Capitalism Again
Wed, Jan 21, 2026 Year 3, Autumn 03Kevin talks to Al about Discounty
Timings
00:00:00: Theme Tune
00:00:30: Intro
00:02:06: What Have We Been Up To
00:19:42: Game News
00:29:36: New Games
00:40:22: Discounty
01:04:28: Outro
Links
Sky Harvest Early Access
Heartopia on Steam
Palia “Winter’s Wonderland: Snowbound Sanctuary” Update
Sakuna Replica Tools
Farming Camp
Milki Delivery
Bel’s Fanfare
Contact
Al on Mastodon: https://mastodon.scot/@TheScotBot
Email Us: https://harvestseason.club/contact/
Transcript
Theme Tune
(0s) Theme Tune:
[Music]
Intro
(30s) Al:
Hello farmers, and welcome to another episode of the harvest season. My name is Al.
(36s) Kevin:
My name is Kevin.
(37s) Al:
And we’re here today to talk about cottage go games.
(40s) Kevin:
Happy to live in one.
(41s) Al:
Woo!
(43s)
Well I was going to say 3D printing.
(47s) Kevin:
Oh, that’s a good one, too.
(49s)
You know what? That’s better than capital is.
(51s) Al:
or, or 28 years later, the Bowdoin temple because I am obsessed with
(56s) Kevin:
Oh, these are man.
(58s)
I was excited about our topic.
(1m)
But man, how are we going to compete with these other juicy topics?
(1m 2s) Al:
All right, well, if you want, well, I don’t think it’s not really covering two topics.
(1m 7s) Kevin:
We got a double feature.
(1m 10s)
I guess that’s the phrase we could use right here because we get this.
(1m 14s)
This is our first time covering two topics.
(1m 17s)
It like, you know, main topics.
(1m 21s)
Yeah, one and a half.
(1m 21s) Al:
Well, I’m just going to, it’s just going to be in the, the, the what we’ve been up to.
(1m 28s) Kevin:
All right.
(1m 29s)
All right.
(1m 31s) Al:
We are going to cover this case.
(1m 32s)
because Kevin has been playing discountee and wanted to
(1m 33s) Kevin:
Yeah.
(1m 36s)
I’m trying to reach the end of my day so I can stay right now.
(1m 39s)
I’m literally playing.
(1m 40s)
Get that through.
(1m 41s)
Or that this I’ll be stopping.
(1m 42s) Al:
Sharking so we’re gonna talk about that. There is some news to talk about including three new games
(1m 49s)
What’s this about three new games announced?
(1m 51s) Kevin:
Oh, okay. Oh, I was start. I was starting to, but okay, I’ll stop then. Oh, that’s exciting.
(1m 52s) Al:
And if Kevin hasn’t looked through the news don’t look through the news now because I want to I want to see your reaction to one of them without you
(2m 5s)
But first of all Kevin what have you been asking?
What Have We Been Up To
(2m 8s) Kevin:
Uh, well, okay. Uh, discounty, actually, um, man, discount is one of those games. Like,
(2m 17s)
Okay, let’s be real. You I all the other hosts.
(2m 21s)
Sometimes we’re forced to play a game to talk about it, or you know how it is, right?
(2m 27s) Al:
Forced is that it for a force feels a little harsh, but yeah
(2m 30s) Kevin:
Well, no, yeah, yeah, maybe it’s a little harsh, but we sometimes we play it longer than what we would have otherwise, right?
(2m 37s) Al:
Yes, yes, that’s fair, that’s fair.
(2m 38s) Kevin:
Sometimes we say I like I want to get through a little more, so I have more thoughts, right?
(2m 43s)
This county is not that kind of game. I am playing this county and I am enjoying it now.
(2m 48s)
live Orches County. Um, uh, so.
(2m 51s)
No, it is wild because it is actually competing with another game. I started this week. Um, have you heard of this game called the legends, the Z a.
(3m)
I’ll have you heard of it.
(3m 1s) Al:
Uh, yes, I have. You’ve bought it, have you?
(3m 2s) Kevin:
I have. I am now switch to man person with the Z a. Yeah. Wow. Wow. Well, a lot of big changes over here. Um, yeah.
(3m 7s) Al:
Wow.
(3m 12s)
Wait, so this, is this, is this a your switch to or have you stolen Calvin switch to?
(3m 14s) Kevin:
No, this is a meet my switch to.
(3m 19s) Al:
Wow, congratulations. Big day, big day.
(3m 19s) Kevin:
Yeah.
(3m 21s)
Yeah. Thank you. Yeah. Finally, finally, I did it before it doubles in price.
(3m 28s)
Oh, thank you, AI for everything. Okay. Okay. So I’m okay. I’ll be honest, I skipped a lot of the episodes like the greenhouse
(3m 39s)
we guys talked about it and I listened to the discourse but not have partaken in it. So I’m sure I’m just gonna be covering old ground at this point.
(3m 48s)
I just beat the second
(3m 51s)
second trio of mega evolutions, I’m about to fight evil or I vote or whatever is named fighting
(3m 56s)
clan to give an idea where I am.
(4m)
Man, boy, this is a game of what feels like extremes, right? A lot of great stuff, a lot of
(4m 4s) Al:
Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
(4m 5s) Kevin:
not great stuff, right? And it’s not that it’s awful, but
(4m 11s)
the worst part about this game is they feel like it feels like they’re just
(4m 14s)
continuously shooting themselves in the foot, right? Just kneecapping themselves.
(4m 16s) Al:
I wouldn’t say, yeah, yeah, I would describe it as great moments and bizarre decisions.
(4m 18s) Kevin:
Bye!
(4m 26s)
Yeah. So I have heard whispers on the wind that, and you might have discussed this already,
(4m 32s)
I don’t know, but positively, they were originally planning a year, another year production for this,
(4m 40s)
but of development or whatever, but from the the the powers that be higher up, meaning Nintendo,
(4m 49s)
they were told to now we got to we got to bring us really your earlier than you thought,
(4m 54s)
And that would explain a lot.
(4m 56s)
But I don’t you know, that’s hearsay that’s a rumor. I don’t know if it’s true, but it sure feels like it because they got a lot of great stuff, but not a lot of room to use it, right?
(5m 6s)
But yeah, I mean, again, I’ll just try to go quickly. I’m not to get too deep in it. Right. The battle systems. It’s all right. I think it’s a little hectic, little chaotic.
(5m 15s)
My wish I could be a little more fine tuning. I want out of it, but it’s fine. I like it. It’s good.
(5m 22s)
The part rooftop are occurring probably the best part of the game, right?
(5m 26s)
The game is fast snappy, overall not as good as Arceus in my opinion, but overall it’s still good.
(5m 38s)
Lumiose is a rough place to be in because they have to recapture the 3DS Lumiose and so it’s kind of small and scale and not that it’s not memorable, it’s hard to…
(5m 56s)
In a moment, I don’t know where I am in the city, let’s say that, right? I’m much more guided by the minimap than the actual layout of the city, which is kind of unfortunate, but Pokemon is certainly not the only game guilty of that, so yeah, I say lovey, but hey, all those new Mega Pokemon, they’re cool, I like that, I’m just trying to think here, it’s really funny how like, you know, in Pokemon games,
(6m 26s)
it plays battling competitive, the items usually are an important thing, I don’t know what item I’m gonna get my Pokemon, in this game it’s all, it’s all just Mega Stones, it’s literally what Mega Stones do I want to my team?
(6m 39s)
Because I think the little bar, the systems fill it up, I think it’s fun. Yeah, I’ll give it one thumbs up, maybe not two, but it’s just, yeah, there’s, like I said,
(6m 56s)
rolling decisions, or unfortunate restrictions, whatever it may be, but…
(7m 2s) Al:
Yeah, we don’t need we don’t need to get into that like, you know, I love people love to be like, oh, it’s so in so’s pro issue
(7m 8s)
It’s this person’s so whatever. I don’t we don’t need to get into that right like it’s the same thing with like Pokemon goal
(7m 9s) Kevin:
Yeah.
(7m 10s)
Yeah.
(7m 11s)
Yeah.
(7m 14s) Al:
I when I complain about obviously not Niantic anymore when I complained about Niantic before
(7m 19s)
I didn’t care whether it was Niantic or whether it was the Pokemon company making decisions the point was I was complaining about the decisions, right?
(7m 22s) Kevin:
Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah, that’s true. That’s a very fair point. Yeah. So whoever made those decisions. Yeah. Um, oh, I’m trying to think of few minor things. Um, one thing. So you know those mega rogue battles, um, or rogue makers, whatever. Um, I don’t know. I’m a little torn on them. I think some of them are fun and creative. That may make a bayonet. That thing has hands. Um, that, that one’s chaotic and a lot to keep. I enjoyed that.
(7m 28s) Al:
So shut up
(7m 50s) Kevin:
that. But it’s not.
