This game is so good it's tempting me to start a youtube channel because I want to talk about how nice it is and walk people through it a bit, etc.

Somehow the creator has pinpointed every way in which other games in this genre/vein (Stardew of course included) are or become stressful, and just decided to remove EVERY SINGLE POTENTIAL BIT OF STRESS that games like this have - and I love them for it! It makes this game truly a place of peace and fun and zero stress.

A few examples of this:
-when you pass out from not going to bed on time, you DON'T lose any items (something that made me wonder, for the first time, WHO IN STARDEW VALLEY IS ROBBING ME WHEN I'M PASSED OUT?! 😂)
-if your inventory is full and you have to leave items behind, they will just BE THERE whenever you go back to that location, even if its days or seasons later
-if a creature faints during combat, you don't have to go somewhere or use a special item to revive them, they just have 1HP so you can feed them enough and they'll be ready to go again right away, no special "revive" items needed
-talismans respawn every season, so you never won't have enough for what you're doing/wanting to do
-materials are easy enough to come by that you don't run into things like the "sprinkler stress" (and beyond) that you find in Stardew, etc, like I had more sprinklers than I needed literally as soon as I decided, "oh yeah, lemme go mine so I can make some sprinklers" like it is never a chore, burden, or stress the way it can be in other games, to get to where you need to be production-wise; it's chill and easy and I LOVE THAT ABOUT IT and appreciate it so much
-you can stretch the day length with settings like "default, slow, slowest" and wow did putting it on slowest make me enjoy the game even more
-moonstones on each island also respawn every season, guaranteeing you enough to do whatever you want as the game progresses
-leveling monsters up is also not a huge stress, you just need to learn the system and the crops (some give experience points) and go from there; it's not as arduous, grueling, repetitive, and/or time consuming as similar games in similar genres imo, they make it very smooth, efficient, and again - stress free
-the list goes on & on!

This is truly the epitome of a stress-free game. It is the most relaxed I've ever felt while playing in these genres, period, and it makes the game a safe haven for me honestly. A game I can come to and enjoy without ever having to feel stress at all/in any moment.

Also, the Ghibli nods/inspirations as well as the Stardew & Pokemon nods/inspirations just coalesce into a universe and aesthetic that I adore and appreciate in every way.

Now for my one and only critique (which, let me say in advance, has NOT negatively impacted my enjoyment of this game AT ALL or in any way lol.)

I don't love the townsfolk in the same way I do/did with most of the Stardew NPCs (though that could just be because I played Stardew first and it was the first game I ever played that was like that - dating/life sim mixed in), but I do love the diversity of the characters in Moonstone Island and feel it makes up for my not really romantically vibing with any of them in the same ways that I/my character did with the NPCs in Stardew.

In Moonstone I'm in the Spring of my second year, have max hearts with everyone, and feel no pull towards having my character actually become boyfriend/girlfriend of any of them whereas in Stardew I knew pretty early on that my character would wind up with Abigail or Seb because they just drew me in and I related to them and/or they reminded me of my friends/partners in real life, etc. Whereas these characters I do relate to and/or see some traits of friends in them, etc. - but somehow they just don't hit the same for me. They are great in their own ways for sure and again I LOVE the representation here a ton and think it's very well done on that front. I'm not even sure how this could be fixed, I just personally was not grabbed by the townsfolk as much despite really liking them and the vision of diversity/representation overall. I'm a writer myself yet still can't really pinpoint why exactly they fall a bit flat for me. Maybe the creator can look at this and tweak them a bit down the line, idk. I definitely don't expect them to do that just off one comment, lol, I just did think it was worth noting if giving a full review.

This is the only area I think needs some tweaking, and I don't even know exactly how, I just know that for me none of the townsfolk really drew me in to the point where I ever had a clear thought of who my character would go for. I lean towards Gaiana or Cleo, but have to get to know Cleo a bit more first. I also kinda like Zed? Sort of? Lol. I haven't gone on all the dates with all the townsfolk yet, I maxed hearts with gifts and a few dates here and there, and then flirting once the hearts were high enough; so maybe I just need to actually go on all the dates to really feel them out more, idk. If my opinion changes after I eventually do that, I will update this review!

Regardless of that, I still enjoy this game to the max. I haven't found the love interest aspect to be something that hinders me from playing or that stresses/bums me out at all, I've just been enjoying the game and seeing how it flows. I'm currently at a point where I'm leveling up my creatures to go to Dark type islands, and I haven't even done any of the Temples yet at all, so I'm focusing more on those things and on Dungeons at the moment. So yeah, maybe I'll dive deeper into the townsfolk later on and have different opinions - but even if not, it doesn't diminish my enjoyment of this game at all. It's my safe haven game and I love Studio Supersoft for making it and taking such care to have it be enjoyable, wholly stress free, and with endless Ghibli nods that I greatly appreciate.

