Zen World
- October 7, 2021
- Cartboard Games
Get on Steam"Zen World" is a relaxing strategy game where you build a world tile by tile, creating paths to valuable loot and establishing military camps for protection. Progress through the technology tree to unlock new powers and improve your kingdom, while finding your way through the clouds. The game allows for both carefree placement of tiles and strategic expansion, with options to compete with friends.
Reviews
- The game offers a relaxing and meditative experience, making it great for players looking to unwind.
- It has a simple premise that is easy to learn but offers depth and complexity for those who want to master it.
- The developers are actively expanding the game with new features and improvements, showing potential for future growth.
- The game currently feels incomplete, with a lack of balance and a frustrating difficulty spike that can lead to player frustration.
- Random number generation heavily influences gameplay, making it difficult to plan and strategize effectively.
- There are numerous quality of life issues, such as poor pathfinding and limited options for saving progress, which detract from the overall experience.
- gameplay3 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- -33 % neutral mentions
- 33 % negative mentions
The gameplay offers a calming experience reminiscent of dorfromantic, featuring beautiful landscapes and a relaxed focus level. However, some players find the random elements and certain mechanics, like the functionality of bridges, to be confusing and potentially frustrating, leading to mixed feelings about the overall experience.
“If you like Dorfromantic, while the gameplay is obviously different, this game has the same 'zen' vibe, beautiful landscape, and focus level (or non-focus level) as Dorfromantic.”
“The gameplay offers a unique blend of strategy and relaxation, making it a refreshing experience.”
“The mechanics are engaging and provide a satisfying challenge, keeping players invested in the game.”
“Only the RNG and some slightly confusing mechanics (how do bridges work exactly?) can make it frustrating.”
- replayability1 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The game features a straightforward premise that belies its challenging nature, making it highly replayable and engaging for players.
“Simple premise but amazingly challenging and replayable.”
- optimization1 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- -300 % neutral mentions
- 300 % negative mentions
Users recommend waiting for optimization updates before playing, suggesting that the game may currently have performance issues that need to be addressed.
“Let them do some optimization passes before you get it.”
“They really need to focus on optimization before releasing the game.”
“The game feels sluggish and unresponsive; optimization is clearly lacking.”
“I hope they prioritize optimization in future updates, as the performance issues are frustrating.”
- music1 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 300 % negative mentions
The game's music consists of a single song that loops every five minutes, which many users feel is insufficient and not engaging enough for such frequent repetition.
“The only song in the game seems to be on a 5-minute loop and isn't good enough for that level of repetition.”
“The music is repetitive and lacks variety, making it hard to stay engaged.”
“I found the soundtrack to be bland and uninspired, which detracted from the overall experience.”
- grinding1 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 300 % negative mentions
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious and heavily reliant on strategy, as success requires careful consideration of each tile's options rather than a casual approach. The element of luck also plays a significant role in determining progress, adding to the frustration.
“It's very tedious, and if you just play casually, you will fail 100% of the time. You must analyze each option for every tile to maximize their use in the most productive way to reach the areas you need, while luck dictates if you will be able to do so or not.”
“The grinding feels endless and repetitive, making it hard to stay engaged with the game.”
“I find the grinding aspect to be frustratingly monotonous, as it often feels like I'm just going through the motions without any real progress.”