(7m 52s)
It is kind of not silly, but weird like you have a game that’s kind of in part based on it’s it’s you know the verticality the actual environment right.
(8m 4s)
And so to take that away during the megafights that’s kind of I don’t know I wish they would use that a little more. But but I haven’t done them all so maybe that will happen I don’t know.
(8m 15s)
But what we’ll see those megas are really big though. I like them. I like to make a vocal matter. Yeah.
(8m 23s)
It’s kind of all I’ve got so far.
(8m 27s)
At least one thumbs up. I am enjoying it. Oh, you know, okay here here’s another little.
(8m 34s)
I’m not going to even say complaint, but it’s an observation.
(8m 38s)
I think part of the poor design is because you know early on you’re really railroaded in comic, right? Like you can’t explore a lot of the city, but they also don’t really tell you when it opens up.
(8m 49s)
But I only have like maybe 15 hours in this game.
(8m 52s)
I’ve just been belying and because that’s what they kind of train me to at first and even without that
(8m 58s)
I don’t know. I just didn’t feel much of a urge or itch. I wasn’t incentivized to explore. Let’s say that
(9m 5s)
because again
(9m 7s)
Comparing to you know
(9m 9s)
bit of an apple orange here, but I mean breath of the wild, right?
(9m 12s)
Your curiosities peaked you you go over there. You’re get your bread crumb at times or you just see something cool off in the distance and you go explore
(9m 22s)
Not feeling that in this game
(9m 24s)
Which isn’t the worst, but again, it’s just it’s just on top of everything. I don’t know feels weird
(9m 30s)
It feels weird to pay the most that this is probably arguably the most expensive vocal mind game for you know
(9m 36s)
Consumer what and it’s probably smallest in scale
(9m 39s)
But but you know, hey the game works. I like it. It’s this or you know
(9m 45s)
I like the parts of it a lot of parts of it. I like TMZ. I’ll say that. That’s a cool crew
(9m 50s)
Mackie.
(9m 52s)
I am happy to start.
(9m 53s) Al:
[laughing]
(10m 8s) Kevin:
I’m going to join the club.
(10m 13s)
I’ll say that.
(10m 15s)
Other than that, you know, just discounting.
(10m 19s)
It’s not even pulled any other street fighter character.
(10m 22s)
You’re sadly because Calvin has opens up to eight or nine.
(10m 27s)
Oh, that’s because when he was born, he’d stole my look.
(10m 31s)
Just in general.
(10m 31s) Al:
what is going on. Well, I’ve been 3D printing. Not very much yet. So I’m literally just
(10m 33s) Kevin:
Okay, that’s all I got.
(10m 34s)
What about you?
(10m 35s)
What’s going on?
(10m 40s)
What have you 3D printed?
(10m 41s)
Tell me, that’s cool.
(10m 44s) Al:
like two hours ago. I did my first print because I’ve been putting off because like, you
(10m 49s)
know, just it’s one of these things where you’re just like, I need to just like do it.
(10m 54s)
And once you do it, then it’s like, oh, now I must do all the all of the things, right?
(10m 59s)
So, um, the first thing.
(11m 1s)
I’m doing well, the very first print was just they have a bunch of like preloaded things and so I printed a boat, it was fun low boat, whatever, doesn’t matter.
(11m 9s) Kevin:
- Okay, okay, sure, sure, sure.
(11m 10s) Al:
Not the sort of thing I’m going to be printing much because it’s just, it’s just, you know, random nonsense you don’t want just littering your house with.
(11m 18s)
But what I really want to do is, um, there’s like organizational systems like grid finity is one of them that I’m looking into, which.
(11m 31s)
allows you to like you put this grid for like your drawers and then you can generate boxes and inserts and stuff that fit on top of that nicely and then you get it just makes organization much easier so I want to do that for a bunch of things so that’s what I’m starting to do just now, but, um, so obviously going to take a wee bit.
(11m 48s) Kevin:
That sounds like a great use 3D printing. It’s warm and fun
(11m 52s) Al:
Exactly. Exactly. So yeah, that’s that’s that’s that’s pretty much what I’ve been doing so far. Not much. We’ll see.
(12m 1s)
I guess where that goes. Maybe I’ll have more.
(12m 4s) Kevin:
to an end next week, when he’s printed his shelves, and then 3D printed all the figures that go on it or whatever.
(12m 11s) Al:
[laughing]
(12m 13s) Kevin:
He’s 3D printed every other Pokemon that wasn’t turned into the the Pokemon Quest Cube 4.
(12m 19s) Al:
- Yeah.
(12m 22s)
Yeah, what else?
(12m 24s)
Well, 28 years later, the Bone Temple, I watched that.
(12m 27s)
And it’s great, I love it, you should go watch it,
(12m 31s)
it’s great.
(12m 33s) Kevin:
I’m just I’m amazed and baffle, but not like but in a good way like
(12m 39s)
That we get this sequel years later and it’s kind of fitting because of the name
(12m 44s)
It wasn’t the exact number, but you know what I mean, and then they make a trilogy out of it
(12m 49s)
That’s that’s kind of ballsy. I like I respect, you know, I tip my head toward that
(12m 54s)
I didn’t see the 28 months or whatever the second one was but
(12m 58s) Al:
weeks. That’s all right. You can skip that. It’s fine. It’s not it’s not terrible. I think some people think it’s terrible, but I don’t think it’s dreadful. I think there are definitely worse films, but I mean, just compared to 28 days and 28 years, I know the bone temple. I think it just it’s it’s it’s on a completely different
(13m) Kevin:
Okay
(13m 3s)
Yeah, I
(13m 21s)
Sure sure sure I even honestly 20 a days is the only one I’ve seen and at first I kind of hated it
(13m 27s)
But then I thought about it was like no wait. No wait. That was good actually. I thought about it. There’s a message there good for that actually
(13m 27s) Al:
I really loved 28 years later.
(13m 35s)
It was my favorite film of last year and I bone temple is I think I prefer 28 years later.
(13m 38s) Kevin:
Oh really that good
(13m 44s) Al:
I don’t think this is quite as good but it’s still very good and it definitely I think
(13m 50s)
will be in my top 10 this year.
(13m 52s) Kevin:
- Okay.
(13m 53s) Al:
favorite film of the year so far, but we are only three weeks in.
(13m 57s)
So, it doesn’t seem much yet, but no, really, very good.
(13m 57s) Kevin:
- Rubik said.
(13m 58s)
[laughing]
(14m 1s)
- Just County.
(14m 2s)
- Game of the Year, contender baby.
(14m 4s)
[laughing]
(14m 4s) Al:
But no, it’s just a really, really good, really loved it.
(14m 10s)
What else?
(14m 11s)
Pokémon, obviously.
(14m 14s)
I have now done all of the side quests in the DLC.
(14m 18s)
I just have five legendary Pokémon life to catch, and then I can be done.
(14m 25s) Kevin:
The side quests are fun. I can confirm. I’ve seen a few fun ones. The produce show is good.
(14m 31s) Al:
just wait till you get to the DLC ones. I think they have some of the best, some of the best writing.
(14m 33s) Kevin:
Yeah, I hear it. They just kick it up a whole bunch. Yeah.
(14m 38s)
Yo, yo, how about that froki? You know, you see, you see finicking, you see chest pin and it’s
(14m 44s)
whatever, but then froki. No, you go, go puzzle hard to earn froki. Best for the last,
(14m 49s) Al:
Yeah
(14m 51s) Kevin:
Anyways, go ahead.
(14m 53s) Al:
And I have picked up Animal Crossing 3.0 updates and I have played a good 20 minutes of it
(15m) Kevin:
Um…
(15m 5s)
Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha! That’s enough! Ha ha ha ha!
(15m 7s) Al:
So I
(15m 8s)
Like so I feel like I’m gonna talk about we’ll talk about this in more detail in a future episode
(15m 15s)
Because I do want to dig in a bit more to it, but my my first
(15m 19s)
thoughts on it are very much like everything they’ve added to this game. It’s a good addition, but I still don’t want to play the game.
(15m 28s) Kevin:
Yeah, it feels like one of those updates and honestly with animal crossing, I think it’s hard to get away from this but more of the same. That’s what it would have I’m seeing but, but you know, yeah, that’s kind of the challenge the animal crossing. It’s kind of limited in scope.
(15m 49s)
It’s just very good. I would it does, but, but okay. Yeah, sure. That’s fair.
(15m 55s)
I’m, we already know all fields.
(15m 59s)
I already do.
(16m 1s)
I didn’t picked it up yet.
(16m 1s) Al:
Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. I guess it’s so I don’t particularly care about the hotel, right?
(16m 8s)
Because I’ve never, I’m never a huge decorator. But I do like how you can do the DIYs to get the
(16m 16s)
tickets instead to get the stuff that the, the, the, the let you get. Um, so that’s good.
(16m 23s)
Uh, the recetti’s or recetti stuff is good. Um,
(16m 30s) Kevin:
Yeah, that seems like a good one.
