After a land has been devastated by war, it’s up to adventurers to lead the discovery effort. You are one adventurer sent to a village to help with the reconstruction effort. By working with the locals, you raise crops and livestock to provide resources to the village. Treasures await in the nearby dungeon and you can use them for the reconstruction efforts. Your work helps the village grow and eventually reconstruction becomes more than a dream.
Seeds of Calamity succeeds in creating a cozy atmosphere where you can take all the time you want. Turn-based combat fits nicely and you have several strategic options for combat. Right now, there isn’t much that separates the game from other titles in the genre. Turn-based combat with the controller is sometimes frustrating. But with continued improvements and refining, Seeds of Calamity still has time to shine.
Seeds of Calamity is available in Early Access on PC for USD 14.99.
The start of your reconstruction efforts.
Story – Assisting Reconstruction
Similar to games such as Critter Café, the story of Seeds of Calamity involves you joining a village to rebuild a farm. The residents are counting on you to help rebuild the town but they are aware you are an adventurer. There’s no rush though your efforts are greatly appreciated. As you rebuild the town, you help other residents with their issues to build trade routes. You can also tackle a dungeon to fulfill bounties and sustain the village with your findings.
There is no overarching plot or serious story you must follow. You can spend your time raising your farm and participating in festivals if that’s what you want. While there are quests that help you progress and unlock more features in the game, they are optional. Reconstruction is the priority and everyone knows it won’t be finished in a short time. What’s more important are the goals that you set for yourself.
There’s no serious opponent, just someone who needs a little help.
Gameplay – Requests & Dungeon Crawling
While it isn’t mandatory, progressing through Seeds of Calamity involves completing requests from the town and fighting in dungeons. Just like Creo God Simulator, completing requests opens up more gameplay options to enhance your cozy experience. You can also go through the dungeons to obtain more materials and complete other objectives. Several options for progression also give you the freedom to pursue what you want.
Rebuilding your farm involves clearing the land, planting crops, and raising animals for income. You can also fish, explore dungeons, and solve riddles to obtain bugs. As the seasons pass and more festivals appear, you unlock more activities to do. It’s the basic cozy game formula with a few twists that keep it engaging. Turn-based combat adds a strategic element that lets you test out different spells. Riddles make you think about your items to see if they fulfill the answer.
Celebrate festivals with the village and get unique items.
Currently there isn’t much other than the turn-based combat that really stands out from other cozy games. There’s a good foundation to expand the formula and truly stand out in the genre. Even now you can have good fun customising your home and living an easy life with no risk. But recommending this game over other titles might be difficult because the cozy factor is almost identical.
Audio & Visual – Typical Cozy Atmosphere
The visuals in Seeds of Calamity are 2D visuals but it works to keep everything cozy. Animal sprites are cute and this also applies to a few dungeon enemies as well. Character portraits are detailed and you can tell who you are talking to. The only complaint is with enemy targeting while using a controller; sometimes it refuses to respond correctly or is imprecise. This disrupts the experience but is also the only noticeable visual problem.
The audio is soothing outside of the dungeon and festive whenever a festival is on. Inside a dungeon, it’s soothing until you get to a battle and the music becomes more intense. Boss fights also have a sense of urgency and dread to their music, representing the threat in front of you. Otherwise it’s a soothing soundtrack that reinforces how calm and simple your life is. You don’t need to rush through and can take your time.
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- There’s a boss at the end of every dungeon.
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- Bosses become harder the further you explore.
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- Choose a new bonus upon reaching a new rank.
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- Give enough resources and you get a reward.
Seeds of Calamity was previewed on Steam with a code provided by Pretty Soon Games.
