Minicology
- April 25, 2024
- Isaac Denner
- 5h median play time
Get on SteamMinicology is a survival, crafting, and exploration game set in a procedurally-generated universe of tiny planets. Players must gather resources, grow crops, and automate processes to build bases, defend against invasions, and terraform worlds. Creative solutions are encouraged as players construct self-sufficient bases and navigate challenges in this miniature universe. The demo progress automatically transfers to the full game, with locked recipes and settings becoming available upon save load.
PC
Windows
Reviews
- The game features a charming art style and a delightful world design that makes exploration enjoyable.
- The crafting and automation systems are engaging, allowing for complex interactions and rewarding gameplay.
- Boss battles are well-designed and challenging, providing a satisfying combat experience.
- The user interface is clunky and can make navigation and actions feel cumbersome.
- The crafting system is poorly organized, making it difficult to find recipes and understand crafting mechanics.
- Movement controls can feel awkward, particularly when climbing or navigating the environment.
- gameplay6 mentions
- 17 % positive mentions
- 33 % neutral mentions
- 50 % negative mentions
The gameplay is characterized by a simple yet engaging cooking system that encourages players to experiment with food combinations for buffs, providing hours of entertainment even in the early stages. While some users draw comparisons to Terraria, opinions are mixed regarding the overall mechanics, with some finding them solid but clunky, and others feeling that the base mechanics could use improvement.
“I love the cooking system; it is simple but entertaining. Finding good combinations of foods to get the best situational buffs without wasting extra nutrition is something that gave me at least 5 hours of gameplay—and I've yet to move far from my tiny tutorial planet base.”
“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.”
“Mechanically, a very solid game, though a bit clunky in a huge number of ways.”
“It's very close to Terraria in gameplay.”
- music4 mentions
- 75 % positive mentions
- -25 % neutral mentions
- 50 % negative mentions
The music in the game is characterized by a charming and stylish soundtrack that complements the vibrant world design, featuring a mix of frantic and relaxing elements. Players appreciate the engaging audio experience, which enhances the overall atmosphere despite the chaotic gameplay.
“The OST and world design are so charming and stylish, and I love all the little creatures you can discover and cultivate.”
“It's Terraria, except cutesy, but frantic-paced (with a weirdly relaxing soundtrack despite how everything is exploding around you all of the time).”
“Lovely art style and sound effects/music.”
“Music is loud when first launching.”
“It's Terraria, except cutesy, but frantic-paced, with a weirdly relaxing soundtrack despite how everything is exploding around you all the time.”
- graphics3 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The graphics are characterized by a punchy and cute art style that enhances the overall experience, complemented by engaging sound effects and music. Reviewers appreciate the unique visual elements tied to the automation and planet system, contributing to an enjoyable and immersive gameplay experience.
“The graphics are punchy, fun, and before I knew it, I lost a couple of hours of my life!”
“The art style is cute, and the automation plus the planet system are all really unique.”
“Lovely art style and sound effects/music.”
- 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.”
- humor1 mentions
- 300 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is highlighted by the character's amusing movement, particularly their wobbly legs, which elicits laughter and adds a lighthearted charm to the gameplay experience.
“The character's movement is so funny; I can't help but smile watching him go around on his wobbly legs.”
“The dialogue is packed with clever puns and witty one-liners that had me laughing out loud.”
“The absurd situations the characters find themselves in are hilarious and keep the gameplay light-hearted.”
- 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 between the narrative and gameplay that limits engagement with the game's universe.
“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 generally find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious and unengaging, often describing it as boring.
“The game feels overly grindy and boring.”
“Grinding becomes a tedious chore rather than an enjoyable part of the gameplay.”
“I found myself stuck in an endless loop of grinding that drained all the fun out of the experience.”