(16m 32s) Al:
I would like one, however, I would like one for, uh, what’s it called? Um, landscaping,
(16m 33s) Kevin:
Nuke your island.
(16m 40s) Al:
terraforming. That’s what they call it. I would like one for terraforming as well, because my island
(16m 47s)
is still half covered in water. Yeah. I just like, yeah, like get this area. I would like you to
(16m 50s) Kevin:
hmm so would that be research reset to like default I guess
(16m 58s) Al:
just make it land or something like
(17m 1s)
that would be nice. That’s all. What else? What else? What the other things they added? I mean
(17m 3s) Kevin:
Okay, sure yeah, okay
(17m 10s) Al:
all the new items and stuff. I think we’ve already had our opinions on them, right? I can’t
(17m 15s) Kevin:
Yeah, I I mean there’s the crossover stuff right Zelda the Splatoon Lego
(17m 15s) Al:
remember what the other things they added were. Give me two seconds. This is the problem
(17m 19s)
with not having written it all up. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Again, yeah, it’s just it’s all like there’s
(17m 26s)
not much to say about it, right? Like if you like it, you like it.
(17m 29s) Kevin:
The game sadly we did not get in game cube emulator
(17m 32s) Al:
Yeah, yeah. Oh, yeah, the being able to use your home storage for DIY is great because especially with the addition of the hotel and the DIY requests that it makes, you can just like throw DIY bench next to where you put the items you make into for the hotel and just just do the stuff and because everything’s in your house, you can just make everything you need to there and then, which is really nice.
(18m 2s)
Oh, yeah, the the strafing very good. It does make the terraforming easier.
(18m 8s) Kevin:
I heard about that. I don’t understand it. I’ll just I’ll see you when I see it.
(18m 11s)
Um, yeah, that’s what it.
(18m 12s) Al:
I think you’ll understand when you try it, right? Because it’s like, I’ve done many are terraforming where I’ve been like trying to get rid of the like a long line of water or a long line of cliff and you like you have to press the button and then you go right and then face the right direction.
(18m 29s)
direction since it’s like an extra movement ever.
(18m 31s)
You want to move a square where as the strafing just means you just you just hold the button down and moves and it makes it
(18m 33s) Kevin:
Yeah
(18m 39s)
And we doubt create animal crossing platforming challenge
(18m 44s) Al:
And I think I was all the big stuff. I think it’s all as I say good updates, but I still
(18m 45s) Kevin:
Probably not we’ll give her three levels. We’ll probably not
(18m 57s)
Oh. Yeah. Oh, heavy. Yeah. Yeah.
(18m 58s) Al:
don’t feel the need to play the game very much. So yeah, all the slumber islands. Yeah, that’s
(19m 4s)
another good one that I would definitely have used back. I mean, it is what it is, right?
(19m 10s)
I think it’s, I think it’s a good addition.
(19m 12s)
I just wish I had to.
(19m 14s)
I’ve existed before I wanted to turn my island into a water world and I just would have done that on this lumber island, you know.
(19m 18s) Kevin:
[laughing]
(19m 20s) Al:
Anyway, I think that’s all I have on Animal Crossing just now.
(19m 23s)
Hopefully we’ll have a full episode on it later, but who knows, maybe we’re both.
(19m 24s) Kevin:
All right.
(19m 27s)
Yeah.
(19m 28s)
As mandated by us.
(19m 30s)
[laughing]
(19m 31s) Al:
Yes, what would that be Animal Crossing Episode Number 10 or something?
(19m 35s) Kevin:
Sure.
(19m 36s) Al:
Who knows.
(19m 37s) Kevin:
The 10th harvest.
(19m 39s)
[laughing]
(19m 39s) Al:
All right, should we get into some news?
Game News
(19m 44s) Kevin:
I guess so.
(19m 45s) Al:
First up, Starstand Island. So some new
Starsand Island
(19m 48s) Kevin:
Which, okay, I genuinely do not remember which one that is now.
(19m 54s)
[laughing]
(19m 56s) Al:
It’s the one that people seem to be very excited about for some reason even though it all just looks fine. Like I’m not there’s nothing about it. The looks I
(20m 3s) Kevin:
Wait, is that the Japanese one?
(20m 5s) Al:
Think maybe
(20m 7s)
Yeah, I think so. Yeah, which is why we always get the news from it by like people posting about it because
(20m 7s) Kevin:
Yeah, I think.
(20m 15s) Al:
They’re not actually got any PR in English
(20m 18s)
And half of the news we get is just by like Q&A’s on random Japanese YouTube channels
(20m 18s) Kevin:
Yeah, yeah.
(20m 26s)
Yeah, you’re right. Okay, it is the Japanese one. Yeah, it is. Okay. Yeah, wait, there are robot cats in this game. I don’t remember that
(20m 26s) Al:
so
(20m 30s)
So
(20m 34s)
So this game is meant to be releasing in Q1 this year
(20m 39s)
But it turns out that that release will be early access, which we did not know before
(20m 43s) Kevin:
Ah, the fine print! Ah!
(20m 48s) Al:
And the console releases will be coming later. So I it sounds like
(20m 54s)
The game’s not ready
(20m 56s)
but they didn’t want to delay it so they’re doing early access did I don’t think yeah I don’t think they wanted to do this so
(20m 59s) Kevin:
It sounds very much like the game’s not right yet, they didn’t want to do it or didn’t want to.
(21m 9s)
Oh, that’s that is some slippery slick sales tactics.
(21m 16s) Al:
So yeah, super fun I
(21m 22s)
Don’t think there’s anything else to say about that one
Sky Harvest
(21m 26s) Al:
Sky harvest have announced their early access is out now surprise
(21m 33s) Kevin:
I have the jetpack. Oh wait, do you?
(21m 33s) Al:
This is
(21m 38s)
Yeah, it’s up. It’s a flying one. I just I can’t the graphics on this or not it
(21m 45s) Kevin:
They feel like a bass unit.
(21m 46s) Al:
The worst the worst thing about it is not necessarily the graphics it’s comparing the graphics to
(21m 52s)
The are on the cover art that they have like that cover art looks amazing and then you look at the grain graphics and you’re like oh
(21m 55s) Kevin:
yeah yeah yeah exactly yeah it’s oh oh that that literally what’s not on the box or whatever um yeah
(22m 2s) Al:
Okay
(22m 12s) Kevin:
that’s uh can you
(22m 14s) Al:
I do like the idea of the jetpack and like going between different islands and stuff, but oh wait
(22m 20s)
Oh, sorry. It’s not. Sorry. Just just to be clarify. The game is not out as I’m talking. It’s coming out tomorrow as we’re talking
(22m 27s)
So it should be out by the time the episode comes out, but if it’s been delayed don’t blame me
(22m 33s) Kevin:
Wait, can you, what are your crops while flying? That would be cool.
(22m 36s) Al:
Hmm good question I suspect not
(22m 38s) Kevin:
Oh my gosh, I like there’s an NPC. That, that cover art feels so dissonant.
(22m 46s)
Cause there’s a, a, I’m looking through the, spoken to the steam, the trail on the steam page.
(22m 51s)
There’s like a part where you, there’s a character portrait of a guy.
(22m 55s)
And that art style feels more accurate to the 3D look, um, is a little more realistic issue.
(23m 3s) Al:
Yeah, but it’s also it’s also still different from the game. It’s like you got three different art styles there
(23m 3s) Kevin:
Anyways, um,
(23m 7s)
but yes, yeah, exactly, exactly that, that’s what I’m saying. It’s wild. That, okay. Okay. Yeah, that, it’s that, it’s the title art.
(23m 17s) Al:
I, I, so there’s, it looks like the player character art is different in style to like the NPCs, the NPCs seem much nicer models, yeah.
(23m 29s) Kevin:
Yeah, yeah, the player character is very generic, bland.
(23m 35s)
The one got NPC on C and they got the mustache.
(23m 38s)
Like he sees things all right.
(23m 40s)
He seems it’s like a character on.
(23m 42s) Al:
Yeah, and it’s all the other objects just seem very low fidelity textures, but not like in a Minecraft. This is deliberate sort of way. It almost just feels like they will add the textures later.
(23m 49s) Kevin:
Yep, base
(23m 54s)
No base unity assets
(23m 59s) Al:
Yeah.
(24m 1s) Kevin:
Okay, well, we’ll see the jet package
(24m 3s) Al:
Anyway, it should be out now. So if you were really excited about that, there you go.
(24m 5s) Kevin:
It’s an idea
(24m 9s)
Go fly to your heart’s content
Heartopia
(24m 12s) Al:
We’ve got an update on heartopia, Gavin, favorite game from our last episode, and that they now are on Steam.
(24m 17s) Kevin:
Is it I don’t remember oh? Oh, okay, okay. Oh my god. Oh my god. What’s the update?
(24m 20s) Al:
This was the one that we thought might be a scam.
