Chelsea
Nov 24, 2022
Farming, Magic, and More – take a look my review of this magical game.
Wylde Flowers is an absolutely enchanting game with an incredible story line. In it, you play as Tara, a city girl who has just moved to Fairhaven to help her ailing grandmother with the farm. Unfortunately, the farm is in disrepair since grandpa passed away, so it’s up to you to restore it to its former glory. You’ll learn the basics of running a farm from Grandma Hazel, and the townsfolk will help you learn more advanced concepts. They’ll also prove to be a wonderful community to get to know.
Of course, farming isn’t the only new thing Tara will learn. As it turns out, Grandma is a well-respected witch in the local coven, and Tara’s also a witch. She’ll learn to cast magic spells and craft potions to help with things like growing crops or restoring her energy, and more! All while building relationships with the townspeople, possibly finding love, and solving the mysteries of the island.
Farming
Wylde Flowers is pretty straightforward as far as game-play goes. You run a farm that needs to be repaired. You’ll utilize Parker, the town woodworker, and Natalia, the town blacksmith, quite a bit in order to fix up the farm. Otto, the local fisherman, will give you a lesson on fishing, and eventually you’ll be able to buy livestock from Marty, who is also new to the town.
The crops and flowers you’ll be able to grow are seasonal, until you build the greenhouse. You’ll then be able to use the crops in recipes you can cook in your kitchen, many of which will help you in becoming friends with the townsfolk. Unfortunately, the space you’ll have to grow crops and flowers is limited. The greenhouse only has 5 plots, while the first outdoor garden you have access to can potentially hold around 11 plots. It will depend on your creativity in how things fit together. It’s almost like playing Tetris, with more unusable spots. When you finally open the large garden, you can fit about 27 plots there.
It’s certainly no Stardew Valley in farm size, but it didn’t pose any problems for me. Crops grow within a few days, and when you control the seasons (more on that later), it’s easy to just grow everything you want per season.
Magic
The magic system is a fun addition to a farm sim (though I’d say farming is the secondary bit to this game, while the story is the main thing). You’ll learn spells to make it rain, create thunderstorms, freeze time, reverse time, grow crops faster, make crops yield more per harvest, and much more.
I think my favorite part of the magic system is being able to ride a broomstick as a way to fast travel. While the playable map is fairly small, it’s still a great mechanic to get to unlock. Even better is the incorporation of magic into it. What’s not fun about getting to ride a broomstick across town?
My one complaint with this system is the ability to occupy your cat familiar, Cleocatra. While it’s a fun mechanic, and does play a part in the story, it’s not as useful as I’d hoped. It’s used once in the story, and that’s the only time it’s necessary to even be a cat. It’s also a pain if you don’t know how to do it, like me. When you become the cat, there’s no way to cancel the spell, unless you go to sleep. So, use it wisely, if you do choose to use it more often.
The Townspeople
The townspeople of Fairhaven are possibly my second favorite thing about Wylde Flowers. The cast is wildly diverse. From Kim, who is of Japanese descent and identifies as nonbinary and isn’t sure how to navigate beginning a relationship, to Amira who’s super flirty from the start. There’s even Cameron, the local leader of the League of the Conscious Mind center (*cough* can you say cult *cough*) with his sketchy past and charming personality.
Each character you’ll encounter in Wylde Flowers has their very own personality and rich back stories. Even better is each one is fully voice acted. And I don’t mean one guy and one woman change their voices to act out each character. Everyone has their own unique voice actor to capture the personality of the character. It’s hard not to feel the charm and beauty in individuality with this cast. You even have the chance to date and marry one of seven romanceable characters. So, take your time to get to know everyone, and see who you’d like to date, or just build meaningful friendships with everyone. The choice is yours!
The Story
I won’t go into detail about the story line, because it’s what Wylde Flowers is all about and I want all of you to experience the joy of progressing through it, but this is my favorite thing about the game. It seems so simple at first. Tara arrives in Fairhaven to take over and restore the family farm as Grandma Hazel is no longer able to take care of it. Then, Tara discovers Hazel, and herself, are witches. Tara is welcomed into the local coven, and is tasked with discovering the secret identities of each coven member after she’s gained their trust.
After that, Tara spends her time restoring the farm, exploring the mines, raising crops and livestock, and delving into her magical studies. However, she’s also working to solve the problems and mysteries that the small island town faces. And all of this while building relationships with the townsfolk, or even dating.
You and the coven are in charge of turning the seasons, which means you can progress as fast or as slow as you wish to, within reason anyway. You won’t get the opportunity (or appropriate spells) to change the seasons unless you progress the story, but when you reach that point, it’s all on you to initiate the change. So, take your time helping out the town with the bulletin board requests, exploring the mine, fishing, farming, and talking to everyone.
The downside is that you only get to experience one Spring, one Summer, one Fall, one Winter, then what I’ve deemed the Eternal Spring. You’ll change seasons one last time to Spring, and that’s it. You can play indefinitely after you finish the story line, but you better stock up on seasonal finds each season.
