Recent reviews by Fitzlacker

Exceptional experience. I have gripes with all games; for instance, I'd say the pacing of the flying sequences is dreary and at times frustrating, and occasionally the game makes me move places I don't want to, leading me back on my ship and struggling to get back to the location I was just on. But those are small gripes. Largely this game is a beautiful experience with a rich, incredible history and story and a superb language learning system. I now feel that I could read whole paragraphs of this other language and understand them. Incredible!

Largely I like this game. I played a good amount of it a couple of years back, forgot all the plots, and revisited again recently when I was craving this type of gameplay. I think the gameplay loop is fairly simple, it's fun discovering the different career paths and things you can do, and I like how you really do have a lot of control over your story. Gameplay wise, it can be quite simple. I find it hard to fail at most of the core mechanics which means there's little challenge, and it definitely gets repetitive after you feel like you've found all the career paths. Dialogue wise, there are some definite issues. When you find out one of the characters are gay, your character says, "Well, nobody's perfect." Which is, uh, definitely a choice considering that seems to be a positively received comment...? Also, it seems like the game rewards you for avoiding difficult topics with most characters. Sure, get super close to this girl with an eating disorder, but don't bring it up!!!!!!! I mean it's always possible I've missed other dialogue that was better received if I did go down that path, but I felt rewarded for not bringing it up. Just some weird decisions by the writers that I'm not fond of. It's entertaining enough that I'm recommending but it definitely has to be the exact kind of gameplay loop you like or else it's gonna feel boring.

I think the thing that really sets Balatro apart from so many roguelikes and roguelites I've played is that it *rewards* you for experimenting more than most games. I feel like every deck I've found has been exciting and fun to play, sometimes even easier but really meant for a specific style of play that is not hard to figure out. Many other games that have other modes or ways to vary gameplay might make it harder or be more challenging, but I get excited to play a new deck. There's challenge in this game, but it never feels stressful. It's like... the coziest game that clearly wasn't trying to market to the cozy crowd haha. Really enjoying it. I feel like there's a ton of content to explore which has me excited.

It took me a minute to really understand how this game works, but once I did, I really fell in love with it. I don't know how long it will last for me (games like this - cozy hex exploration games - normally don't get much more than 10 hours before I lose my attention), but so far I really like the rate at which it gives you new mechanics. Great grab. Maybe get it on at least a cheap sale?

Hard to argue with this one. For no cost, you get a pretty polished game. Some bugs, none game-breaking. Funny and well crafted dialogue is probably my favorite bit. Pretty. Not a huge amount to explore in the main maps, but the main quest line will bring you to many different areas. I'm curious to see where things go.

Is it *massively* multiplayer? Nope lol. The most I ever do with other people is wave at them, look at their houses, scare off the things they're trying to hunt, or play a game on occasion, but that's really it, so hardly multiplayer either. Still a really nice time, and I feel like I'll probably end up buying something eventually to support development.

Now, I've heard some kinda concerning things about the dev team's response to some negative reviews. Are the negative reviews a little harsh, maybe, but pretty lame to hear that the team can't constructively take criticism and apparently is just ignoring it/being defensive. Not the best look, and I hope they'll come around to a different approach to feedback. Still, not worth rating a perfectly good game down.

Four hours of lovely gameplay. Very reminiscent of A Short Hike. 100% it in about 4 hours. Highly recommend.

A nice, relaxing, very straight-forward cleaning game which is great if you like something to do while watching videos or listening to audio books. The UI/UX isn't the cleanest, and there's little depth to it, but it was a good length and amount of content especially for the price. If you like a basic cleaning game, of the vein of loddlenaut, power wash simulator, etc. you'd probably like this one, too. Would be interested in DLC with more locations in the future.

I was scared away from picking up this game for a while because of all the reviews citing the frustration of the RNG, but that was not my experience at all.

The amount of side puzzles and other paths you can take in this game are so numerous that I still at the time of completing the main story have probably at least 10 or so more left incomplete... that I know of! I never even found all the main rooms.

There's not a room in this game that doesn't have one, maybe two, maybe three levels of complexity to the contents of. Everything feeds into the greater story. There's so much lore I haven't found.

With the exception of one or two short runs, I found at LEAST a couple of new things every. Single. Play. And I have 35 so far.

The amount of gasps, of jaw drops! I mean this is an exceptional game and I am absolutely in love with it.

I'll just say to those who fear the rng: don't focus too hard on any one objective. Allow the game to take you where it wants. Get the new room. Experiment with new items. Take notes (I have over 45 pages, hand written). And have the best time ever.

I'm having a ton of fun. This feels like a bit less complex but more engaging version of slay the spire. The art is fun, the music is great, and I really enjoy playing around with the different items.

I'd love to see more item unlocks as you get wins and unique items/more unique play styles for different characters.

Hope to see the game continue to flesh out over time! Highly reccommend.

So many thoughts, but it's definitely a recommend. It's not quite a true farm sim, more like a very cleverly wrapped visual novel, but I encourage you to approach it less as a video game and more as an experience. Listen to what the characters say and take your time.

Things I adored:
1. The messages. There were a lot sprinkled throughout and it never felt preachy, just gentle and giving you a different perspective on things that come up throughout life. Something about the inevitable change from chapter to chapter, the impermanence, was really refreshing. I know some did not like this, so maybe it would also be nice to have a mode after you complete the main game to collect trinkets, but I liked it.
2. The music. It went in a lot of directions, but the overall sound design was lovely, and I got lost in the music frequently.
3. The aesthetics. I loved everything from the colors to the styles to the ui/ux design.
4. The characters. I love them all so much. Except for maybe a couple. But it's okay.
5. The pacing. Though by the end I was about ready to wrap, I overall found myself able to get lost in the mundane but cathartic work. Collecting tea leaves, trimming weeds, watering crops, planting seeds, finding mushrooms, making tea... it was just all very lovely and had a rhythm that I enjoyed a lot.
6. The overall writing. Especially ♥♥♥♥ Warhard.

I'd say my only qualm is that by the last chapter I was ready to wrap up, and the tea orders got absolutely unhinged. This whole time the tea had been truly peaceful and relaxing, and all of a sudden if I forgot not to overheat the water I had to completely scrap so much work and go back to hunt down supplies. Not my favorite bit.

The ending was also not the strongest of all time, but I did still love it and still cried. I think I've just played/seen too many games in a similar vein with crazy spectacular endings or revelations that this felt underwhelming in comparison, but realistically it was a very good ending.

There are things the game does not allow you to do or see, and I found myself accepting of that, even if it was a little bit difficult. This is definitely an experience more than a video game, and I hope those who play it take it as that.

If something about the game annoys you, there's likely a reason.

Anyways, yes, highly recommend and I'm very glad I picked this up. Davey doesn't disappoint.