(24m 28s)
So so the update is that it is now on Steam. So when we were talking about the podcast last time
(24m 31s) Kevin:
Okay
(24m 34s) Al:
It was saying that it was available, but it wasn’t on Steam
(24m 38s)
It was available on Android and iOS on their app stores and as I download on the website
(24m 38s) Kevin:
Yeah, yeah
(24m 46s) Al:
Which felt very dodgy so now you can get it on Steam
(24m 47s) Kevin:
Okay
(24m 51s)
Okay, that’s a tiny degree more of a legitimacy at least
(24m 57s) Al:
It is free to play on all platforms. I have played it
(25m 2s) Kevin:
Oh
(25m 4s) Al:
For about five minutes
(25m 6s)
So I’m
(25m 8s)
Because it only came on steam like yesterday. I think so I was playing it on my phone and I don’t like playing games like this on a touch screen
(25m 15s)
So I think I need to download it on my my ally and try out with a controller and see how it plays
(25m 21s)
But it’s fine
(25m 25s)
I guess.
(25m 27s)
It definitely is a game, it definitely does exist, and you log into it, and it definitely
(25m 31s) Kevin:
[laughter]
(25m 32s) Al:
does things the games do.
(25m 35s)
So whether it’s a scam or not, it’s still yet to be seen, but it isn’t completely a scam.
(25m 43s) Kevin:
a scam, a fair minimum. It’s a scam with an actual product. Okay. Okay. All right. What’s next?
(25m 47s) Al:
Yeah, so there we are next. We have an update for Palia Winters Wonder Snowbound Sanctuary.
Palia
(25m 58s) Al:
That is a very long name Winters Wonder cool on Snowbound Sanctuary. That is the name for the update for Palia.
(26m 5s) Kevin:
Oh my oh wow, okay. That’s okay.
(26m 7s) Al:
It adds a bunch of winter-based stuff. If you’re playing Palia, you probably already know about this, but there you go.
(26m 14s)
this is going to convince anybody to play this game if you have
(26m 17s)
already. And finally we have some Sakuna news. Kevin you can buy replica tools from the game. Mm hmm.
(26m 18s) Kevin:
Probably not.
(26m 19s)
Don’t convince me, I’ll be honest.
(26m 21s)
Sorry, Paulia.
Sakuna
(26m 26s) Kevin:
- Whoa!
(26m 30s)
Hey, okay, wait a sigh.
(26m 32s)
- Wait, what do we, oh, you can find it?
(26m 34s)
Or the, I forget what that thing’s called.
(26m 36s)
The sickle, yeah, whatever.
(26m 38s)
Ooh, dear, wait, what is that?
(26m 41s)
That’s again, hold on.
(26m 43s)
Let’s find out.
(26m 44s)
Can Kevin afford this?
(26m 46s)
time to find out uh
(26m 49s)
Oh, that’s very reasonable in U.S. dollars (laughing)
(26m 54s)
Oh, oh, I’m sorry, Japan, for taking advantage of your weekend.
(26m 58s)
But boy, that sickle’s coming home to Papa!
(26m 59s) Al:
It’s that yeah, it’s actually not bad. So it was that the sickle is is $40. I think is that we’re about 40 dollars
(27m 9s) Kevin:
- Yeah, that’s great, USD.
(27m 10s)
[laughing]
(27m 12s) Al:
It’s not bad
(27m 12s) Kevin:
- She has the Ho as well.
(27m 15s)
That one’s a little more.
(27m 17s)
Let’s see how much that is.
(27m 17s) Al:
A little more it’s more than twice come on
(27m 18s) Kevin:
It’s gonna be like 80.
(27m 20s)
- Yeah, it’s like 100, yeah.
(27m 22s)
It’s like 100.
(27m 23s)
So, but it looks pretty nice.
(27m 24s) Al:
Still not bad for what it is
(27m 26s) Kevin:
It looks, yeah, no, it’s not.
(27m 28s)
It looks nice.
(27m 30s)
- Wow.
(27m 31s)
- Made to order item.
(27m 32s)
- Oh my God.
(27m 33s)
- Oh.
(27m 34s)
- Oh, that’s thrilling.
(27m 36s)
Oh man.
(27m 37s)
get that I’m gonna get that sickle.
(27m 39s)
Somehow get Laura posts to sign it.
(27m 42s)
Oh, there are times.
(27m 45s)
Oh yeah, oh, guess on fire only.
(27m 49s)
Wait, I think, is that an actual rice cooker?
(27m 51s)
I think it is.
(27m 53s) Al:
No
(27m 53s) Kevin:
Oh, wait, no, not, wait.
(27m 55s)
Yeah, it is, I think.
(27m 56s) Al:
Gas fire only kettle-cooped rice cooker. I think it might be not suitable for induction cooking. It is
(28m) Kevin:
Yeah.
(28m 2s)
Wow.
(28m 3s) Al:
That’s mad
(28m 5s) Kevin:
It doesn’t say that the knives are suitable for…
(28m 9s)
harvesting spots.
(28m 11s) Al:
I don’t think you’re going to be trying.
(28m 16s) Kevin:
Yeah, probably there.
(28m 18s)
Well, okay, that’s…
(28m 22s) Al:
Now the question is, how much would the shipping be for this?
(28m 22s) Kevin:
This is pretty sick.
(28m 25s)
Mmm, that might price me out of the little…
(28m 30s)
the hoe replica.
(28m 30s) Al:
I keep getting errors when I try to add to my cart, so I don’t know what the issue is here, but good luck.
(28m 37s) Kevin:
Look, wow, look, this, look, I’ve said a lot of things about wanting to get it, but this may be the first time I’m ordering. Oh, gosh. Oh, okay. Just straight up, you’re not being sold to my country. Wow.
(28m 49s) Al:
ahhhhhh
(28m 50s) Kevin:
I might actually reach out to Liam about this.
(28m 52s) Al:
Thanks Trump
(28m 53s)
[laughs]
(29m 1s) Kevin:
Thank you and listeners.
(29m 7s)
I knew. Oh, I mean, wait, no, Andrew’s not Japan anymore. Liam might be my only Japanese contact now. Yeah, stay tuned. Listen. Oh, okay. Well, I’m over here sweating. We can go those. Okay. I’m freaking out about it, but I will. Okay. A little more objectively, I do think these are very nice replicas. They don’t look cheap. Yeah, that’s all.
(29m 34s) Al:
All right, that’s all the the game updates. Next we have three new games to talk
New Games
(29m 42s) Al:
about. Well, we will find out. So first up, we have farming camp every summer,
(29m 43s) Kevin:
Or any of them good?
Farming Camp
(29m 50s) Al:
every tree, every tree farming camp searches for the next best ever tree
(29m 55s)
farmer. Someone ready to raise the bar in agriculture. In hopes of a better
(29m 56s) Kevin:
Okay, that’s it.
(30m) Al:
future young Alessandra enters the contest to claim the title.
(30m 4s)
But she will have to face her peers and discover what it means to be an ever tree farmer.
(30m 9s)
That’s always a good question. What is the thing that you’re talking about?
(30m 16s) Kevin:
There’s a lot. I try to unpack here
(30m 20s)
Okay, first of all, I do like the comment. Oh, okay a lot of indie you know
(30m 25s)
I think we bring it up
(30m 26s)
But so many of these cottage court indie games. They make so much better to the art for the promotional material than the it gave a art
(30m 36s)
But that said the
(30m 36s) Al:
However, I don’t, I don’t look at this one and go, I look at this one and go, yeah, that’s
(30m 43s) Kevin:
Yeah, yeah, I was about to say it actually looks fine. It’s 2d pick
(30m 46s)
I like it for me camp. I kind of like the premise. I like the little competition thing going on. I like it. One of those characters is just Zelda. That is just Zelda.
(31m 11s)
Um, okay, if you look at the trailer out around the 12 second mark where the
(31m 16s)
title is, what is is that a fish person I’m looking at? I just I that doesn’t look human. I could be wrong, but
(31m 20s) Al:
Uh, let’s have a look.
(31m 26s)
Around 12 seconds, did you see?
(31m 27s) Kevin:
yeah, 1112. Yeah. Yeah. And under the logo, you see some characters. Is that a fish person?
(31m 28s) Al:
The 12 seconds is just a logo.
(31m 33s)
Oh, I see, okay.
(31m 35s)
I’m not thinking a fish, person me.
(31m 38s)
No, I don’t know.
(31m 39s) Kevin:
It looks like a Zora to me. Like I feel like there are a lot of
(31m 46s)
I think it’s expiration this fair because it’s not copying, but that feels like one.
(31m 51s) Al:
I think it might be like a bird person, but yeah, I think it’s, I think, I think you might be right. I think it might not be a human, unless it’s somebody weighing a costume.
(31m 53s) Kevin:
Oh, maybe it’s a non-human at bare minimum.
