All posts tagged in strategy
Jan 25, 2024
Grow the Seed puts an incredibly intriguing spin on farming by introducing a deck-building strategy element to the mix! Instead of using your cards to deal damage, shield yourself, and cast spells, you use the deck to grow a plant. Start with a seed and nurture it to grow into a fruit-bearing tree. Use utility cards to perform tasks to raise your seedling. Grow, cut parts from the plant, and manipulate the surroundings through your deck of cards. You also use your cards to overcome obstacles and events like bad weather and pests to ensure the safety of your plant.
Your deck is necessary for everything in Grow the Seed. Want to direct the roots to grow deeper in search of water? Or perhaps you want more leaves to grow so the plant can photosynthesize? Whatever you want your plant to do, you need a card for that! There’s also more challenging stages where you can choose different seeds and areas to grow in. Each has their own requirements and challenges to overcome.
Release Date
Grow the Seed is listed on Steam, where you can add it to your Wishlist and download a demo! However, there is no release date listed yet.
Plant and grow different plants in Garden In.
- Jan 25, 2024
Embark on a fascinating journey to become a renown hotelier in Hotel Simulator 2024 by developer V4 Studio! This game is an immersive hotel simulation where you build and manage your own hotel empire. Start small with the cozy and modest bed-and-breakfast, then move up to five-star luxury hotels as you gain experience and money.
Hotel Simulator 2024 gives you almost complete control over your hotel empire. Construct and design every aspect of your hotel by choosing from different options. Select room types, restaurants, leisure facilities, and of course the decorating for every room. You want to craft the perfect environments for your guests to feel comfortable and appeal to them. Create modest, comfortable, and budget-friendly places to stay for travelers with a budget. Or, build fabulous and opulent places to attract high-money VIPs.
Building and decorating is simply step one of building your empire, though. Hotel Simulator 2024 lets you hire the necessary staff, too. Employ front desk services, maids, and more to ensure your hotel runs smoothly. Also keep an eye on finances, pricing, guest satisfaction, and more as you manage your hotels to become the best hotelier around!
Release Date
You can find this interesting hotel sim on Steam now!
Tavern Master is an immersive sim where you build and manage your very own tavern.
- Jan 3, 2024
What’s better than taking part in a journey and grand war to fight for what you believe in? Running the only diner in the galaxy after that war to make tons of money, of course!
The Diner at the End of the Galaxy is a gritty diner management game where you’re trying to build a successful diner business. The galaxy has been reduced to rubble and ruin after an apocalyptic war. And things are tough after a war has reduced the world to nothing, but there’s still riches to be had! Set on the last civilized planet in the galaxy, you’ll turn an abandoned outpost into a bustling gathering place for all sorts of unsavory clients.
Smugglers, mercenaries, space pirates, scheming nobles and merchants all need a place to meet and do business, so build the perfect establishment for that. The Diner at the End of the Galaxy lets you build grand dining halls perfect for customers. Plan out appropriate kitchens to keep up with business. Even set up a garden where you’ll grow exotic plants to use in recipes. You can also hire literally anyone who walks in your door. You’ll want to hire the best of the best to cook the food, serve customers, care for the garden, and craft things, of course. Even engage in some complex politics and forge alliances or rivalries with powerful factions.
Will you help an ambitious leader with their vision, or will you stand in the shadows and pull the strings?
Release Date
The Diner at the End of the Galaxy is currently listed on Steam, where you can add it to your Wishlist. However, there is no release date available.
World End Diner is a cuter diner management game, if that’s what you prefer!
- Dec 28, 2023
I truly don’t know where the year went. It’s been an interesting year, and it’s certainly been full of a ton of top-tier games. We’ve seen the release of Palia, a lovely cozy MMORPG that lets you gather friends and strangers alike to farm, mine, and more. The Moonlight Peaks demo dropped recently, too! Then there’s Spells & Secrets, a great roguelite wizarding adventure. dotAGE is the perfect survival city builder. And Roots of Pacha takes top spot for my favorite farming game this year. Some other notable games are Spirit City: Lofi Sessions and Smushi Come Home. But what’s in store for next year? Well, time will tell, but here are nine games to look forward to in 2024!
Little Kitty, Big City
First on the list is Little Kitty, Big City! You play as a kitty who’s lost in a big city. You can hurry on your way and find home, or you can take time to explore this brand new place. Cause a little chaos as you explore, too.Dive into trash cans, knock potted plants off their ledges, and walk through some fresh paint to leave behind your paw prints. Meet stray animals on the streets and become friends with them. Find different adorable hats to wear. Plus, so much more!
