Game Info
Game Name: Cozy Grove
Developer(s): Spry Fox
Publisher(s): The Quantum Astrophysicists Guild
Platform(s): Switch/PS4/Xbox One
Genre(s): Simulation
Release Date(s): March 19, 2021
ESRB Rating: E10+
Feed my fires of Hell!!!!! (or just give me some good spirit logs)
The wilds of Cozy Grove have called a Spirit Scout camper to the blustery island. On the island, she finds the spirits of the island as the island tries to return to life. The day-to-day life on Cozy Grove is relaxing, but as a Spirit Scout, helping improve the world and solving the problems of the ghosts is something that Spirit Scout can get behind…and earning the badges of a scout can pass the time while bringing peace to the troubled spirits.
Cozy Grove is a simulation-real time game. The game was developed by Spry Fox and published by The Quantum Astrophysicists Guide. It was released as a download for the Switch, PS4, and Xbox One to positive reviews.
I’m a sucker for “collection” games, and Cozy Grove definitely fits that category. You wander the relatively small island, turning up snowmen, leaf piles, shaking down fruit trees, catching fish, and collecting shells. While Cozy Grove doesn’t feel particularly revolutionary, it follows in the footsteps of other similar games.
I hope I catch a black bass…it’s the most metal of all fish (or so I’ve heard)
The game obviously borrows from Animal Crossing. It has a lot of collections, growing, and attempts to improve the island (the fishing feels almost identical). Unlike Animal Crossing, the game feels a bit more involved in simple puzzles. Animal Crossing has a much more relaxed feel while doing rather mundane activities, but Cozy Grove’s mundane activities seem to be a bit more purpose driven with attempts to light the island and help the specific ghosts…though it is still rather chill. The gameplay however is a lot quicker than Animal Crossing, and you are generally finished for the day in a short period of time…it doesn’t have as much wandering around.
The controls are a bit frustrating. All games that are menu based often are subject to a confusing series of buttons to pull up various menus. Here, you have most buttons applying to menus and then the controls can also be frustrating when involving holding items, fishing, and throwing things. It isn’t very intuitive. In general, Cozy Grove is a bit vague on everything…part of playing the game is figuring the game out.
Cooking with dead bears is an adventure!
The game is filled with nice cartoon visuals. The character floats and hops around the island. The island’s slow transformation to color provides a lot of pretty visuals. The game is in real time and the island changes as the time changes. The variety in style does keep returning to the game worthwhile.
Cozy Grove is a good time killer and relatively affordable. It is the type of game that gives you as much as you wish to put it into it. I wish that there was a bit more to the game (but I have the same feeling toward Animal Crossing at points). It is a tricky balance with the idea of if Cozy Grove can keep you interested enough to come back day after day without giving enough away to make it worth the players wild. It seems it might be a game with legs, but only time will tell.