(31m 59s)
Okay. And I guess so. Um, yeah, okay. Anyways, yeah, there’s a like a little
(32m 9s)
So, okay, uh, some of the other things on the trailer than the art. Um, um, uh, there the chickens
(32m 16s)
like a cross between slimes and chickens. I don’t know what’s going on with them. Yeah.
(32m 18s) Al:
Yeah. Look, I love a lot of these designs, right? Like some of the people,
(32m 22s)
does the character designs, they’re all really unique. There’s like someone with hair that
(32m 26s) Kevin:
They are. Yeah, there’s a character who looks like a Toriyama Goku character. There’s a Zelda,
(32m 26s) Al:
goes all the way to their feet. Um,
(32m 35s) Kevin:
there’s a poop black guy with headphones. Um, yeah, the there. I am too. I think the like, you know,
(32m 39s) Al:
You know what, I’m open to this, I am open to this.
(32m 46s) Kevin:
I don’t think it’s going to be hardcore competition, maybe game to gameplay wise, but the premise,
(32m 50s)
I think it’s fun. Um, and clearly you’re playing a set character, Alessandro. That’s cool. Um,
(32m 57s)
you drive a boat at some point. I don’t know why, but I’m down for that. Um, I do have. Oh, if you look at, uh, if you look at 30 seconds into
(33m 7s)
the trailer, you can see the the non-human better. I don’t know what they are, but they’re not a human.
(33m 11s) Al:
Yes, they definitely I think they look like an eagle person or something like that
(33m 16s) Kevin:
Oh, like a jellyfish to me. I don’t know. Listeners. The big round blue head part looks like a, the, the, the top of a jellyfish.
(33m 21s) Al:
A jellyfish what are you talking about?
(33m 29s)
No, that’s that’s like a hat. Come on the face clearly has a beak
(33m 32s) Kevin:
Think is that a big, I don’t, I don’t know what’s going on here. I don’t know.
(33m 34s) Al:
That’s clearly a beak. Come on
(33m 38s) Kevin:
And, and you look at the hands. They look kind of like tentacle like, like, like, like, I, I’m just saying what I’m seeing,
(33m 43s)
man um I don’t know what it is
(33m 46s)
but uh listeners use that use the the all the let us know what what is this you know
(33m 52s)
and you’re supposed to be okay I yeah I am too I have one coupon point um oh that’s
(33m 53s) Al:
[laughs]
(33m 54s)
Look, I’m open to this game.
(33m 57s)
I think this looks interesting.
(33m 58s)
I could try this.
(34m 4s) Kevin:
what it is okay around the 26 minute mark you’re you’re filling I think it’s actually
(34m 9s)
supposed to be gasoline for your boat um looks like it’s a uh but I’m not gonna lie it that looks
(34m 11s) Al:
Yeah, all right, okay.
(34m 16s) Kevin:
filling it up with pee I don’t disagree okay let’s move on okay farming camp it looks
(34m 19s) Al:
I don’t know what to say.
(34m 23s)
Alright, next, yes, we’ll keep you up to date when we get more.
(34m 33s)
There’s no release information, just TBA.
Milki Delivery
(34m 36s) Al:
Next we have milky delivery, grab your bike and milk bottles, let’s hit the road, explore
(34m 44s)
the countryside in the short cozy delivery adventure, befriend folks and gently help them
(34m 49s)
rebuild your community one bottle at a time.
(34m 51s)
Upgrade your bike, your dairy farm and venture deeper into a once lively region.
(34m 56s)
Now, why most excited about this Kevin?
(35m)
See if you scroll down.
(35m 2s)
It says, features, what milky delivery offers, a short adventure, two to three hours of
(35m 9s)
beautiful landscapes, light management, small decisions, short dialogues.
(35m 12s)
I’m in, I’m buying this game day one, give me three hours of gameplay and then go away.
(35m 18s) Kevin:
Okay, you know what? In and out. That’s that’s sure. Sure. I guess
(35m 19s) Al:
I am in, so it’s a side scrolling game, I think this looks really nice.
(35m 28s) Kevin:
in spot. I don’t know if they said it, but inspired by Kiki’s delivery service because of course
(35m 36s) Al:
What?
(35m 36s) Kevin:
because we live in the sphere and every other game has to be inspired by Studio Ghibli filming.
(35m 42s)
So I won’t say great, huh? But that’s it, uh, even if it.
(35m 48s)
Falls into that category. It looks nice. The visuals are nice. Um, I’ll say that the the bike
(35m 53s)
animation go looks fast. Cool. Um, you know what? For a two to three hour game. Yeah. All right.
(35m 58s)
Good for them. She wears a witch hat. That’s how you know it’s it’s Kiki’s you get it. You get it out.
(35m 59s) Al:
Yeah, I’m in.
(36m 6s) Kevin:
Something save me. And it’s just ended all. What’s next? Okay. Well, the next game is door my faith and anything
(36m 6s) Al:
Yes. (laughs)
(36m 18s)
Well, so the next one is technically oh, yes, sorry mochi delivery is coming out this year sometime, but we don’t know any more information
Bel’s Fanfare
(36m 26s) Al:
So the next game is called Bell’s fanfare. This is not a farming or cortical game
(36m 31s)
The reason why I’m including it is purely because it’s by Chibi, Chidio who made summer in Mara, etc
(36m 37s) Kevin:
Oh, yeah, I mean, yeah, we, we subscribe to the Chibiverse, absolutely.
(36m 42s) Al:
We do so we’re probably not gonna cover this in the podcast because it’s not a
(36m 48s)
Farming or cortical game unless somebody really wants to but I felt like it was worth mentioning it because we love Chibi
(36m 54s)
So much and we talk about them
(36m 58s) Kevin:
I’m like when I’m seeing I think, I think.
(36m 59s) Al:
Well, so here’s interesting. I’m not
(37m 3s) Kevin:
Okay, okay.
(37m 3s) Al:
I’m checked out so let me let me tell you why I don’t like it and then you can tell me why you like it and we’ll end on your positive
(37m 11s)
This is doing the let’s recreate p.s. One era graphics and
(37m 18s)
I think it just looks bad. I
(37m 22s)
Don’t I don’t like it. Yes. Yeah, it is
(37m 22s) Kevin:
Do you think that’s intentionally going for that okay sure I’ll believe you I yeah I don’t know I didn’t have a ps1 so
(37m 30s) Al:
It’s quite a trend in games the last couple of years is to go back to the ps1 graphics
(37m 34s) Kevin:
It is I
(37m 35s) Al:
And I’m like no leave them in the past make your game look nice not make it look old
(37m 42s) Kevin:
So I see where you’re coming from I don’t know if it’s in tension. Oh, especially Jimmy. I don’t know if it’s intentional
(37m 49s)
But I can see how you get that take away. Okay.
(37m 52s)
Okay. Well, okay. So visual also this, at least it looks different from the other
(38m)
chibi games, I think, enough. Well, I say that chibi games are kind of all over the place,
(38m 6s)
aren’t they? So maybe that’s powerful, of course, that it’s not. But I don’t know. There’s
(38m 15s)
something, I mean, chibi, again, chibi games also in-game all over the place. We have aliens
(38m 22s)
again, witches and stuff. And, and there’s a lot going on in this trailer. You’re, I don’t know,
(38m 27s)
fighting in an asteroid, I think. I don’t know what you’re doing going on to your tiny, in some
(38m 32s)
portions. There’s a, we’ll do it on a stage. There’s a really cool horse unicorn person with a pipe on
(38m 39s)
a boat. Um, I just a lot going on here. Um, but, uh, it’s called my interest at the release. I don’t know
(38m 48s)
what this game’s supposed to be about looking into Australia.
(38m 51s) Al:
well yeah good question um so
(38m 52s) Kevin:
Oh my gosh, expressive bullet held encounters. Wow, I saw the description.
(39m) Al:
yeah so i’ll read the i’ll read the blood bells fanfare is an immersive rpg with exploration
(39m 6s)
expressive and expressive bullet hell encounters you play as bell the new order cleaner of the once
(39m 13s)
luxurious vessel the witch of the sea I will say they’re they’re their stories are generally
(39m 18s)
pretty good, so I feel like that…
(39m 21s)
aspect will work really well and I’m doing an RPG definitely makes sense.
(39m 25s) Kevin:
Yeah,
(39m 26s) Al:
This is just not for me.
(39m 27s) Kevin:
Sure, there is so like the lion guy on the stage who takes a bow and puts on a mask. I don’t know
(39m 34s)
There’s something very
(39m 36s)
RPG like
(39m 38s)
Final fantasy character about that guy. I just dig it
(39m 42s)
But you know that that’s fair
(39m 44s)
Yeah, I don’t know February. Oh kickstarter because of course it’s Jimmy of course
(39m 49s)
February 3rd, okay
(39m 51s) Al:
Yeah, very soon. So if you’re intrigued. That’s a thing
(39m 56s) Kevin:
Check it out. Have we had a cubic kickstarter fail?
