Summer Islands
- June 21, 2019
- Marttalin Games
Get on Steam"Summer Islands is a real-time business strategy game where players can create and manage their own holiday paradise, from building cabins and amenities to managing finances and consultants. Play solo, with friends in co-op mode, or against enemies in PvP, on maps of various sizes and terrains. Survive natural disasters while attracting tourists and expanding your island empire."
Mac OS
PC
Steam Deck
Windows
Linux
Reviews
- The game offers a nostalgic experience reminiscent of Holiday Island, with enjoyable gameplay and a relaxing atmosphere.
- The developer is highly invested in improving the game, actively responding to feedback and implementing updates, which shows great potential for future enhancements.
- Despite being in early access, the game runs smoothly and provides a fun multiplayer experience, allowing players to compete in building their resort empires.
- The game suffers from various bugs and technical issues, including UI problems and occasional crashes, which can hinder the overall experience.
- Gameplay mechanics are considered too basic and lack depth, leading to idle time where players feel they are not actively engaged.
- Some players have reported performance issues, such as slow camera movement and clunky controls, which detract from the enjoyment of the game.
- gameplay7 mentions
- 43 % positive mentions
- 14 % neutral mentions
- 43 % negative mentions
The gameplay has received mixed reviews, with some praising its basic mechanics and overall experience, while others criticize it as shallow and lacking depth. Players feel that the gameplay does not justify the time or cost, suggesting a need for more engaging features, such as a potential "resort" mechanic to enhance the experience.
“The good things about this game are the gameplay, the soundtrack, and the highly invested developer.”
“I instantly recognize mechanics.”
“I think one major potential to modernize would be to implement a 'resort' mechanic.”
“The game mechanics are shallow and not very interesting.”
“But this in no way makes up for the actual gameplay not being remotely worth the time or the cost.”
“The gameplay is too basic.”
- music4 mentions
- 75 % positive mentions
- -50 % neutral mentions
- 75 % negative mentions
The music in the game receives mixed reviews; while some players appreciate the soundtrack and its nostalgic qualities, others find it lacking compared to the original. Overall, the music is noted as a positive aspect by some, but not universally praised.
“The good things about this game are the gameplay, the soundtrack, and the highly invested developer.”
“The music is nice, at least, and the graphics are mostly good except for the blurriness and the bizarre water animation.”
“The music has a retro sound that I really enjoy.”
“Music is bad; I expected the original soundtrack.”
“The music doesn't match the game's theme and feels out of place.”
“The soundtrack lacks variety and quickly becomes repetitive.”
- monetization3 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The monetization aspect of the game offers extensive financial management features, including banking, insurance, and advertising, allowing for significant gameplay depth. However, some mechanics, like advertisement placement, are criticized for being overly simplistic and lacking engagement. Overall, while there is potential for hours of gameplay, certain elements may feel repetitive or underdeveloped.
“Beyond some standard mechanics like advertisement, which is simply pressing a button, you don't do anything.”
“On top, you had to create travel rights and routes from countries to your islands and choose what type of advertisement you want to place on each of them.”
- optimization3 mentions
- 33 % positive mentions
- -33 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The game's optimization is mixed; while it runs efficiently with low resource usage, some players experience notably slow performance, particularly when navigating the environment.
“It felt like a browser game - low resources being used while having good performance for what you have.”
“The game performance feels really slow when you try to move around.”
“The optimization is lacking, resulting in frequent frame drops and stuttering.”
“I experienced significant lag during gameplay, making it frustrating to enjoy the experience.”
- stability3 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The game's stability has been criticized, with users reporting initial difficulties in starting the game and navigating the main menu. Many anticipate improvements in user experience and a reduction in glitches over time.
“It took some troubleshooting to even get the game to properly start and to be able to interact with the main menu.”
“I believe that Summer Island can only get better as it improves user experience and bugs.”
“This means you will encounter some glitches.”
- graphics1 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The graphics are generally well-received, though some users note issues with blurriness and peculiar water animation that detract from the overall visual experience.
