Minicology
- April 25, 2024
- Isaac Denner
Note: Demo progress and settings transfer over to the main game automatically! Locked recipes and settings will become available as soon as you load your demo save. Survive, Craft, Battle, Automate and Explore. Minicology lets you take to the stars and travel through a procedurally-generated universe of tiny planets! Build bases, defend against invasions, terraform worlds, and engineer factories t…
Reviews
- The game offers a fun and engaging experience reminiscent of Terraria and Starbound, with unique mechanics like automation and planet exploration.
- Combat is enjoyable and fair, with varied enemy patterns and distinct weapon mechanics that require strategic thinking.
- The developer is responsive and actively addresses bugs and issues, contributing to a positive player experience.
- The user interface is clunky and unintuitive, making navigation and crafting cumbersome and frustrating.
- The crafting system lacks organization, requiring players to scan items repeatedly without retaining learned recipes, which can be tedious.
- Movement and controls feel unfinished, with awkward climbing and jumping mechanics that detract from the overall gameplay experience.
- gameplay4 mentions
- 25 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 75 % negative mentions
The gameplay is reminiscent of Terraria, featuring solid mechanics but with notable clunkiness that detracts from the overall experience. While some users express skepticism about its potential for improvement, others find the core mechanics to be functional, albeit not particularly refined.
“It's very close to Terraria in gameplay.”
“Not sure if this can even be one of those 'I see promise and maybe one day this will be good' because the base mechanics just feel bad.”
“I don't think it makes the gameplay better, but it doesn't detract from it much either.”
“Mechanically, a very solid game, though a bit clunky in a huge number of ways.”
- stability2 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The initial release of the game was plagued with bugs, and while the developer is actively working to resolve these issues, players still report ongoing stability problems, including freezing after extended playtime.
“The first release was buggy, and there's still bugs to sort out, but the developer is doing their best to iron things out.”
“The game freezes after 3 hours of play.”
- graphics2 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The graphics are characterized by a punchy and fun art style that many users find cute and engaging. The unique automation and planet system further enhance the visual experience, making it enjoyable and immersive. Overall, the graphics contribute positively to the game's appeal.
“I downloaded the demo and found it odd; the graphics are punchy, fun, and before I knew it, I lost a couple of hours of my life, lol.”
“The art style is cute, and the automation plus the planet system are all really unique.”
- story1 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 300 % negative mentions
The story aspect of the game is criticized for its lack of depth, as players often complete quests on various planets and rarely return, suggesting a disconnect and limited engagement with the narrative.
“The story feels disjointed, as if the developers didn't know how to connect the different planets and quests.”
“I found the narrative to be shallow and lacking depth, making it hard to care about the characters or their journeys.”
“The quests are repetitive and uninspired, leading to a lack of engagement with the overall story.”
- grinding1 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 300 % negative mentions
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious and unengaging, often describing it as boring.
“The game feels excessively grindy and ultimately boring.”
“Grinding becomes a tedious chore rather than an enjoyable part of the game.”
“I found the grinding mechanics to be repetitive and uninspired.”
- music1 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- -300 % neutral mentions
- 300 % negative mentions
The music in the game is characterized as a surprisingly relaxing soundtrack that contrasts with the frantic and chaotic gameplay, creating a unique atmosphere reminiscent of a cutesy version of Terraria.
“It's Terraria, except cutesy, but frantic-paced, with a weirdly relaxing soundtrack despite how everything is exploding around you all the time.”
“The music feels out of place and doesn't match the frantic pace of the game.”
“While the soundtrack is relaxing, it clashes with the chaotic gameplay.”
“The cutesy music doesn't fit the intense action, making it feel disjointed.”