Review: The Wandering Village

Help nature and it will reciprocate.

THE GAME

The Wandering Village is a city-building and management game developed by Stray Fawn Studio and published by Stray Fawn Publishing and WhisperGames. In a world overrun by plants that expel toxic spores, humans struggle to survive. Then your people encounter an Onbu, a gigantic creature that roams the vast lands. Because the creature possesses an entire biome on its back, brimming with resources, your people decide to build their village there, taking advantage of the creature's mobility and coexisting with it in a kind of symbiosis, where they help (or harm) each other. Manage resources and build improvements so that your people and the Onbu thrive.

All aboard the Onbu!

MY IMPRESSIONS

Following a basic structure of city-building and resource management games, The Wandering Village's unique feature is the Onbu, the wandering creature that is the game's focal point. Interaction with the creature is quite varied, from simple commands like stop and run to other commands that require certain structures to be made available. Most interestingly, you have two ways to take advantage of your symbiosis with the Onbu: cooperating, which is good for both your people and the creature, or exploiting the colossus, simply parasitizing it.

Your village is in constant motion, always monitoring toxicity levels and other adverse weather conditions. Having a good relationship with the Onbu helps you in dangerous situations. For example, when passing through extremely toxic areas, you can ask it to run, avoiding staying there for too long. Exploring surrounding areas is also essential for finding resources that are nonexistent or scarce on the Onbu's back. The game is in Brazilian Portuguese, which helps you understand features and better explore the research tree, for example. The game's art is colorful and vivid, full of levels, as some art is in 2D and others in 3D, blending together at various points.

With so many features and functions to take note of, some players may feel overwhelmed, but this feeling subsides the more you play. Players more accustomed to the game's style will feel right at home. It's a very relaxed game, so you can play without noticing the time passing. There are so many things to explore that you'll want to keep playing to see what else the game has to offer.

Build your own fully self-sustaining mobile city.

ACHIEVEMENTS

The Wandering Village doesn't have many achievements, but it does have a wide variety of challenges. It should take a while to complete 100% of the achievements, as some require higher difficulty levels or survival for days with some restrictions. Besides the easier achievements, many related to interactions with Onbu, I see the achievements as a trophy for those who truly delve into the game.

Ask nicely and perhaps the Onbu will agree to be guided.

CONCLUSION

I confess that what drew me to this game was Onbu, and he's probably what will draw most players in. With his goofy face, he's a truly charismatic character. As I said before, The Wandering Village doesn't stray too far from the formula of other city builders set in post-apocalyptic worlds, with limited space and constant exploration of the map. And that's not a bad thing, as it's a welcome addition to games in this genre. I liked what I saw, I couldn't stop playing every time it unlocked new things to build and experiment. While it's not my favorite game genre, it will be a delight for those who enjoy a good challenge.

SCORE: 7.5/10