Cozy Caravan Evaluation – Gaming Nexus

Gather in, people, unhitch the ole’ bumblebee from the wagon, and relaxation your weary bones, as a result of right this moment we’ll evaluate one of many latest, sweetest, chillest video games in the marketplace: Cozy Caravan.

When I watched the trailer for Cozy Caravan, I assumed this was going to be a intelligent little recreation, ranked someplace within the 6.5 possibly 7 realm. I wasn’t anticipating to like this recreation a lot. Fam, cozy avid gamers alike: I could not—no—I cannot put it down. It is, for my part, extra favorable than a few of the high names in cozy gaming—and I believe you realize those, and I’ll let you know why—however first…

What is Cozy Caravan?

In this recreation, you are a cute little animal, set on a fundamental quest to reap fruits, greens, and extra to promote on the market which occurs every weekend. You begin in a bit of space that introduces to you to the final recreation mechanics. It’s right here that you will learn to decide and retailer the meals, together with the way to work together with the townsfolk which can be stationed across the completely different areas in that space. You’ll even have some small quests to finish, like grabbing a toolbox to repair a gate, which once more helps with understanding house and controls. 

Once you get your ft moist, you may additionally be capable to begin going into the mini farms. These small farms are produce-specific like actual farms, and also you’re tasked with harvesting the products for the farmer, and in flip, you obtain a portion of no matter you pulled. This is the easiest way to begin build up your stock. The extra numerous your stock, the higher, particularly as you progress within the recreation.

The forex within the recreation is happiness—are we stunned? It’s a comfortable recreation, in any case. You earn happiness by waving at each individual you see, by promoting gadgets out there, and by finishing the optionally available aspect quests. Side quests are easy requests from the NPCs, like retrieving a carrot, however can construct into additional requests that outcome within the NPC baking a full carrot cake.

Once you have explored the entire first space, it is time to hop within the caravan and see what else there may be to seek out. You’ll unlock new areas, discover new gadgets to reap or acquire that transcend the preliminary vegetables and fruit, all whereas amassing happiness and fixing the universe’s issues! Well, this animal universe’s, which tends to be a goat that simply cannot resist climbing every part.

Now, what do you utilize the happiness to buy? Upgrades to the caravan, in fact! These upgrades mean you can improve the gadgets you have began amassing. By buying a mortar and pestle, now you can grind wheat into flour. Upgrade to an oven and it’s possible you’ll ultimately be capable to make your personal carrot cake. These gadgets could be bought on the market on the weekends, too, incomes you much more happiness, which you’ll be able to in flip make investments into the caravan, making you could have the sweetest wheels within the biz.

There’s loads to unpack right here, however with out giving an excessive amount of away, that is the final synopsis. So now? Let’s give an excessive amount of away.

What I beloved about Cozy Caravan

From the beginning, the customization is fairly impeccable. There are simply in need of 30 cute animals to select from, and too many outfits to rely, however solely seven completely different fur colour choices, which I believed was humorous amongst the rows and rows of different selections. Regardless, my favourite customizable characteristic is that you just get to decide on the voice on your animal: Peppy? Tired? Nurturing? Masculine? Feminine? It’s as much as you. This is such a enjoyable little characteristic that you do not see fairly often, so from the soar I knew I used to be diving right into a recreation that would not go away a stone unturned. It’s that easy. Thinking concerning the minor particulars, just like the voice your gamers are going to listen to essentially the most typically, is such a considerate transfer from builders. That alone can truthfully set them aside from the competitors. I beloved this, and I thought of it many occasions once I heard my little turtle shout the cutest Aye-Oh! and wave. I picked the perfect voice for my character.

The map is accessible and really straightforward to navigate. Each little city on the map, as soon as found, is definitely recognized, and if you hover over it, a bit of postcard for the city pops up on the highest proper nook. If you hit X, you’ll flip over the submit card and see the individuals who stay within the city. Hover over these individuals and you’ll see if they’ve an open quest for you. You’ll additionally see the gadgets you possibly can acquire at that location.

This is very helpful as you are getting began and you’ll’t bear in mind the place to seek out these pesky tomatoes. One factor I can not stand when I’m enjoying a recreation is attempting to determine the instruments, like maps, or backpacks, or telephones, or no matter. I simply need it to be easy and straight to the purpose. This map does that, and you’ll cease your caravan mid-drive to drag out the map, too, simply to be sure to’re not off course. 