Thanks, Studio Supersoft! Can't wait to see what you do with this game moving forward, and to see what else you do in the future as well! Excellent work with this game, I applaud you! 🙏💜

(Scroll to the bottom for my critiques as this opening bit is just me beaming about how much I love the game - which I very much do, haha.)

I absolutely love this game and highly recommend it! There's a learning curve for sure, but the community is kind and will help anyone out who is confused on reddit, the discord server, etc. You can also search & find posts that already exist to answer most questions you may have as you go. :)

I have so many hours in and feel I actually only really started understanding the game more fully and playing way better when coming back to it recently after not playing for a little over a year or so (I also got to enjoy a bunch of new updates!), and it just completely renewed my love, joy, and appreciation of this game and its magnificence.

If you loved the Civilization series, imagine it IN SPACE and expanded upon further, like going into even more detail with management, government, etc. (At least in terms of the Civ game I played, like maybe others are more in depth, not sure - or maybe I was too nooby to go deeper into management/government/etc., so apologies if I'm wrong on that front, I came late to that franchise and have only played Civ VI so far - as a noob - and I plan to eventually play some of the older Civs as well, and play more Civ VI to go deeper/play better/etc. So yeah, if my assessment of that is wrong - apologies! Someone correct me in a reply so readers don't get confused in case I'm wrong. 😊)

REGARDLESS - if you enjoy things like that, this expounds upon the idea, brings it interstellar, and makes it even more interesting, random, exciting, and fun! Also, new DLC is being made for this game constantly, expanding the potential storylines/events, species, government, diplomacy, etccccccccc, like there are so many cool DLCs to choose from! (I recommend watching a video on them all to see which ones you'd like to start with so you don't feel like you need to buy them all to enjoy the game because you definitely don't, you can play it without DLC to start and then add some as you go, after researching on youtube and elsewhere about which DLCs truly peak your interest and/or fit your playstyle and aesthetics the best. I only have a handful of the DLCs and am still getting new events/event chains popping up every time I play, so truly you can enjoy this game at any level imo.

Highly, highly, highly recommend! ✨

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Editing to add in - I do agree with other commenters about the subscription options they've introduced (versus just fixing the DLC prices and/or re-working or combining them into cohesive packs that make sense price-wise) because I agree that subscription models tend to, in the long run, be the greedier options that people will just keep paying for well past the point of adding up to the price of all the DLCs on their own... So yeah, I do agree with those gripes 100% but still recommend the game because its amazing and the option to buy DLCs on sale still exists for those who don't want to buy into the subscription. So, I think the company should re-evaluate the pricing of certain DLCs (especially species packs and older DLCs) to show they value their customers and are not just here for money grabs, etc. (Which by the way, aside from the subscription thing, I don't feel that they are; I feel the devs truly are passionate about this game and universe they've created & are still creating, and they do of course deserve their compensations as well, but need to reel it in and be a bit more realistic with their pricing and perhaps strongly consider getting rid of the subscription all together down the line after they fix their DLC problems re: pricing, maybe combining some into packs, etc.)

I ✨HIGHLY✨ recommend Hades. It is one of my absolute favorite games all around, if not my favorite out-right in terms of addictive gameplay that somehow never gets old (witchcraft, I tell ye! 🤣🙏), amazing story, art, MUSIC, aesthetic, ambiance, characters, voice acting, replayability... All are stellar, and SuperGiant seems to have perfected the Rogue-Like style (at least for me/the type of gamer I am) in the sense that the game never leaves you too frustrated; you are, instead, strongly compelled to do better & have a better run the following time around, because the experience of dying is just as pleasant & rewarding as the runs themselves in this game.

That is what makes the game such magic. Deaths go from being something bearable to something thoroughly engaging, intriguing, fruitful, and fun. It makes it something you genuinely look forward to as opposed to something you simply have to get through in order to start the next run.

This, in my opinion, is what perfects and elevates this Rogue-Like. It makes it the most monstrously addictive, wonderful experience.

(Also, the barely-known side stories they incorporated from greek mythology are impressive and leave so much room for the studio's creativity, fun, and free-ish reign with the characters & plot. I'm excited for the sequel for this reason too - can't wait to see what they do!)

Hades will always have such a dear place in my heart. It has my highest recommendations as a gamer, writer, musician, lover of mythology, nerd, etccc. It hits all the marks for me. An absolute gem.

Pick it up as soon as you can! I recommend it to pretty much any type of gamer. It's truly that good. 👌🔥👌