Final Thoughts
I LOVED Wylde Flowers and will absolutely be replaying it again and dating everyone I can. Even despite some of the minor irks like the cat transformation and the Eternal Spring. I can’t recommend this game enough. It’s perfect for cozy gamers, is absolutely beautiful, and a whole lot of fun. And any game that gives me the name “Cattleclysm” as a preset option to name my cow with is great in my eyes!
Check out another farm sim review we’ve done for Story of Seasons: Friends of Mineral Town!
- Nov 21, 2022
Explore a Strange Countryside and Create Spells
Wytchwood is a curious crafting adventure set in a land of gothic fairytales and fables. You play as the witch of the woods, an old and eerie being surrounded by mystery. You’ll get to explore a bizarre countryside in a quirky, but beautiful storybook art style. Grow, gather, and harvest weird ingredients like toxic toadstools, eyes of newt, and bottled fear. After that, use those ingredients to research spells and brew some magical enchantments. Then casts spells and curses to help you in your adventures.
Explore the captivating allegorical world of Wytchwood to uncover new characters, discover new creatures, and seek out their fantastical narratives. You will even get to pass your judgment on a varied cast of characters and creatures. Turn the greedy folks into frogs, and curse the wicked! After all, how else will they learn the moral of the story if they’re not taught by you? You’ll also need to use your wit to solve puzzles to best the monsters in the woods.
Available Now
Wytchwood is available now on the usual places like Steam, Nintendo Switch, Xbox, and Playstation. It is also available on Epic Games, GOG, and Humble Bundle.
For more witchy games, have a look at Little Witch in the Woods, Witchbrook, Witchy Life Story, or even Wylde Flowers.
- Nov 19, 2022
A Farming Simulator With a Twist
You, the player, have purchased your first plot of land located in an aging town in Japan’s countryside. Fully customize your character and your cell phone, and begin your new life. Your goal is to create a homestead you can be proud of. You’ll learn to collect your own water, generate power, grow crops, craft food, care for your animals, and much more in order to help your local economy.
You’ll get to ferment soy sauce, grow and grind your own flour, and even make cheese. Then, you can take it all a step further and cook recipes using your homemade ingredients.
SunnySide also features a colorful cast of characters for you to interact with. Life in the small town is peaceful, but not without its problems. Each of the locals has their own issues to deal with, as well as having distinct personalities and stories. As you take the time to interact with the characters, you’ll get to learn their backstories and problems. Bond with the locals, attend events, and even find someone special to date.
What sets SunnySide apart from the other farming sim games that keep cropping up is that it seeks to combine modernism with the old. It also skips some of the more well-used game mechanics. There are no watering cans, shipping bins, or seemingly endless gifting to increase relationships.
You’ll have access to solar panels, electric water pumps, and other contemporary machinery. Upgrade your technology to further improve your farming experience. Developer RainyGames wanted players to leave the tedium behind and truly get to enjoy a farming experience.
Coming Soon
There is currently no release date available. You can find SunnySide on Steam to wishlist, however. It will also be coming to Nintendo Switch, Xbox, and Playstation. In the meantime, you can check out their website.
For another Japanese farming sim, take a look at Shepherd’s Crossing. For other farming sims, there’s One Lonely Outpost, Voltaire: The Vegan Vampire, or even Blue Oak Bridge.
- Nov 19, 2022
Restoration, Exploration, and Horses
Enter a beautifully crafted open-world game where you find yourself vacationing at your aunt’s home. However, you arrive to find the once grand stud farm has now fallen to ruin. You are the only one who can restore the farm. You face a terrible challenge, but you aren’t alone in your endeavors.
Befriend the townsfolk who will help you and complete quests to rebuild the once glorious family farm. From the woodsman to the architect and craftswoman, there’s no shortage of useful villagers to forge friendships with. Perhaps you can even get in the good graces of the prestigious Fèlix family.
You can also journey across the vast open-world wilds and discover the hidden secrets of the island all while on horseback! Ride up the coastline, gallop through the forest, or adventure through wide open fields.
In your adventures around the island, you can find wild horses to tame, ride, and care for. You will even be able to breed your own horses. Select the perfect creatures to receive the finest horses with characteristics, personalities, and colors you want! Take your most admirable steeds and see how they measure up in competitions.
Coming soon to PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch, and Steam PC
French publisher Microids and German developer Aesir Interactive announced this exciting new open-world horse game is now available. Players can find it on PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch, and Steam PC.
For more open-world goodness, check out Tchia and Palia.
- Nov 16, 2022
Relax and Build
City building games certainly aren’t a new concept. We’ve even covered a few of them, like The Colonists, where you control a fleet of robots who do your bidding. Harvest resources, refine them, and use them to build your city. There’s also Before We Leave, which has you rebuilding settlements on the surface of the earth and eventually colonizing space. You’ll have to manage your resources, build, and harvest crops. SimCity is also a popular one where players have to make certain decisions to keep their citizens happy while building up the city. Gourdlets stands slightly apart from the rest.