Bloomtown
Next up is Bloomtown: A Different Story. You play as Emily and her younger brother Chester as they spend their summer holiday in their grandpa’s cozy and quiet town. Underneath this sleepy little town, however, a demon world is growing and children are going missing. Embark on a grand adventure to save the towns from this mysterious demon world. The demons are the fears and vices of the townspeople that have come to life. As Emily, figure out the mysteries and the disappearances and save the souls of everyone! Face off against giant demons and dungeon bosses in the Underside using a turn-based combat system. Fight alongside your friends, who each have their own sets of abilities, as well as summon your own inner demons. Even capture new creatures to use in other battles by weakening them during combat.
Coming to Steam and PlayStation!
Chilltown
Third on the list is Chill Town! This game promises to be a soothing blend of idle game and life sim. You run around collecting resources on a beautiful island. Catch bugs, visit the shops or town hall, fish, farm, and tame cute creatures. Unleash your creativity in build mode and create your perfect home using a variety of different decor items. Even add your personal touch to the outside of your home with benches, light posts, and more. Plus, take care of your very own furry friend!
Coming to Steam!
Horticular
Horticular is a relaxing garden-builder with a little magical twist. You’ve been summoned by mysterious gnomes to restore an abandoned garden. Immerse yourself in a magical world with a day-night cycle, weather patterns, and adorable animals. Meanwhile, build your dream garden with hundreds of unlockable items. Create lush flower gardens and flourishing crop plots. Attract creatures by fulfilling their requirements and taking care of them. You’ll need to fight off decay and corruption by using the magic within your garden. You’ll also get to rename inhabitants to personalize your gardening experience. And if you want to prove your abilities, enter the in-world competition, plus much more!
Coming to Steam!
Critter Cove
Next on the list is Critter Cove, an open-world life sim set in a post-apocalyptic world. You’ll restore an old town, and sail across a gorgeous archipelago. Collect relics and treasures as you explore. Fish for a variety of sea life. Craft everything you might need from tools to decor. You’ll even get to find new residents to invite to your town. And so much more! There’s tons to do in this game, and it’s all up to you to restore it to its former glory.
Coming to Steam!
Chef RPG
Next up is Chef RPG! The beautiful little seaside town of White Ash harbor is your new home, and once was a thriving tourist destination. Now, it’s up to you to help revive the town using your experience as a traveling chef. In Chef RPG, you’ll run your very own restaurant to serve up delicious dishes in order to attract tourists back to town. Hunt, harvest, and shop for the ingredients you’ll use in your cooking. Build a thriving restaurant and become a successful chef!
Coming to Steam!
Tavern Talk
Sixth on the list is Tavern Talk, where you find yourself to be the owner of Wayfarer’s Inn. It appears to be a normal inn in the middle of the world, but looks can be deceiving. And you can infuse beverages with magic that can influence someone’s fate. You’re known for helping the people of the realm via these magical drinks. Listen to the stories of the unique cast of beautifully designed adventurers that come in. From boasting about their glory or commiserating about failures, you’ll experience a variety of different personalities and tales. Help them find a place that feels like home by building relationships and creating an inviting environment inside the inn. Craft different interesting drinks, while you’re at it, but be careful what you serve. Your drink choices will alter their fate and the path their quests will take. Your choices shape the story of Tavern Talk!
Coming to Steam!
SunnySide
Welcome to SunnySide. You’ve just purchased your first plot of land located in an aging town in Japan’s countryside. 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. What sets this game apart from the other farm sim games is that it seeks to combine modernism with the old.
Coming to Steam!
Meetlight and the Secrets of the Universe
In the last game on the list you play as Anna. Anna has faced a terrible tragedy and lost her spouse. Now, she has taken over her great-uncle’s forge and become the new blacksmith. You’ll build your house from scratch (and decorate it too!), customize your character’s appearance, and befriend animals, nature, and your neighbors (some are even romanceable!). You’ll even be able to complete quests for the villagers or trade with them. With the loss of your spouse, you’ve gained the ability of clairvoyance, which you’ll slowly develop and perfect as you play. Enter the magical world of energy where you’ll meet new inhabitants, explore lost places, and discover the secrets of the universe. In this 3D open-world, with 19 places to visit on the map (so far), there’s just SO much to do and see. Plus, there’s farming, animal companions, cooking, and alchemy for you to enjoy!
Coming to Steam, with plans for Switch, Xbox, and PlayStation!
- Dec 27, 2023
Thirsting for a city builder and management game that doesn’t involve people? Look no further!
United Penguin Kingdom is exactly that. You’re building a settlement for penguins while satisfying their needs. Build homes, decorate the town, assemble entertainment venues, and produce whatever else your penguin settlers may need. You’ll need to fight off killer whales and thieving seals while you do all of that, too.