I truthfully beloved amassing happiness as forex. I did not assume I’d once I first began—it felt tacky, and possibly it’s? But who cares? I’m right here to zone out and acquire my very own serotonin, and if I’ve to get it from a turtle getting it from waving at a skunk? Then I’ll take what I can get. And let me let you know, if you’re on the market, and there is a huge crowd, you wave at them and say, Aye-Oh! and all of these hearts pop up and so they all say, Hello, again? Tell me you are not going to smile! No wait, do not inform me, I’m not emotionally ready for that.

This brings me to a very good tip, although: Wave at anyone and everyone. Wave on the individual the subsequent area over. Wave at everybody within the restaurant. Wave on the goat on the ladder. Wave at individuals out there. It’s the quickest option to improve your caravan, and upgrading your caravan will catapult you additional into the sport, which is able to mean you can do and see extra issues.

Cooking sometimes is not my favourite factor to do in gaming, however this recreation makes it each straightforward and difficult, however enjoyable. You’ll acquire recipes from aspect quests, which then turn into straightforward to entry in your caravan proper subsequent to your stock. When you click on on a recipe, it pins it for you. Then if you jump over to your stock, the gadgets you want will probably be highlighted, so that you by no means have to maneuver backwards and forwards from the recipe space to the stock. It’s so useful. There are some cozy video games the place I do not prepare dinner as a result of the recipes aren’t simply accessible. Here? It could not be simpler.

Once you could have your gadgets, you progress to your reducing board, oven, or stovetop, and the mini information pops as much as assist stroll you thru. You’ll use the controls in your joycons to organize the gadgets. Depending upon what it’s that you just’re engaged on, you may use the controls in another way, reflecting the methods you’d actually be prepping every of the gadgets. Rolling dough and pastry dough is hard, however enjoyable. Regardless of how poorly you roll the dough, nonetheless, you may all the time find yourself with the product, so no worries. So, as I mentioned, cooking is not sometimes my favourite a part of gaming, however on this recreation, I prepare dinner no matter recipe I get as quickly as I get it, simply because I get pleasure from it a lot!

You do not have to do something on this recreation. Market weekend? You do not should open your store. If cooking is not your factor? You can simply concentrate on attempting to perform the quests (though be forewarned, some quests do contain cooking, or at minimal, meals prep). I sometimes do not open my market each weekend, and simply top off my meals for a number of weeks to attempt to have one actually nice market weekend, then I begin over.

This is tremendous typical with cozy video games, that open world, informal, no timeline type of gaming, however the time restraint of the market solely opening on the weekend generally is a bit burdening in the event you concentrate on it an excessive amount of. At first, I did—and it took a few of the enjoyment out of the sport. Once I moved my focus off of the market and onto harvesting and cooking, I felt freer to not really feel rushed to get again to city to promote. But that is simply how I play! How you expertise the sport is totally as much as you.

New areas of the map unlock with upgrades to your caravan, and with that comes new choices for creations and promoting. I like this, as a result of simply as you begin to get comfy and begin to assume possibly you have accomplished all of it, you notice there’s extra. I used to be so excited once I acquired my new wheels and began exploring the muddier areas. I anticipated I’d simply get shortened paths, however I really acquired, I believe, 5 or 6 new cities.

This was fairly an intensive enlargement, as a result of these areas are literally bigger than any of the areas within the opening portion, so there’s fairly a bit to discover. Additionally, the vibe of those areas could be very completely different. So, if you’re beginning to get bored with harvesting and farming, belief me, the unlocked portion provides you with a complete new taste so as to add to the general recreation. Which once more, retains this recreation transferring in a really gentle and enjoyable means.

Your caravan is pulled by an enormous bee, and if you pet it, you additionally get the happiness forex and it wiggles its butt. His identify is Rigby. You ultimately get to feed him. That’s all. No notes. The bee will get a ten/10.