Gourdlets is a cute city builder by developer AuntyGames promises to be even more relaxing. There are no tasks to complete, no resources to gather or refine, and no citizen requests to meet. It’s simply a delightful little sandbox city builder perfect for those who want the creativity of a city builder without the pressure of tasks and requirements.
You start the game with a railroad, a small piece of land, and a bench. It’s up to you to grow the land and make it the city you want to see. You can lay down several types of terrain, like grass, sand, dirt, and snow. There are trees, flowerbeds, and even fences to use for decoration. And of course, there are a few different homes you can place. Design and build the wonderland of your dreams in this charming pastel sandbox, and watch as the Gourdlets move in and live their little lives. What will you create?
Available Now
Gourdlets is available now to play for free on itch.io. It is also coming to Steam, but currently has no release date available. You can add it to your wishlist, though. You can also follow the developer, AuntyGames, on Twitter for updates, or read the comments on itch.io for information on updates, as AuntyGames is active there too.
For another city builder, check out Biz Builder Delux!
- Nov 11, 2022
Sing, Crack Jokes, and Impress Audiences
Best friends Sok and Jester have hatched a plan to steal the Royal Diamond. In order to achieve this, they’re starting an improv show to outperform all the other acts – including their rivals Bok and Hofnar. Only being the best performers will win them an invitation to the Royal Theatrical Spectacle in the Royal Palace, where the king keeps his diamond.
You will play as Sok and Jester as they journey across the kingdom to achieve their master plan. Meet a cast of fully voiced, goofy characters, perform improvised shows, and sing your hearts out. Somewhere along the way, Sok and Jester discover the freedom and joy of musical theatre! Will the pair give up on their master plan, or will they continue to try and strike it rich?
Embrace the creative freedom given to you. Each show you perform is explicitly different. You get to decide how to wow your audiences to try and make it to the Royal Theatrical Spectacle. And as you journey through Once Upon a Jester, you’ll discover some adorable, hand-crafted locations like cozy Dorp Town, dark and mysterious Woudwoods, and Stad City, who’s obsessed with the radio. You’ll also be treated to a catchy, original soundtrack through your gameplay. Are you prepared for some overt silliness and fun gameplay?
Available Now!
Once Upon a Jester is available now on Nintendo Switch and Steam.
For more silly fun, check out Alpaca Ball.
- Nov 9, 2022
Save the Animals on an Idyllic Mediterranean Island
In Alba: A Wildlife Adventure, you play as Alba. Join her as she visits her grandparents for the summer on a beautiful Mediterranean island. She is looking forward to spending her vacation peacefully exploring and discovering the wildlife with her friend Ines. However, when Alba sees an animal in danger, she knows she has to do something.
Discover pretty beaches and castle ruins as you wander around the island. And as you explore, begin a movement to save the island and its animals from the litter that covers it. Help Alba create the AIWRL, the organization aimed at helping the animals on the island. Meet the townsfolk and help them out. You’ll need lots of volunteers to make AIWRL successful, and who better to convince to help out than your neighbors?
The island is full of different animal species for you to discover, but that doesn’t mean there’s any rush! Alba: A Wildlife Adventure is a chill game that can be played and completed at your own pace. This is a feel-good game meant to highlight good deeds, while you sit back and relax.
Free for a Limited Time!
Alba: A Wildlife Adventure will be free on Epic Games from Thursday, November 10th, 2022 to Thursday, November 17th, 2022! Alba is also available for purchase on the Nintendo Switch, Xbox, Playstation, Apple Arcade, and Steam.
For more fun saving animals, check out To The Rescue, and Quench.
- Nov 2, 2022
Repair and Clean the Post-Apocalyptic World
If you’re a gamer who loves to kick back and relax with fun cleaning games like Powerwash Simulator or even enjoy the cleaning portions of No Place Like Home, then this game is for you. From Chicken Launcher, who are the developers of No Place Like Home, comes Fresh Start Cleaning Simulator.
Set in a post-apocalyptic world that’s covered in trash and failing wildlife, it’s up to you to help. In this single-player FPS, you’ll run around the world with one tool at your disposal. It’s a curious combination of vacuum cleaner and water hose. As you travel around the world, wash away piles of mud and suck up mountains of trash. You can also water the dried up plants you find to help restore them to their former beauty. Water the sprouts, too, to see them bloom!
In Fresh Start Cleaning Simulator, you’ll also discover a variety of characters whom you can help. Bring them comfort and happiness through completing requests they may have. Sometimes you’ll find it necessary to find missing parts to abandoned machines to get them running again. These items haven’t been used in ages, and may need cables to be reattached or missing items to be put back.
This game looks like Chicken Launcher took No Place Like Home and removed almost everything but the cleaning aspect. Fresh Start Cleaning Simulator has the same cutesy, but pretty graphics and takes place in a post-apocalyptic world. This game would be perfect for those who like cleaning games without the farming aspect that No Place Like Home has!
Early Access Available Now
Fresh Start Cleaning Simulator is available for Early Access on Steam.
If you haven’t seen it yet, Unpacking is another great, relaxing cleaning/organizational game.