This is no low-tech village, either. United Penguin Kingdom makes use of different workplaces to grow food, produce materials, and make medicine for its citizens. Plus, energy generators are necessary for running homes, workplaces, and coolers. When they’re not working or chilling at home, your penguin settlers will enjoy spending time at museums, ice skating rinks, game centers, and so much more. Schools are important for your penguins, too, so make sure there are enough seats for them!
Can you grow your humble settlement from a tiny little village to a whole kingdom?
Release Date
You can find United Penguin Kingdom on Steam. There is no release date available, but you can add it to your Wishlist!
Want more city builders? There’s Gourdlets, a builder with no objectives, just creative freedom. There’s also As Far As The Eye, The Wandering Village, and Dwarrows.
- Dec 13, 2023
In As Far As The Eye, you play the role of the wind guiding the Pupils as they journey to the center of the world. It’s your job to manage their resources, their buildings, and their whole lives. Direct them to a bigger and better life in order to make it to their destination while surviving life and the rising waters that threaten them. Ensure they survive and thrive!
The roguelike tribe system gives As Far As The Eye a fresh feel each play through you take on. Plan out the route the Pupils will take to reach the center of the world. Not every route spells disaster, but each one holds its own special discoveries. Explore and search points of interest along that path to discover long lost treasures, and even meet allies along the way. And before you head on to the next spot, harvest resources, build your mobile village, and stock up on necessities!
As Far As The Eye reminds me a lot of dotAGE, which I absolutely loved. They both lack enemies, and instead pit you against random events that threaten the survival of your people. You overcome these events by preparing your people, in this case the Pupils, appropriately. Instruct the Pupils to conduct research that will improve their skills in agriculture, crafting, scientific and mystical arts. You’ll also want to improve your Pupils through the job system, as well as upgrade buildings for better results.
Will your Pupils survive?
Release Date
You can find this charming game now on Steam, Xbox, PlayStation, and Switch!
The Wandering Village is another beautiful nomadic base-building game!
- Dec 7, 2023
Remember Garden Galaxy, that adorable little cozy idle game I talked about here? In that one, you’re collecting coins from random visitors to spend in order to get decorations. Then, you take the decor and build your own little landscapes. It’s perfect for really casual gameplay, and so is this next game!
Rusty’s Retirement is another idle game I came across, but this time instead of decorating you’re running a farm. The game sits comfortably at the bottom of your screen so you can continue your tasks while it chugs along doing its thing. You’ll plant crops and watch as Rusty does his thing taking care of them. He’ll water, nurture, and harvest everything you plant. And as you progress, you’ll unlock new crops to plant.
Then, take those crops and manufacture biofuel. Rusty’s Retirement’s biofuel is clean and energy-efficient, and sells for a good bit of money so you can reinvest in your farm. You can also employ a host of cute robots who will help with planting, watering, and harvesting crops. Even customize and upgrade them for increased efficiency.
Don’t worry too much about getting distracted by Rusty’s Retirement, though. You can turn on “Focus Mode” to slow down production to allow you to concentrate on your tasks!
Release Date
This fun farming idler is listed on Steam, where you can add it to your Wishlist. However, there is no specific release date listed. It’s set to come out sometime in the first quarter of 2024, though!
- Dec 7, 2023
Pixel Cafe is reminiscent of the cooking games I used to play years ago. You know, like Papa’s Freezeria (and the rest of the Papa’s games), or the plethora of other similar restaurant management games that were out there. What’s cozier than nostalgia, after all! This game is a combination of arcade-style time management and visual novel narrative, after all.
Step into the role of a small-town girl as she embarks on an emotional journey that spans three generations. Pixel Cafe takes place in a gorgeous pixel-art world, and takes place in Karstok. The city sits stuck between a socialist past and a capitalist future. Experience a gripping tale as you explore the past and present. See how memories of your grandparents shaped your life into what it is now, too.
You’ll forge relationships with your Pixel Cafe bosses and clients as you experience the story while perfecting your coffee-making and cooking skills. Your professional career will take place across 10 wildly different bars. You’ll learn new recipes and have the chance to take on 50 optional Nightmare levels. When you’re not cooking up a storm and making customers happy, take some time to breathe a new life into Grandma’s old house. Decorate it to suit your style and make it home!
Release Date
Pixel Cafe is available now on Steam, Switch, Xbox, and PlayStation!
Want more cafe fun? Check out Nom Nom: Cozy Forest Cafe, Cat Cafe Manager, and Cafeteria Nipponica!