(39m 59s) Al:
No, no, and I think the recent ones have all been like pretty much within an hour. They’ve been funded
(39m 59s) Kevin:
Yeah, I didn’t think so
(40m 7s)
Yeah, yeah, and you know that’s fair. I think they’ve earned it even with rough edges they’ve earned it. Cool. That’s fanfare
(40m 14s)
One name. I like that. I don’t know what it means for sure. I mean something
(40m 18s) Al:
Well, it’s the fanfare for Belle, obviously silly question.
(40m 21s) Kevin:
Yeah, all right
Discounty
(40m 22s) Al:
Alrighty, I think that’s all of our new games, so Kevin, we’re over to you.
(40m 25s) Kevin:
Sure
(40m 27s)
Cool. Yeah, all right
(40m 30s) Al:
We are going to talk about discounting.
(40m 32s) Kevin:
Okay, so on our on our notes that we refer to while talking. I’m typing some live
(40m 39s)
And the first one I put in all caps
(40m 41s)
This is ladies and gentlemen. This is Jojo Mark the game
(40m 48s) Al:
If you ever wanted that, which let’s be honest, we’ve all we’ve all thought about it, right?
(40m 48s) Kevin:
Um, cuz that’s
(40m 53s)
Yeah, we have it’s it’s a constant
(40m 55s)
you can workshop it right and and they’ve done it um okay so um where to start with okay you know
(41m 5s)
my overall impression I’m giving it maybe even two thumbs up um it is yeah I’ll say that it’s if nothing
(41m 9s) Al:
Oh, wild way to start.
(41m 15s) Kevin:
else it’s very well made game um it’s of course it’s very specific in what it’s trying to do so whether
(41m 23s)
that gameplay jai’s with you or not.
(41m 25s)
You know, that’s that’s the make or break kind of thing.
(41m 28s)
I am enjoying the game.
(41m 31s)
Okay.
(41m 33s)
Okay.
(41m 34s)
So let’s talk about the gameplay and kind of the premise of the game.
(41m 39s)
So I don’t know how intentional not, but it is.
(41m 44s)
It feels somewhat of a boy play on the start of so many farming games.
(41m 50s)
Um, uh, this time it’s your aunt, who is not in.
(41m 55s)
Karenning the whole story to you. She’s actually alive and well, your neighbor, um, but she wants you to start working at her store. Um, I can’t remember why you would agree to it, but you do. I think it’s mostly to help her out because she is getting older, whatever and is seeking help. Um, and so you’re, it sounds like more, you’re just doing her a favor sort of thing. Um, but she is by, she is clearly the owner of the, the enterprise and making the big decisions. You are literally working here. Um,
(42m 25s)
and so much of the game has that feeling. Oh, this is a Wendy’s man. Um, but, uh, you, so you move to this small town called Bloom curse. I think it is. Um, it’s, it’s a small town. It’s, um, kind of, uh, not impoverished, but, uh, just, uh, it’s, it’s seen better days. Let’s say that, right. So there’s a couple of buildings that are run down or abandoned shops that have been closed, but there’s a, you know, there’s a small
(42m 55s)
inner community and then some tight knit, some of them care about the heritage, et cetera, et cetera. Um, anyways. And so yeah, you, you move to this town and you start working. Um, and it is, uh, convenience slash supermarket store, the simulator manager game. Um, you use, lay out your, in like, you know, you have an, you’re given an empty space basically. You lay out shelves,
(43m 25s)
chills on them. Um, and then from like, what is a nine AM to buy PM or whatever people come to the store shop and pick stuff up and take it to the register. You check them out at the register and you just kind of rinse and repeat that right. If stuff runs out of a stock inventory, you either got to replenish it from the store room, or you do tell just tell the customer, sorry, we’re out. Um,
(43m 55s)
I think I talked about this a couple of weeks ago when I first mentioned discounting, um, when you start, you have this, uh, at least on control. It’s, it’s a pretty painful system of where you have to type in the prices manually on like the grand total. Um, so let’s just say an apple is, is 10 coins, right? So if a person grabs three apples, you can either type 30 or you can two 10 times three because it’s a little calculator interface. Um, the interface itself is the bigger problem because it’s a number pad, but you have, it’s still control.
(44m 25s)
And not just like highlight the key, it’s like you tilt the controller in one direction and that’s the the number that you’re selecting.
(44m 34s)
You know, you have the eight way a directional, yeah, the eight directions right the corners and the up down left right.
(44m 42s)
And it’s just awkward, especially because you got a line of clients and so customers and so you got to you got to get through the line and put all those numbers in and check them out.
(44m 53s)
it kind of gets uh
(44m 55s)
times it a little overwhelming and a little high pressure because there are clients with um
(45m 2s)
or there’s like a satisfaction rating right did you take too long did you have everything they want
(45m 7s)
yada yada yada and then at the end of the day all your totals of all the stuff you sold
(45m 11s)
this tally it in the satisfaction of measure yada yada and that’s uh and so that’s kind of the focus
(45m 19s)
of the gameplay running the store um after hours staff you know outside the the uh time when you’re
(45m 25s)
running the story clients are in there you still have to manage inventory you have a computer in
(45m 30s)
the back you go back say how you need another box of apples and potatoes or whatever um and then
(45m 36s)
stuff gets delivered the store room is kind of the same thing where you’re placing boxes and you kind
(45m 41s)
of have to keep it neat and organize just purely for your own sanity um to able to run around and grab
(45m 47s)
stuff easily um that sort of stuff really appeals to me like it’s almost like a puzzle oh how can I
(45m 55s)
what’s the most efficient layout I can come up with right that’s kind of a big appeal the game
(46m)
for me um uh and it right exactly right yeah exactly right it’s it’s yeah there you go the setting
(46m 1s) Al:
Yeah, that’s I mean, that’s a big thing that people do in farming games anyway, right? Like how can we make this really efficient?
(46m 10s) Kevin:
out your layout of the store in the inventory is very similar to say you’re you’re farming plots
(46m 15s)
right how are you going to make it efficient where you know you can water x number of tiles
(46m 20s)
easily so what are your patches gonna look like but yeah yeah that’s that’s great point um it
(46m 25s)
scratches that exact same age um and uh and as you progress you you you get upgrades um this the
(46m 34s)
the uh the check out system it’s a huge upgrade you get a proper scanner system and instead of typing
(46m 40s)
out the numbers all you have to do is rotate the item in a certain direction to scan it that’s it
(46m 46s)
um and so it becomes a non issue at that point it goes from the biggest point to
(46m 50s)
pain point to just disappearing completely. And what’s nice is they introduced
(46m 55s)
an option in the settings where you can just have that scanner from the
(47m)
beginning or remove the customer satisfaction stuff just to make the game
(47m 4s)
play, you know, shiller on you if you want, right? If you want less pressure. And so
(47m 10s)
you know, it hats off to them. I certainly wouldn’t blame anyone if they use the
(47m 13s)
scanner from the beginning because, oh my god, what a huge quality of life.
(47m 17s)
Oh, great. So yeah, so that’s the primary gameplay of running the store.
(47m 23s)
Sure.
(47m 25s)
Okay, so now let’s talk about the characters in the story.
(47m 33s)
So you have a small, I would just say close to Stardew sized town and the number of characters
(47m 40s)
you can interact with.
(47m 43s)
Their personalities are certainly all over the place, very colorful, a lot of them are like
(47m 50s)
start doing a lot of them are not great people, people you don’t like.
(47m 56s)
A good example, there is a guy named Elmer, I believe his name is.
(48m)
He is the guy who runs the the the city hall area.
(48m 5s)
He is just a represented like a city council representative.
(48m 10s)
He, you know, he’s he’s very low on the on the rung of political power and has no authority of doing stuff.
(48m 16s)
He likes to just take care of the town part because he loves gardening and he just wants to do that.
(48m 20s)
But he has to put up with all this other stuff of permits and he doesn’t respond well to
(48m 25s)
pressure and so he’s kind of like a kind of a maybe not weasily, but he’s a very timid guy and
(48m 32s)
and sometimes has to deal with the conflicts that he doesn’t like. So that’s just one example,
(48m 39s)
a character, but like there’s, oh, there’s a factory and there’s a factory owner, her name’s
(48m 45s)
Tammy, she’s an awful person who’s impatient and just, you know, when you think of a capitalist
(48m 52s)
Like, CEO person, that’s what Tammy is.
(48m 55s)
He’s not great.
(48m 56s)
But you still have to interact with her because one of the kind of mechanics outside
(49m 2s)
of town is there’s a handful of suppliers in town.
(49m 9s)
This village is a harbor, so there’s both farms and fishing people.
(49m 14s)
And you can actually interact with, I believe, it’s four of them that I’ve had right now
(49m 18s)
to negotiate trade contracts, and they give you like special and unique inventory for
(49m 24s)
for your shop. Uh.
(49m 26s)
And so you have to manage that and you can hit targets like sell X number of fish from this one person and then you can get upgrades to their to the trade contract. You have with them. So you can get stuff on them at cheaper prices or bigger quantity so on and so forth.
