Ohai! I'm Dawn and I have a looooot of games. Shikikan_Dawn’s profile
But so do you and that’s why you’re here, huh?
I’m trying to get a grip on my backlog on both PS5 and Steam [Deck]. My weaknesses are cute indie games and bundles/sales. My mentality goes from, “I have too many games” to “ooh, that’s a good price” in an instant and then there’s no hope for me ;-; So… In an effort to be proactive and thanks to the recommendation of a Steam friend, here I am!
I play a little bit of everything, but gravitate towards RPGs, simulation, strategy, and hidden object games. Pixel graphics and hand drawn art styles are a huge plus. Since getting a Steam Deck, I’ve also had a greater appreciate for adult only games, which my wife and I giggle about x)
Wish me luck~
Hello, hello~ Hope you had a good weekend.
This week, I completed Garden in! from my 2023 goals list. I just need to post my review and I can cross it off the list ^^
The gameplay loop of Garden in! is as follows: plant seeds, give them time to grow, care for them, and repeat. Seeds, potting mediums, and pots are broken into three categories: ground, air, and water. You can unlock rooms, decorations, and additional seeds simply by growing plants to maturity. It's just the peaceful, zen experience that you'll keep coming back to in your downtime to care for your plants and maybe do some decorating. Most of the controls rely on your mouse, so it works pretty well with the Steam Deck out of the box.
All in all, Garden in! is a great game for people who love and nurture plants, people who can't keep a plastic plant alive, but still enjoy gardening, and even those just looking for something less involved than a farming sim. I wholeheartedly recommend it.
And I’m still plugging away at Wild Hearts. I’ve unlocked the final area and EA added another couple of monsters, so I’ll be here for a while longer.
Played on PlaystationAnd here are some of my favourite acquisitions from the Spring Sale:
I’m on a bit of a gardening kick. Apparently ^^; Garden Galaxy is heavily RNG dependent and it’ll take you hours to create the perfect gardenscape. Which is just fine with me because it’s a very peaceful experience and just the thing to tuck into right before bed.
Played on SteamThis is one of those slow burn games that take a while to get going, but are well worth the investment of time. It may be a bit frustrating due to the reliance on RNG (much like a gacha, you put in your "money" and get a random pull in return), but if you keep your eye on the end goal, you'll spend dozens of hours working on your perfect setup without even noticing the time go by.
Dave the Diver is probably going to be one of my favourite games of 2023. Just putting that out there. I’m still waiting on my physical copy of Dredge (grrrr), though, so we’ll see which is the better fishing game.
Absolute perfection in terms of its gameplay loop. If you like fishing/management style games, you need to check this one out. Dave the Diver has you diving by day, and maintaining a sushi restaurant by night. As you progress, you can upgrade your gear and dive deeper, giving you more types of sushi and more capital to upgrade your gear. Rinse, wash, repeat. Progression is very satisfying with risk versus reward, roguelike elements: do you dive deep and hopefully return to the surface before running out of oxygen (thus losing everything you picked up that dive) or do you play it safe and grind away with the same old fish? The writing and art are fantastic, too—and this is only early access!
I’ve been playing a lot of management sims as well.
I didn't realize this is by the same developer as Garden in! for a while o.o Huh. The Tenants is a fun management sim with some elements of customization in terms of building interiors. I've dabbled a bit and I really like it. I've seen some complaints in other reviews that customization is very limited to what the customer wants, but there are enough options to make it your own even if you have to bow to the AI's tastes.
Last, but certainly not least, we have Beacon Pines, which was recommended to me by a friend. Good God it’s a rollercoaster ride so far. I’m trying not to blaze right through it, but I’m so intrigued by the plot. A loooot of “wtf?!” moments (in a good way).
I mistook Beacon Pines for a wholesome, fairytale-esque story with gorgeous graphics and some unique, engaging word-play based gameplay. I mean, yes it's both of those last thing, but the story is everything but a fairytale. No spoilers, just know that you should play this if engrossing stories are your thing. Go go go.
Honourable mentions go to Simmiland. It isn’t the type of game that holds your hand; you’re expected to experiment until you figure out what works and what doesn’t. And a lot of what I’ve done so far has not worked xD I definitely need to experiment more, but it’s an interesting mixture of card game and god game just from the short time I’ve spent with it.
