Vacation Simulator
- February 22, 2023
- Owlchemy Labs
- 8h median play time
I have a lot of VR games because I think they transcend barriers for non-gamers, and they are also a whole lot of fun. Job Simulator was a great way to break in new players, but I have to say that Vacation Simulator will be supplanting (or at least supplementing) their previous effort. While some of the minigames won’t keep you coming back, there’s enough here to keep you busy for quite a while. Owlchemy Labs has spent four years hard at work, but I’m gonna enjoy bit of my Vacation Simulation.
In "Vacation Simulator," players explore a virtual vacation world with vibrant destinations like a beach, mountain resort, and suburban park. The game offers various activities such as sunbathing, building snowmen, and playing lawn games. Players can also customize their character's appearance and interactions with the environment, creating a personalized and relaxing getaway experience.
Reviews
- Vacation Simulator is a fun and interactive game that expands on the original Job Simulator, offering a larger variety of activities and environments.
- The game features charming humor and engaging tasks that encourage exploration and creativity, making it suitable for both kids and adults.
- It provides a relaxing VR experience with a good amount of content, allowing players to enjoy a virtual vacation without the stress of real-life responsibilities.
- Many players find the gameplay repetitive, with fetch quests and similar tasks across different environments, leading to a lack of long-term engagement.
- Some users report technical issues, such as the game not starting or controllers not being recognized, which can hinder the overall experience.
- While it has its moments of humor, some feel that it lacks the depth and charm of its predecessor, making it less enjoyable for those who loved Job Simulator.
- story98 mentions
- 29 % positive mentions
- 67 % neutral mentions
- 4 % negative mentions
The game's story is generally described as simple and enjoyable, providing a light-hearted backdrop to the various missions and activities players can engage in. While some reviews highlight the story's lack of complexity, others appreciate its charm and the way it ties into the gameplay, allowing for a fun and immersive experience. Overall, the narrative serves as a pleasant complement to the game's diverse quests and puzzles, though opinions vary on its depth and execution.
“This game is incredibly nuanced, with an extraordinarily deep, intelligent, yet still challenging story that will play with your emotions at every turn.”
“This game has one of the most intense and rich stories out there, good enough to rival the likes of Red Dead Redemption 2, the entire Persona series, the Kingdom Hearts games, and much more.”
“Vacation Simulator is a huge improvement over Job Simulator, I think almost entirely due to the way they track your progression and tie it to story progression, as well as the addition of really interesting new interactions for VR minigames.”
“☐ no story”
“The story is garbage, speaking of which, why is there a story in this game?”
“There's not a storyline you will be missing out on or anything.”
- humor89 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The humor in "Vacation Simulator" retains the absurd and silly charm of its predecessor, "Job Simulator," but some players feel it lacks the same freshness and creativity, leading to predictable jokes after extended play. While the game offers a variety of humorous interactions and vibrant environments, many reviewers noted that the humor, though still enjoyable, doesn't quite reach the heights of the original. Overall, it provides lighthearted fun with clever writing and amusing scenarios, making it a solid experience for VR newcomers.
“The humor in the game is silly, but fun.”
“I think what I like the most in the game is the lighthearted and witty humor that can be derived from a robot's interpretation of human culture.”
“This is where Owlchemy Labs' unique humor really shines, and interacting with each of these bots is where some of the real fun comes in.”
- gameplay70 mentions
- 30 % positive mentions
- 66 % neutral mentions
- 4 % negative mentions
The gameplay in Vacation Simulator is a notable evolution from Job Simulator, featuring a more open-ended exploration style and a variety of interactions, particularly with robots. While the mechanics are simple and accessible, making it suitable for all ages, some players find the fetch-quest structure and repetitive tasks detract from the experience. Overall, the game offers a fun and visually appealing VR experience, though it may not satisfy those seeking more challenging gameplay.
“The evolution of one-room job gameplay to a more open-ended style of exploring larger areas is done well, the various interactions with robots is fun and varied, and the cameos from notable people (jacksepticeye stuck out to me the most!) is nice to see.”
“Overall, vacation simulator is a clear evolution over job simulator, with there now being significantly more gameplay and content.”
“The gameplay is smooth and satisfying, and it has more to it than the last game than just follow directions.”
“The gameplay loop consists mostly of bland fetch-quests and the environment is really bright and colorful, but not in a good way.”
“Limited gameplay; this game offers only 15 hours of gameplay.”
“Repetitive gameplay.”
- graphics37 mentions
- 35 % positive mentions
- 57 % neutral mentions
- 8 % negative mentions
The graphics in the game are widely praised for their stunning realism and immersive quality, striking a balance between realistic and cartoonish styles. Players appreciate the bright, crisp visuals that enhance the vacation-like atmosphere, with unique environments and smooth performance even on lower-end hardware. Overall, the graphics contribute significantly to the game's engaging experience, though some players feel the aesthetic may not appeal to everyone.