(49m 42s)
And so the social system is I’m going to call it a light social system because you as you talk to you don’t actually even give gifts to people you just talk to them.
(49m 56s)
And you get to know them. You get to know their stories. Eventually you’ll not have little mini events with them. There’s no dating in this game. Thank goodness.
(50m 5s)
But you get to know each of the characters individually. And so again, a wide variety of opinions. You have people just trying to make business in this little town. You have people care about the heritage and what yada yada yada.
(50m 20s)
And so that’s that’s kind of how it goes. The overall arching plot.
(50m 26s)
Is is kind of like this conflict that your aunt is creating because she’s trying to expand the store so much at first. It’s just this one building that she has. She ran a different store, but she.
(50m 42s)
She tries to or turned into a discounty franchise discounties the name of the store itself. And then later on, she, for instance, buys a band in T shop next to her place to take to that building and expands the store there.
(50m 56s)
And some people are set by that because that he shop even though it’s been abandoned for a number of years and unused still had meaning people, you know, felt to represent the town yada yada yada.
(51m 9s)
And so some people have issues with that. And again, you have no control over this as you are not the owner of the store. You are just the manager slash primary employee.
(51m 26s)
This is why like it starts to show I joke about capitalism, but that that’s kind of what this is right like the store is growing and growing than the aunt wants to keep expanding and growing and it’s and you kind of see the side effects it’s going to have on the community.
(51m 43s)
What feels like maybe the climax of the game or at least a big significant event where she’s trying to expand again, but she’s trying to now get rid of a basically a historical landmark house.
(51m 56s)
So like one of the towns of founders or something like that. And it’s caused so much discord that there is now full on protesting going outside my store.
(52m 10s)
Which is kind of cool to see because usually don’t see cottage core games kind of go that far, you know, actual organized protests.
(52m 20s)
And now you’re at odds with many people in town, including some of the trade suppliers I can no longer buy.
(52m 26s)
But at the moment, buy anything from them, which again nifty. I think that’s cool that they’re just tackling all that head on.
(52m 34s)
There’s other aspects of the story that I haven’t gotten into too deep into like there’s an environmental aspect. I don’t think that’s necessarily there’s a result of the discounty thing, but there’s again the earnings Tammy the factory owner.
(52m 49s)
She’s clearly been polluting and it’s clearly having an impact on the environment and that’s been upsetting some people.
(52m 57s)
So yeah, just a lot of stuff like that.
(52m 59s) Al:
Yeah
(53m 6s) Kevin:
And and your player character because you’re not giving, you know, you put your own name, but they they have a it’s not a blank slate character like you can kind of influence your answers a little you have a who multi choice, but generally speaking, they’re a decent person.
(53m 22s)
And they’re just trying to get through the work they do their job, but they also
(53m 26s)
don’t have to set everyone off, right? Like if they were in control of the
(53m 30s)
whole situation, they probably would not be expanding so much, or you know,
(53m 33s)
trying to upset the community. But so they’re just trying their best. But, but
(53m 41s)
yeah, that’s, I’m trying to think here. It’s kind of a quick snapshot. And yeah, it
(53m 49s)
really does feel like Georgia marked the game, because yeah, what if you kept
(53m 56s)
trying to figure, how’s it going to fit start to do Valley, right? That’s very
(54m 1s)
much what this game feels like. From a technical perspective, the game’s
(54m 6s)
great. It runs great. The art style, it’s 2D pixel art, but it’s stylish enough.
(54m 13s)
I like it. It’s appealing. I don’t want to try to think how to compare it. It’s
(54m 19s)
certainly not Stardew-esque. It’s a little more rounded, a little more poppy, like it.
(54m 26s)
it’s a little more bouncy than then Stardew, but um, I like it. Um, and I say all this, I guess it
(54m 33s)
should be, uh, important to note that, uh, this is a couple months after the games out, there’s
(54m 39s)
been several patches, quality of life stuff. Um, I think for instance, there’s a basement U.M.
(54m 44s)
Lockford, like just an additional store room. Um, I believe that was one of the quality of life
(54m 49s)
things and I wasn’t there at the beginning. Um, so you know, I’m, I’m playing this probably from a
(54m 54s)
a decent like perspective or or
(54m 56s)
a lot of those pain points have probably been ironed out but yeah overall I’m
(55m 2s)
enjoying the experience so far oh oh I’m talking about grace I just remembered
(55m 9s)
so when you start working you’re and already has a woman named Grace working
(55m 15s)
in the store and she’s kind of your boss or seeing you’re at the very
(55m 20s)
least right and so she’s the one who she’s the tutorial character she tells you
(55m 24s)
had to run the store and helps you in
(55m 26s)
get out of here. Um, and so Grace is cool. She’s a, she’s just a friendly, sweet, cool woman. Um, well,
(55m 34s)
guess what? Um, after you’ve progressed enough in the game, she’s fired because hey, guess
(55m 41s)
what? Turns out you’re, you were actually turning up to be her replacement because you worked deeper
(55m 46s)
than she did this. So yeah, capitalism and it’s fine as baby. Um, uh, yeah. And for a while, you’re the only
(55m 48s) Al:
Hm, oh dear.
(55m 55s) Kevin:
employee. Oh. Oh.
(55m 56s)
Oh. You do unlock a second like assistant employee at some point.
(56m)
He just basically runs around and stalks the shelves, which does help you
(56m 5s)
rule out running the story. It is nice to have him there.
(56m 9s)
Poor kid lives at the store basically because he’s there from son up till son to happen.
(56m 14s)
Just talking nonstop.
(56m 17s)
But, but you know what? He’s also a problem child so people are happy with that.
(56m 23s)
But yeah, that’s uh, that’s kind of the
(56m 26s)
the snapshot with this kind of look look at capitalism and it’s ugliness doesn’t shy away from that and
(56m 34s)
Yeah, I’m I’m enjoying it. Um, I will very likely play this to completion. Um, I don’t know how much farther I have to go
(56m 44s)
Um, I will say like I’m I feel like I passed the halfway point maybe even two birds of the way in
(56m 52s)
Um, just based off some of the upgrade paths, I’ve personally seen.
(56m 56s)
But there’d be more stuff done.
(56m 59s) Al:
cool it’ll be it’ll be interesting to hear how it like concludes right because there’s a lot
(57m 7s)
to that you know and it could it could go a lot of different
(57m 9s) Kevin:
There yeah
(57m 13s)
Yeah, it will or yeah, it can agree
(57m 17s)
Now I honestly don’t know how it’s gonna you know how it’s gonna play out
(57m 21s)
You know even if the the actual discounty then stuff of their answer is all you still have that back to your work or
(57m 28s)
Green um
(57m 29s) Al:
Yeah, it’s a fun idea, I guess. So here’s here’s my question around the the kind of gameplay because my my thing is always like shops. I don’t tend to find shops fun in games. How does it actually feel? I mean, you talked about a little bit of the the weirdness in terms of like inputting the price, but like more than that, like how does the overall shop feel to to actually run.
(57m 30s) Kevin:
That’s gonna get fixed
(57m 45s)
Uh-huh.
(57m 53s)
Yeah. I think I feel, I like it. Once you get the scanner and I’m not
(58m 4s)
dealing with the pickup nonsense, I think it’s great because here’s the
(58m 8s)
thing. Like you wake up at the day starts at 6 a.m. the shop opens at 9 a.m.
(58m 12s)
right? So you have three hours you can go into the shop and kind of set stuff up.
(58m 16s)
Right? You line up your your shelves with all your inventory and you’re kind of
(58m 21s)
doing in such a way that, you know, you
(58m 23s)
just kind of runs itself, basically. If you do, if you plan and lay out things well, you generally don’t run into problems.
(58m 32s)
Again, especially when you get the scanner and you don’t have to deal with the check-out nonsense, because none issue.
(58m 38s)
I think it runs fine. It’s a very active gameplay, also that. It’s not just set and forget. You’re still maintaining.
(58m 49s)
sometimes there’s you know like a spill on the floor and you have to clean it up and so a little
(58m 53s)
stuff like that but I like it and it’s like a very concrete block of time you know I don’t
(59m 1s)
know the actual time it’s it’s funny they actually make a little joke about it how time literally
(59m 7s)
past is faster when the top is open yeah they make a joke about it but so you do it every day and
(59m 18s)
for a certain period of time and and it’s fine it’s it doesn’t feel like it drags on or it’s long
(59m 24s)
so as long yeah like I said it’s almost feels like a puzzle if you do well setting up your shop
(59m 30s)
it runs well and that’s that’s kind of what I can say
(59m 34s) Al:
in terms of like the, is all of the, I don’t know whether you’ve mentioned this, but
(59m 40s)
or not, the, like taking, because you talked about taking payments, is that all manual
(59m 45s)
then, or can you, like, say, I’ll be–
(59m 48s) Kevin:
I haven’t unlocked any automation. You have the scanner you have to run to the
(59m 53s)
register to take care of it. Yeah.
