Bustories

About

Bustories is a single player casual simulation game. It was developed by Nikita P. and was released on April 19, 2018. It received neutral reviews from players.

A small visual novel about bus trips and conversation with different companions, whom you see for the first and last time in your life.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player

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58%

Audience ScoreBased on 43 reviews

music3 positive mentions

The game features unique and interesting characters, each with their own stories that can be engaging and relatable.
The art style is clean and charming, and the music sets a pleasant atmosphere for the gameplay.
The concept of managing hunger and thirst while listening to stories adds a unique twist to the visual novel format.

The game suffers from poor translation and grammatical errors, which detracts from the storytelling experience.
Gameplay mechanics are overly simplistic and can feel disconnected from the narrative, leading to a monotonous experience.
The game is very short, with limited replay value and a lack of meaningful choices or interactions.

story
14 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
21%
58%
21%
The game's story is characterized by charming and relatable characters, with each conversation offering a unique narrative experience. However, many players feel the overall plot lacks depth and engaging twists, leading to a sense of disappointment regarding the main character's background and the overall narrative cohesion. While the co-creative aspect of storytelling is appreciated, the execution suffers from poor writing and a lack of compelling content, making it difficult for some players to fully recommend the game.
- “The characters are charming and relatable, and the storyline is surprisingly engaging.”
- “Basically a short story with conversations between different characters.”
- “While it may seem as if you just need to sit out someone until the next bus stop, in actuality each character will have to finish their story before you get at the next stop.”
- “No interesting plot or unexpected turns of events.”
- “There's 7-8 strangers and each story is as bland as the next.”
- “They used big words which made you think at first this might be a good little mini story game, but after a while poorly written sentences would appear and words that don't even exist.”
graphics
9 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33%
34%
33%
The graphics of the game are a mixed bag; while some users praise the stunning art style and mood-setting music, others criticize the simplistic and low-quality visuals reminiscent of low-effort flash games. Additionally, the lack of resolution and customization options detracts from the overall experience, especially for PC gamers accustomed to higher visual standards.
- “The art style is absolutely stunning, and the music sets the perfect mood.”
- “The art style is clean and cute.”
- “Cool game, nice graphics, great stories.”
- “There's no options to change the resolution for the game or customize the graphics settings.”
- “There's no way for gamers to try to improve the low-quality graphics.”
- “The game features somewhat lazy, simplistic 2D/MS-Paint graphics, of the type you normally expect to see in low-effort Flash/browser games.”
gameplay
9 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33%
34%
33%
The gameplay is characterized by simple mechanics that revolve around managing hunger and thirst while engaging in dialogue, which some players find repetitive and limiting. While the concept of interacting with characters during driving is unique, many reviewers feel it lacks depth and fails to maintain interest, leading to a perception of boredom and forced mechanics. Overall, the gameplay is seen as simplistic and unengaging, with some elements feeling out of place.
- “The gameplay is that you have to keep an eye on your thirst and hunger.”
- “In fact, it's a very unusual gameplay; we literally need to talk to different people while we are driving.”
- “The gameplay element here is that each time you click to progress a line of dialogue, the hunger and thirst meters go down.”
- “However, the gameplay is quite simple, and some choices feel limited.”
- “However, the story was whatever and the fact that it's impossible to lose to the mechanics unless you forget about them entirely makes them feel useless.”
- “Most boring game I've ever played in my entire life - the premise is just outrageously boring with no mechanics that at least encourage you to pay attention to the dialogue or the game for more than 30 seconds - 0/10 don't waste money on this.”
music
5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
60%
20%
20%
The music in the game is generally praised for enhancing the atmosphere, with a variety of tunes available for players to choose from, contributing to a personalized experience. While some find the soundtrack enjoyable and relaxing, others feel it can be boring at times. Overall, the music complements the game's art style and character uniqueness, though gameplay elements may detract from the experience for some players.
- “The art style is absolutely stunning, and the music sets the perfect mood.”
- “Also, it's a great feature that we can choose music ourselves, like in a real journey.”
- “The game has decent graphics and a soundtrack with various tunes to pick from (or mute), and each character you encounter is unique.”
- “Boring music, forced gameplay (you have to buy food and drinks and go to the toilet).”
humor
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game's humor is characterized by a mix of short, life-like stories that range from funny to eccentric, providing players with both touching and unexpected moments. While many find the humor engaging, some stories may not resonate as strongly, leading to a varied experience.
- “While playing, we have the opportunity to learn lots of various stories—short but touching, heartbreaking, funny, unexpected, weird, and eccentric—in general, very life-like.”
- “This game is funny to complete.”
emotional
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players find the emotional aspect of the game deeply impactful, as it presents a variety of touching and life-like stories that evoke a range of feelings, from heartbreak to humor. The narratives, often delivered through the innocent perspective of a child, leave a lasting emotional impression while enhancing the overall enjoyment of the experience.
- “While playing, we have the opportunity to learn lots of various stories—short but touching, heartbreaking, funny, unexpected, weird, and eccentric—in general, very life-like.”
- “Told by an innocent kindergarten kid, the first story left me very emotional, but overall I enjoyed that trip a lot.”
atmosphere
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The atmosphere of the game is highlighted by its engaging bus travel experience, featuring unique companions and immersive storytelling that enhances the overall journey.
- “An interesting bus travel simulator with unique companions and atmospheric stories.”