Another NextFest come and gone, this celebration of upcoming games is where I find most of the games I wind up playing. Getting the chance to dive into demos and try out all sorts of different games, especially ones outside my usual genres, is fun! I wasn’t prioritising screen time last month so tried fewer demos and stuck with those I thought I’d enjoy, instead of branching out like I normally do. These are the five that I tried and wanted to share! Think you’ll give any of them a go? Let me know!
Potions: A Curious Tale
I want this game for Switch. It’s cute, and the graphic style reminds me of old browser based games I used to play. I didn’t finish the demo, I was tired, but got as far as getting my broom which based on what I’ve read is the second to last story point of the demo! Why for Switch? Because I feel it would be a good one to curl up with on a handheld console.
The potion making system is quite straightforward, and being able to craft in batches is convenient. Immediately on arriving in town you’re met with some strong personalities, and I’m curious about the roles they’ll play later on.
I did find it a bit strange that you’re given a tutorial on how to move, and how to use potions, but are then immediately left to your own devices to figure the rest out. The first enemy I encountered had me kitting it while going “how do I get rid of you?” before noticing a spire in the area was shooting out bolts of ice, and that I had to drag the enemy into that general path. Thankfully you do not need to line them up perfectly, and there is a delay in between when the enemy goes to strike you and the actual hit, giving you time to move out of range.
When I say it reminds me of old browser games, I also mean that the graphics initially made me go “hm, maybe not,” but they grew on me quickly and did their job. That the younger witches you encounter all have colourful hair and hats was something I thought was fun – and funny that, in-game, none of them comment on this / don’t recognize each other as witches.
From what I’ve gathered from discussion posts on Steam, this is going to be a short little game which is exactly what I’m looking for these days. I’m not entirely sure about where the overarching story is going to go as it still feels like I was in the first intro chapter of the game, but was left curious enough to give the full release a shot.
Enelia: Dawn of Madness
Absolutely stunning point and click interactive novel with small mini games between story beats. Enelia does a great job of giving you as many questions as it answers as you unlock encyclopedia entries about this world, and balances the curiosity of what could happen if Enelia stays in her home versus the danger of doing so very well. Wasn’t expecting a jump scare in the demo and it got me! I’m very interested by the story in this one and will be picking it up once it is released. Some of the translations seem a little off, but it doesn’t impact the impact of the story for me. Similarly, music can end very abruptly in a scene and sometimes I wasn’t sure where I was meant to click in order to bring dialogue back up but none of this was game breaking and didn’t make my experience any less enjoyable.
I want Enelia to stay? I want to find out what happens if she does her ritual and becomes a priestess (without you know, following down the path of the friend she saw do so). I’m as curious about whether she’s going to get to explore the hidden lands, and what might be found there! I want to know more about her foster mother and the former student, now artist that her foster mother so favours – what’s going on there?
The colour palette also really speaks to me. I love my cool tones and this one is all shades of purple and blue with some red. Design wise Enelia stands out as she had a sort of sunrise colour scheme going on with significantly more warm colours in her design than anyone else which was a neat visual indicator of her not quite fitting in. Fun! Doesn’t support controller play which is unfortunate but with a wireless mouse you can contort on the couch as you like to the same effect.
I played through this twice in order to test out different dialogue options and story choices, and recommend making use of the save function frequently!
One thing to note is that during the glove construction I completely missed the prompt as I wasn’t sure what I had to do. By the time I figured it out I had failed the challenge and, when I did it again, realized you need to be clicking your mouse very quickly for a good 30+ seconds (in my case) which was very tiring for my hand.
Still, this is the game most on my mind! It’s meant to release in April and I’m hopeful for that as I very much want to delve right back into the story. Another game I feel would be good to play in handheld version as it’s good to curl up with and read.
Coffee Caravan
I love the idea of games like this so much but in reality they just cause me stress! I think this one especially, because I worked in a coffee shop for several years, was more stressful than relaxing. At one point during a batch of more difficult customers I went “I hope the grinder doesn’t break,” as if that was a mechanic in the game (to my knowledge it isn’t but man do I remember it happening at our store). I gave this one 30-45 minutes and while I won’t be picking it up, it was a fun way to spend some time.
I started with the easy path which sees you unlock drip coffee and, over the course of play, unlocked drip coffee with ice, espresso, and an americano. I also got the automatic grinder upgrade for my equipment, a fountain to help customers be patient in the waiting line, and two plants to boost my move speed. Running around non-stop and falling into a sort of mindless routine until the end of day was very reminiscent of the auto-pilot during a rush, complete with having to recalibrate yourself halfway through because there was a mistake you need to recover from.
It’s cute, and made me want to stop by my local coffee shop over the weekend. I found myself wondering about the relationship the people coming in for coffee have with each other, and to you as their barista. Again, probably coming out of the years spent as one and knowing how your regulars become part of your life, and you theirs!
If you like games like Lemon Cake (similat base concept but a bakery) this will be for you. Of particular interest is a map system like that seen in the first part of Inscryption where you can choose different paths to bring you to the end goal, hitting different rewards and challenges along the way. It was interesting to try different routes!
Botany Manor
Came at the recommendation of a friend who has never steered me wrong and BECAUSE I doubted if this one was for a good fit, I picked up the demo. A notable number of my favourite games in recent years have been suggested to me by this person and it’s always the ones I’m not sure about that I enjoy the most!
You’re playing a member of the gentry in late turn of the 20th century England, who is really into plants. By exploring the manor and grounds you find clues about the ideal growing conditions for that area’s seeds, and once you figure out what it needs to grow, get to watch your seedling sprout and bloom! It’s a neat little game.
I found the demo lacking on overarching story, but was sufficiently drawn into the gameplay loop of figuring out my new flowers that I didn’t really mind! I did get a laugh out of the kitchen being locked as this manor house absolutely would have had servants and the idea of them going “no this and the adjoining rooms are our space, stay out” made me quite pleased. Probably going to pick this one up, provided it doesn’t run over 6 hours as I think they would be a bit too long for me based on what I saw in the demo.
It’s got elements of Animal Crossing and mobile games like Idle Vampire, in that the grow and watering timers require you to keep checking in. I’m sure once this one releases there will be someone who does a min-max profit guide and that just isn’t how I would want to play! There’s also RPG elements in this, where you get to choose your Grimoire which – to my understanding – sort of determines what kind of witch you are.
I unlocked four different critters in my playthrough, most of which was spent running back and forth selling critters and buying seeds to plant new ones. I didn’t mind it, but ran into the same trap as the Sims or My Time at Portia where ‘one more thing’ had me playing much longer than expected. I don’t really want that from my games – and that isn’t the game’s fault! It just doesn’t work for me and for that reason I don’t think I’ll pick this one up but otherwise? Very cute, I think there’s a lot of promise in building up your island and the relationships you can build with the people who come to live with you!
That’s all for this week! Until next time, stay cozy, and if you want to join your companions around the cauldron, signup for email updates below!
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