(59m 55s) Al:
Yeah, exactly. I think that’s that’s the thing that most has put me off it in general, right?
(59m 59s)
The idea that like you have to because it’s one of the things I’m not a huge fan of with shops is like
(1h 4s)
the constantly being on edge to have to go and sell stuff to someone.
(1h 10s) Kevin:
Yeah, yeah, unfortunately then that you might still have an issue with this because it’s you are still like said
(1h 15s)
It’s still active. You still have to
(1h 18s)
Attend to these little things you have to check the customer out. You have to restock a shelf. It’s empty
(1h 23s)
You have to clean up the floor
(1h 25s)
And and and there I haven’t seen like well like I said you unlock one employee and he starts automating the stocks
(1h 33s)
Restocking stuff at least sit to a certain degree. It’s not as fast as you are for instance, but
(1h 38s)
You will walk.
(1h 40s)
There are employees who can help you checking stuff out? Maybe I don’t know. We’ll see. Maybe the store will expand. Maybe I’ll get a second employee who doesn’t.
(1h 51s)
I honestly could not say. At least I where I am right now, you’re still doing stuff yourself and there’s no automation.
(1h 1m) Al:
Right, fair enough. I don’t think I have any more questions.
(1h 1m 4s) Kevin:
Yeah, no, I mean, it’s it’s a that’s fair. It’s a
(1h 1m 9s)
Straight forward game. Let’s say it gets right into it
(1h 1m 13s)
You do ramp up the store a little bit, but it still feels faster than say Stardew Valley just the pace of the game
(1h 1m 19s) Al:
Yes, which isn’t a bad thing.
(1h 1m 20s) Kevin:
Let’s see I’m
(1h 1m 21s) Al:
You know, I was just talking about wanting shorter games.
(1h 1m 24s)
So yeah, so how much time have you put into this?
(1h 1m 25s) Kevin:
Yeah
(1h 1m 26s)
Yeah, it’s about to say that I’m actually at 10 hours just dust an hour
(1h 1m 31s)
Which I might be not a bad time
(1h 1m 31s) Al:
Okay, and you feel like you’re getting close to the end.
(1h 1m 34s) Kevin:
Yeah, I feel like I might be third if I were to guess
(1h 1m 39s)
Just based on the signs. I’ve seen definitely past the halfway point. I feel confident about that
(1h 1m 46s)
so yeah, and
(1h 1m 48s)
And I don’t know what a post game would look like in this scenario because
(1h 1m 52s)
One thing I have seen online a lot of people complain about that like yeah, you know
(1h 1m 56s)
You can kind of keep playing after the credits, but there’s no real reason to if that makes sense
(1h 2m 4s)
But uh, oh, yeah, I don’t know like it’s it’s it’s kind of niche. It’s specific, but it was
(1h 2m 12s)
What everything it does well? I think the visuals are fun. Yeah, the game does look like the box art. I’ll say that
(1h 2m 21s)
It has charm
(1h 2m 24s)
You know, I think over the characters too much, but
(1h 2m 28s)
They have their works and charms. I like the
(1h 2m 31s)
the hardware store guy they got who sells you.
(1h 2m 34s)
one of the fun things about the layout stuff.
(1h 2m 35s)
As you progress, you unlock different items,
(1h 2m 38s)
like different kind of shelving units and stuff you can unlock.
(1h 2m 41s)
And one of the front ones, there’s these items they’re called displays.
(1h 2m 46s)
And what they do, they have a lot of fun stuff.
(1h 2m 49s)
They have a lot of fun stuff to do.
(1h 2m 52s)
And so they’re a lot of fun stuff, but they’re a lot of fun stuff.
(1h 2m 57s)
And they’re a lot of fun stuff, but they’re a lot of fun stuff.
(1h 3m 1s)
And what they do, they have a lot.
(1h 3m 4s)
So for instance, if you put like a produce display and you put, you fill, you put shelves of
(1h 3m 25s)
apples and lettuce around the display, customers will be incentivized to see them and buy them more, so you can get more
(1h 3m 34s)
it and stuff like that, which is a fun element to, again, figure out an efficient layout and whatnot.
(1h 3m 35s) Al:
Okay
(1h 3m 39s)
Yeah, I can see how this would be very interesting to some people
(1h 3m 43s) Kevin:
Yeah.
(1h 3m 44s)
Yes.
(1h 3m 45s)
So I don’t, I don’t think this game has done, probably wouldn’t.
(1h 3m 48s)
It doesn’t feel conducive to demo, but I still recommend it.
(1h 3m 52s)
This county, solid game.
(1h 3m 54s)
I don’t, aside from the NEPET thing, I don’t have any big complaints.
(1h 4m)
Oh, I’m excited about to find out about the rats.
(1h 4m 4s)
And the rats in the town.
(1h 4m 5s)
We don’t, they feel like they are congregating and not just in an animal way.
(1h 4m 10s)
Like there’s something going on with them rats.
(1h 4m 13s)
Fair enough.
(1h 4m 13s) Al:
Yeah fair enough. All right. Well, there we go. That’s discounty. Thank you, Kevin. Yes. Yeah, maybe we’ll do a spoilers cast to you can tell us every finishes.
(1h 4m 16s) Kevin:
Yeah.
(1h 4m 17s)
Yep.
(1h 4m 18s)
Tune in.
(1h 4m 19s)
I don’t know when when I finish it.
(1h 4m 23s)
All right.
(1h 4m 28s)
Thank you.
Outro
(1h 4m 29s) Al:
Thank you, Kevin, for joining me to talk about discounty.
(1h 4m 33s)
Is there anything you would like to share with the audience?
(1h 4m 35s) Kevin:
uh you know where to find me people who put his on whatever um uh man I still
(1h 4m 42s)
hate how twitter has one or two things still still has a tukes in me but you know i’m
(1h 4m 48s)
on my other places I i’ll one day i’ll get back to making out on my work life balance is better
(1h 4m 53s)
probably hopefully that would about you out where do people find things you care about
(1h 4m 53s) Al:
I like the optimism.
(1h 5m 1s) Kevin:
Yeah, it’s all. Bye. Oh, you man.
(1h 5m 3s) Al:
Well, yeah, you can find the podcast on Tumblr and on blue sky at THS pod.
(1h 5m 11s)
You can send us feedback.
(1h 5m 14s)
Tell us if you have played this guarantee.
(1h 5m 17s)
Do you want the ending to be evil or not?
(1h 5m 23s)
Find all our links to everything, including a link to our Patreon.
(1h 5m 28s)
Patreon.com/THS pod where you can support the podcast, get access to our Slack.
(1h 5m 35s)
And you can also get access to our bonus episodes of the podcast, which are always interesting.
(1h 5m 43s)
Maybe not always fun, I don’t know.
(1h 5m 44s) Kevin:
Well, other than they’re ever green a lot of them like there’s a large library and a lot of them are irrelevant of
(1h 5m 52s)
Ongoings and the news so to tune in here. Talk about not
(1h 5m 56s) Al:
Yeah, maybe don’t listen to the intended direct reaction ones. They might not be that interesting.
(1h 5m 57s) Kevin:
Yeah, ready
(1h 6m 7s)
Unless you want to see how wrong we are about things.
(1h 6m 10s) Al:
Well, possibly prep, but yeah, oh, yes, I guess we need to do our predictions for Pokemon Day. We’ve got
(1h 6m 16s) Kevin:
Oh, we do, don’t we?
(1h 6m 16s) Al:
just over a month. Oh, bye.
(1h 6m 20s) Kevin:
Get ready for ZA cast to and and
(1h 6m 24s)
Why does PCopy have to come out after it would be great to get ready for Pokemon month this year spread out over the year, probably
(1h 6m 34s) Al:
it’s almost like it’s an anniversary year and there’s going to be lots of stuff to talk about anyway.
(1h 6m 36s) Kevin:
Almost
(1h 6m 38s) Al:
All right. I think that’s everything then. Thank you, Kevin again for joining me.
(1h 6m 41s) Kevin:
Thank you all round me on
(1h 6m 43s) Al:
Thank you listeners for listening and until next time, have a good harvest.
(1h 6m 46s) Kevin:
Good heart
(1h 6m 47s) Theme Tune:
The Harvest Season is created by Al McHenry with support from our patrons, including our
(1h 6m 56s)
pro farmers, Kevin Stewart and Alisa.
(1h 7m)
Our art is done by Micah the Brave, and our music is done by Nick Virtus.
(1h 7m 4s)
Feel free to visit our website, harvestseason.club for show notes and links to things we discussed
(1h 7m 10s)
in this episode.
(1h 7m 17s)
[Music]
(1h 7m 20s) Al:
and try not to take advantage of people when you run a shot.
(1h 7m 24s) Kevin:
That’d be nice and for those in the know, shout out to BleedingCloud.get
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