After the outrageous success of Animal Crossing: New Horizons in the spring of 2020, it was obviously to be expected that the contest would land. If the weather is good on the Story of Seasons (formerly Harvest Moon) side, on the independent scene side we can count on Cozy Grove, who takes on the bet to reuse the formula of the Nintendo franchise at the base of The Letter, even if it means annoying some.
If you are a boy scout you need to know how to go on an adventure! This is what is happening in Cozy grove, a title developed by Spry Fox that has the peculiarity of intervening in different genres, but also in a game with a reputation that has so far been well established, Animal Crossing: New Horizons. So there is a bit of survival here, a touch of management there, without forgetting to find objectsbecause life as a hearing scout is anything but easy! In Cozy Grove, you play as one of them, and this one (or this one, let’s say your character doesn’t actually have a gender and you can customize him / her as you see fit) proudly landed as a rooster on an island.
A cursed island ?!
Seemingly calm, the island gradually plunges into the darkness and lets you in your brave flame endowed with intelligencewhat will help you in your search. But that’s not all: the game will also make you meet ghosts … Ah! Didn’t anyone warn you? The island is cursed … or more precisely haunted by ghosts just waiting for your visit to discuss.
If the “scenario” (so much to describe it) of departure does not shine with its originality, The tone is pretty cute and makes progression fun. The whole thing is littered with bizarre dialogues, but not as ingenious as the one in the Nintendo franchise. In Cozy Grove as the name suggests The principle is to make everything as cool as possible. The point is not to hurry, but rather to take your time while chatting with the ghosts you encounter as you progress. Because there are ghosts and there are many. And for a good reason: The main goal of the game is to get you through an island that is growing day by daywhen completing quests. With each quest you can win a sacred log, feed your fire (called a flam) and generate an expansion of your holiday resort. And indeed the discovery of new minds.
The ghosts, let’s talk about it: they will therefore offer you quests. Mostly, it’s all about looking for different pieces of jewelry here and therelike a hidden object game. You are entitled to clues to help you find them, even if you sometimes find yourself in neutral color settings. The lack of visibility can lead to frustration. This is due to an artistic direction of great beauty, but also full of small details. In short, an evil for a good.
Every day
When Cozy Grove faces Animal Crossing, it is that it fully embraces the concept of the chill game: No clashes, no bosses, no tangled puzzles, and most importantly, no rush Because of a Tom Nook asking you for lots of bells. Fact, The title Spry Fox cannot be put into everyone’s hands : It is reserved for those who want to take their time. The game evolves in real time so you can’t do more than what a day offers you. There isn’t necessarily hours of gambling every day and it is more of a small passage every 24 hours that is rewarded.
If we are immediately amazed by the visual atmosphere of the title, by the very cute side of the dialogues, which is always very positive, Cozy Grove is necessarily very slow. The first few days won’t be the most pleasant like many of its competitors, but those who will persevere will know that the adventure will be even more enjoyable afterwards when you have a little more freedom, especially in its movements – as the island gets bigger – but also when the trunk of your tent gains storage space. Here is probably the game’s “double-edged sword”: If you don’t want some things to be purposely blocked one day to bring you back the next day (or as early as midnight!) Cozy Grove is not for you. And this, even if we find ghosts here and there who are ready to grant you grinding missions in which, for example, you have to bring back specimens of what you find on the island. There are also crafts, although this is much more basic than Animal Crossing, but it in turn allows you to improve your exploration skills while making money in the process.
Another element Cozy Grove shares with its famous elder: its slightly annoying interface. Some game design decisions are particularly questionable. For example, before you can actually equip a fishing rod and fish with no possible short cuts, you need to multiply the actions. In other cases, it’s decorations that won’t fade and leave you in front of an invisible wall that will annoy you. And even beyond the genre-specific choices that the game impacts, it’s generally the experience as a whole that doesn’t keep us as good as it does, despite its great visual qualities. Animal Crossing. Maybe he’s finally missing a Tom Nook to force us to always go forward and so give a little color and meaning back to the life of a Boy Scout …
The notes
+Good arguments
- Visually stunning
- A migrant and positive atmosphere
- A successful “hidden object” site
- A daily development that will appeal to some …
– –Negative points
- … but who will annoy others
- A sometimes frustrating surface
- Some readability concerns
- We would have liked a little longer “typical” days
As with Animal Crossing: New Horizons, Cozy Grove’s leitmotif is to take your time while leveraging the stunning artistic direction. your positive attitude and its very laid back side will delight fans but is unlikely to change the mind of those who do not appreciate the genre. However, if the points of comparison with the Nintendo game are numerous, then the title Spry Fox does not have the talent, so that if we can appreciate it, to connect with it for an hour or two every day, the fever of the new horizon is never real there.
Gamesvideo.com administrator
April 15, 2021 at 9:00 a.m.
What the readers say
Give your opinion on this game!
