Dorfromantik Review (Vitlöksbjörn)
Relaxing? Yes, but also... strangely stressful. Under this whole aesthetic of idyllic central European countryside there's a surprisingly deep game of matching tile edges, managing groups, closing off regions, fulfilling quests. You can, of course, ignore all of that and play creative mode exclusively, but I'd feel like this would be a waste of game.
There are two reasons to pay attention to these systems. One - score. That one might not seem that important, but it's fun to try to beat your own high score! Besides, it often leads to achievements, which in turn unlock new tiles and biomes. And two - it replenishes your tile pool. See, your pile of tiles is always limited - and once you run out, it's game over session complete. So if you want to keep expanding your little world, you have to keep paying attention to these things.
The mixture of those systems and the incredibly chill aesthetic - both in terms of look and the soundscape - create a very unique and potent brew that just washes your worries away. And I think this is the main reason why the game is so beloved by many.
For example: this one time, I had a mental breakdown so severe, my entire concept of reality collapsed and even thoughts of suicide didn't bring any solace. I got out of it with the help of therapy, philosophy and some research, but what kept the mortifying existential dread at bay was this game. The chill feeling was strong enough to make me forget I spent too long gazing into the abyss, and undoubtedly made my recovery quicker.
With all that said, I wish the game had more object types on the tiles. There are only 3 common ones (there's more, but they're much less common): houses, trees, and fields. I get it, that's rural Europe for you, but we also have mountains! Meadows! Swamps! Admittedly, the devs are from Berlin (I think), and the state of Brandenburg is almost completely flat - so maybe that's what they were going for.
I wasn't sure if I'd like Dorfromantik, but it entered my life when I needed it, and returned some kind of peace to my soul. I won't claim it would do the same to you, but I'd say it's nice to place a few tiles every now and then.
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