if you're currently without a Switch 2 and feeling the Pokopia fomo, Collector’s Cove might just be the rescue you need ~ i'm always down for new farming sims that bring something fresh to the table, and imo this one really delivers by taking the traditional farming sim and putting it all on a boat with bunch of new mechanics. sailing across the ocean with an adorable dinosaur companion that we can fully customize adds so much charm! so in this game all our gardening, crafting, and decorating happens right on the boat. we travel to different islands and it usually takes a few minutes to reach the destination, which gives us the perfect amount of time to water our crops, fish off the side, or just sleep to pass time (though often, the work on the boat never ends...) there are four different climate zones to unlock as we improve our collector's rank, and after we explore the current map / zone we can start a new expedition which is randomly generated so we never know what's on what island. sometimes we even stumble across treasure islands with fun little puzzles to solve. there is a sweet story as well that follows our journey as a novice collector hoping to one day reach collector's cove where our parents currently are on an expedition. we're helped by our uncles Jerry, Terry, and Larry (or maybe they're family friends not rly sure lol) who teach us the ways of the sea and help us settle and we can also trade/upgrade the boat etc. with them. though i'm pretty sure they're just the same person quickly changing outfits when you aren't looking lol

my absolute favorite part of the game is the fabled versions of the items. every fish and crop has a special fabled version, and we get a clue on how to find them once we've collected the normal version a few times. i found these so quirky and creative, like a clown fish turns into a comedian fish or to get a fabled spring onion you actually have to spin your camera in a circle and it looks like a spring XD. we can feed these special finds to our companion to make our bond stronger. my only complaint is that the gameplay can get a little bit slow and repetitive at times when you're trying to gain enough rank to reach a new zone, but the game is still unique enough and yet feels familiar and cozy to easily sink hours into. i'm really enjoying my time with it and i can't wait to see what other islands / items are out there for me to discover! ~

Somehow this game passed by my cozy game radar and I heard about it today... Literally an hour before it's full release. I decided to play the demo and I was immediately enamoured and decided to go ahead and purchase the game.

The game itself is a very sweet, very chill experience where you fish, forage and grow crops at your leisure. You do not need to go to sleep and you do not have stamina.

As adorable as the game is, for me the highlight will always be my cute Dino companion whom I named Bonney ☺️. Although I also liked the concept of keeping a farm on your ship!

Finally I want to add a small comment about performance and controls. I play exclusively on a (old) steam deck and so far I encountered no issues, but I did change the graphical issues to medium instead of the highest as my now my poor old steam deck's battery is not what it was. Even though with these settings though, the game is still gorgeous and fun to play. Definitely recommended!

i like it but the character customization was kind of disappointing, the hair options were limited and the clothing and face styles sit weird on the characters face. other than that though im sure others will like it more, customization is just an important part of my immersion.