Your primary pal on this recreation is an older gentleman named Bubba. Bubba drives the caravan and might ultimately assist out out there after upgrading the register. He’s cute. At first, I believed he was going to be a grumpy character, however in actuality, he is a gruff little man who solely says the phrase “Bubba” in various tones as if it is a full language. My favourite interactions with Bubba are at evening when camp is about up. You can achieve happiness by chatting with him, but in addition, he ends each dialog with a completely stomach chortle which alone is worth it. He’s a cute character to have and having him communicate his personal Bubba language regardless of the primary character talking English is a enjoyable, foolish, heat contact. 

Driving the caravan is pleasurable. It will not be tough to maneuver, and the mechanics aren’t overly sensitive, however you are additionally very a lot steering the caravan by way of the paths. Fortunately for my five-year-old, you possibly can’t drive off of the trail and into the bushes, so it is easy sufficient for a five-year-old to drive, however nonetheless pleasurable for an grownup to drive. I actually like that you do not simply click on on a map and magically seem in a brand new house. I believe driving round provides to the zen of the sport, however that is simply me. I can see others viewing this as slowing down the general pacing of the sport. But once more, the rationale I play is to chill out, to not win, so for me, driving the caravan is a perk.

There are enjoyable methods to be taught what gadgets are going to be well-liked on the weekend market, which lets you begin stocking up in your surplus to earn extra happiness. The fortune teller is a cute little pop-up if yow will discover her! A suggestion for the builders: possibly I can spend a little bit of my happiness forex with the fortune teller to have her look deeper into her crystal ball to inform me what is going on to be well-liked the following market? A couple of days does not all the time give the participant sufficient time to organize the stock.

Generally, the general performance of the sport is easy. The graphics aren’t uneven, and there is not any lag. The areas load up somewhat rapidly, and apart from two freezes, there have been no points to the general mechanics of the sport. There can also be a little bit of autosaving, and with a brand new patch, each time your character enters the caravan, the sport autosaves. Since the brand new autosave patch was carried out, I’ve not skilled any recreation loss. Yay! 

Areas That Could Use Some Work

And I exploit that calmly, as a result of these items are minimal! However, my largest suggestion is that Cozy Caravan may use some distinguishing between a real quest that may be holding me again from development within the recreation and an optionally available aspect quest. This could possibly be as a lot as having the true quests on the nook of the primary display screen, with the aspect quests remaining on the postcards, or as little as gold stars figuring out the primary quests. And I’ll let you know why that is essential: I’m making ready my stock for the weekend market, getting my tomato soup cooked, after which I get a quest I want to finish. What has extra worth? I’m undecided. Ultimately, it does not matter, and I do know that, nevertheless it’s difficult to find out what to prioritize when there is a schedule to stick to.

I’d love to listen to completely different music for every location that has the vibe for that city. The identical tune can turn into carrying after some time, so maybe this generally is a future-state plan. Again, not a dealbreaker in any respect, but when I’m being choosy with my evaluate, there is a house for this.

Milk is likely one of the most used recipe gadgets as a result of it is used to make butter, which is in fairly a number of recipes, however milk is tough to return by. It could also be by design, however the shortage of milk can decelerate your capability to prepare dinner or bake new gadgets, so typically I discovered it to be irritating.

Closing And Final Thoughts

That’s all! Like I mentioned, I haven’t got many complaints. I’ve put in lots of hours on this recreation and talked about it fairly extensively with fairly a number of of my buddies. This recreation really has every part a comfortable gamer seems to be for: exploring distinctive and numerous areas, harvesting and amassing gadgets, cooking and crafting new gadgets, promoting these things at the marketplace for in-game forex, and upgrading your instruments—all whereas being a cute little fuzzy animal.

I’m finally to see how this recreation continues to develop. I attempt to not learn different opinions earlier than I submit mine, however I by accident stumbled throughout some optimistic notes. I’m hopeful that the curiosity and optimistic suggestions might help to develop additional exploration. Perhaps the builders may think about multi-player co-op choices for play? I’m all the time on the lookout for methods to attach in-game with my buddies!

Happy to listen to in the event you’re a Cozy Caravanner with me—it is undoubtedly going to proceed to be in my rotation. I nonetheless have much more to discover, and I’ve not but mastered fishing, which is way tougher than you’d anticipate! I additionally know that, at minimal, I’ve an improve to my caravan that may assist it float, so the world is my oyster, and Gerty the Turty is able to see what her future holds when she forges the water and expands her world much more! For now, I’m off to pet Ridgby and acquire happiness, each out and in of the sport.