.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
There is scope for the humour to work, but factoring in fighting with the camera and struggling with the controls the whole experience is just not worthwhile. In a self-fulling prophecy, Naomi points out a lot of faults in games that The Good Life just blithely repeats itself.
Swery retests the patience of all those we love by delivering yet another poorly made result that like the previous ones had the makings for something much better. The Good Life is exclusively for the fanatics who will be rewarded by the special moments of the script but will get tired along the way.
Review in Greek | Read full review
The Good Life is a grotesque experience with a weird story that a chosen audience might like.
Review in German | Read full review
The Good Life isn't for everyone in the same way that Swery65 himself isn't for a lot of people. But I encourage you to ask if it's for you and go find out. When you give a game like this a chance, you just might sink into the oddities and fall in love with a world of animorphing British folk who ask absurd tasks of you. Undoubtedly, you'll find yourself upset with more than a few decisions made by Swery and his team at White Owls. But amidst the hodgepodge, you also might find something golden that fits you like a glove.
The Good Life is more about the journey than the destination, though. It may not directly explain what it takes to live a good life, but it’s a playful and unique exploration of some possible answers to that question.
The Good Life, for better or intentionally worse, is full of hardships. It might be the kind of experience you're looking for if you wanted a reflection of just how laborious life can be sometimes. That might not make for a very good life, though.
After you get past the rather slow start, like all massive world RPG's you eventually get into the swing of things. You know how to deal with food, sleep, and sickness. You have a pretty good idea where the characters are and you are freely going out and exploring. This is when the Good Life really picks up. Once you get over that hump and really immersed in The Good Life Universe. It's so much fun! The world is massive with lots of NPCs. The character stories are detailed and interesting. Naomi starts evolving as a character. Unfortunately as can be seen by many game reviews, I imagine most game reviewers (and many players) do not get to this point.
An odd mix of a lot of exploring, taking photos, and trying to solve a variety of pretty unusual mysteries in a rural town
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.
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 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