What are you folks currently playing? Have a good week!
I’m back! I haven’t completed anything this week, but I have played a few titles recently that I think deserve some attention. I’ve been really into mellow games of late, though I am playing Danganronpa 2 on PSVita and that is a rollercoaster @-@ Like with the first game, I am so floored by the devious minds behind the mystery and intrigue that unfolds.
A cosy, cute idle game for those with a love for the green and leafy; the sort of game that you can pop in and check a couple of times a day and feel as though you've made progress. It's a perfect fit for the Steam Deck due to the nature of gameplay, which requires you to let time elapse before the plants grow and require care, even though controls can be a little fiddly. I also loved being able to decorate, so hopefully, the developer continues to add more options in terms of decor and plant variety. What really impressed me was the variety of mediums in which to grow plants: it's not just dirt, but stone and water as well. It's currently on sale for the Steam Spring Sale and definitely worth a look.
I picked up Dorfromantik (the literal German translation is "village romanticization.") from a bundle and I was very pleased with my first foray into chill city building. The music and general atmosphere of Dorfromantik are a far cry from the usual hustle of city-building games. Think of it more as a relaxed puzzle game where you line up hexagonal tiles so that as many edges as possible match up—forest to forest, homes to homes, and so on. You get a limited number of tiles to start with, but you can earn more by completing tasks like linking up a certain number of tree tiles. It's all very soothing, though I did get a tiny bit of OCD when I couldn't match up tiles the way I wanted. Hahaha~ It's Steam Deck certified, so it runs flawlessly.
[Kind Words] is a game that needs to exist for all the good it can offer. It's literally a way for people to vent their problems and receive encouragement/advice and is proof that there's wonderful people out there. I haven't put too much time into it, but I answered a few requests while I was in-game and promised to be back at a later date. Meanwhile, I purchased the soundtrack, which is currently on sale for the Spring Sale and so. good. It's not a game, per se, but a way to communicate with people in a positive way and I am all for it. I usually use a keyboard as my touchscreen has a screen protector, which doesn't make for the most accurate typing experience.
I've also sampled a tiny bit of these, but I haven't gotten my thoughts together as of yet:
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Otoko Cross: Pretty Boys Klondike Solitaire
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Garden Galaxy
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Hard Times at Sequoia State Park
First post! Woot! Gonna try to do these weekly, but you know how that goes ^~^;
I play primarily on Steam Deck, so I’m still trying to figure out what can be comfortable competed on there and editing my goals list for 2023 accordingly. So far, I’ve got 30-ish games and they’re broken into two categories:
- Games I have never played, but want to
- Games I’ve started, but need to clean up the last few achievements.
This weekend, I tackled the clicker game Voodoo Garden. It falls into that second category. All I had left were some of the grindier achievements (collect x amount of this, craft x amount of that) and the longest one was getting to level 30. I was at level 28 when I started, but the entire process still took six hours of mostly idle play. Phew.
Cute, casual clicker with a distinct art style. Works okay on Steam Deck, but is better with a mouse as you need finer aim to catch some of those creepy crawlies.
I think these shorter titles are just the small victories I need to gear me up for larger ones. I’m currently playing Wild Hearts on PS5 and that’s been sucking up huge amounts of my time. 23/49 trophies and it’s been a really good time!
Once they add a dedicated photo mode, you better believe I’ll be posting screenshots. Okay, maybe just a couple.
The wife (right) and I (left) in early gear.
Feeling cute in my doggo headgear, might delete later.
But I digress. This is about Steam backlog x)
I’ve also tried Shantae and the Seven Sirens recently, at the recommendation of a friend. I completely suck at platformers/Metroidvanias, but this has been very accessible! I started in beginner mode and actually found that to be too easy (you can literally one-shot bosses) so I changed it to the classic mode and found it to be possible even for someone as clumsy as me. Haha~ Also digging the primarily female cast, art style, and of course the transformations to solve puzzles. Definitely adding it to my 2023 goals.
Next up for cleanup:
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Hatoful Boyfriend
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Corinne Cross's Dead & Breakfast
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Toadled
That’s all for now! Thanks for reading <3
| 2156 | games (+257 not categorized yet) |
| 86% | never played |
| 8% | unfinished |
| 1% | beaten |
| 1% | completed |
| 3% | won't play |