“Further, the graphics that this game provides are some of the best looking, realistic graphics that I've ever seen come from a video game, and it manages to keep my PC cold while doing so.”
“The graphics toe the line between realistic and cartoon-y beautifully, and it's all very immersive.”
“The witty writing was still there and it maintained the same graphics quality as Job Simulator, but it was, sadly, boring.”
“There's way more to do here as the scope is greatly expanded, but I definitely prefer Job Simulator more as the vacation aesthetic and environments in general don't do it for me as much.”
“The graphics are bright, crisp, and cartoony; creating simple, yet fully fleshed out environments that breed care-free fun and invoke an incredible sensation of actually being on vacation... but being surrounded by robots instead of annoying humans.”
- replayability24 mentions
- 58 % positive mentions
- 29 % neutral mentions
- 13 % negative mentions
Overall, the game is praised for its high replayability, with many users highlighting the abundance of content, engaging mini-games, and interactive elements that encourage repeated play. While some mention that certain activities may become less enjoyable after a short time, the general consensus is that there is significantly more replay value compared to previous titles in the series.
“Most of the minigames littered throughout the game have genuine replayability with tons of ways to mix it up beyond the scripted objectives.”
“There's tons of great interactivity, a variety of things to do with great replayability, and the same charming humor that made Job Simulator so good.”
“The replayability is rather scarce, and doing a thing you like a lot may only be fun for up to an hour.”
“Might have long replay value.”
“Unlike the last game, this one has way more content and replayability.”
- grinding20 mentions
- 15 % positive mentions
- 15 % neutral mentions
- 70 % negative mentions
Players generally find the grinding aspect of the game to be excessively tedious and time-consuming, often requiring a significant investment of effort for 100% completion. While the initial gameplay offers enjoyment, many feel that the mini-games become repetitive and lack the charm of the previous title, leading to frustration rather than fun. Overall, the grinding experience is seen as a major drawback, with some players expressing a reluctance to engage in it.
“You'll need a second life for grinding.”
“You'll need a second life for grinding.”
“You'll need a second life for grinding.”
“About 7 hours of non-stop fun, then it's a little grindy for 100%.”
“It lacks the sense of humor of its predecessor, and the activities are all exceedingly tedious and require exceptional attention to detail.”
“I'm not sure what most mini-games in this game are like, because I had to go through the tedious and boring mini-games to unlock them and frankly I'm not willing to put in that effort when I could just as easily install a game that instantly gives me access to the games I came for.”
- emotional4 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The emotional aspect of the game is highlighted by its ability to evoke feelings of relaxation and wholesomeness, making it enjoyable for players of all ages. It serves as a positive and fun follow-up to its predecessor, Job Simulator.
- stability4 mentions
- 50 % positive mentions
- -25 % neutral mentions
- 75 % negative mentions
Overall, user experiences with stability are mixed; while some report a smooth, glitch-free experience, others encounter common issues that require troubleshooting.
“There were no issues, no glitches, and it was a blast to be able to keep playing something like Job Simulator but different.”
“I tried many troubleshooting ideas I found when doing a Google search, which also revealed this is a common issue with this game.”
“I encountered frequent crashes that made it nearly impossible to enjoy the game.”
“The game is plagued by stability issues, often freezing or crashing during critical moments.”
- atmosphere2 mentions
- 50 % positive mentions
- 50 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The atmosphere is characterized by a vibrant, job-like environment filled with witty humor, ensuring that the experience remains engaging and never dull.
“It had a full job-like atmosphere, witty jokes, and was never boring.”
Critic Reviews
Time to Vacation, Human! -- Vacation Simulator Vive review
I have a lot of VR games because I think they transcend barriers for non-gamers, and they are also a whole lot of fun. Job Simulator was a great way to break in new players, but I have to say that Vacation Simulator will be supplanting (or at least supplementing) their previous effort. While some of the minigames won’t keep you coming back, there’s enough here to keep you busy for quite a while. Owlchemy Labs has spent four years hard at work, but I’m gonna enjoy bit of my Vacation Simulation.
90%Vacation Simulator Review
With some very smart additions, Vacation Simulator is a suitably more free flowing and open ended experience than its predecessor. Larger locations, reasons to revisit, and a huge range of things to see and do, this is a successful evolution of the silly sandbox antics Owlchemy Labs does so well. Despite PS Move tracking issues and no real step forward in writing, this is another mindlessly fun time-waster for when the summer Sun dips behind the clouds.
70%Vacation Simulator GBAtemp review
A stunning effort in building a range of experiences, in a coherent VR world, that keeps you intrigued throughout. It's a highly polished, physics packed, rollercoaster of excitement and exploration. Highly recommended for a bit of escapism and guaranteed fun.
85%