‣ 9.5/10 – An endless dopamine simulator.
‣ Thoughts: I never thought I would come back to finish this. The first time around I quit after more than 50 hours of playtime, because I simply felt overwhelmed and mentally tired of all the tasks that were thrown at me. Thankfully a random YouTube video that got recommended resurrected my interest in the game and I restarted my playthrough after 3 years.
I am so happy that I came back to Graveyard Keeper, because I truly think it is a fantastic game. There are a lot of fetch quests and random tasks thrown at you without any real guidance, but once you get into the rhythm of the gameplay your brain becomes an endless factory of perfectly calculated maintenance tasks. Imagine your daily routine in Stardew Valley: taking care of your animals, planting corpses, watering them, visiting your favorite villagers, buying supplies etc. but then quadruple that mind process and try surviving. Every task requires pre-planning and every execution of said task needs correct timing, resources and acquired supplies. Forget just one step, run out of food, leave an item and you might miss out on a quest and be forced to wait 7 in game days. It sounds brutal, but that timed week loop forces you to always think ahead which in turn rewards you every time.
The game is absolutely ridiculous in almost every aspect. It has the most unfair fetch quests, the most bizarre characters and a completely unhinged story that ends in the most generic way possible. However, getting to these moments has you doing so many varied tasks that are all equally rewarding that you just can’t stop. Every little item crafted, potion brewed, burger cooked is given with a beautiful pop up and flashy skill points that are all sucked up like a vacuum with amazing sound design. And that’s why Graveyard Keeper is a dopamine factory. I am genuinely surprised how memorable most characters in this story are. They have funny and serious dialogue and actually make you care. Sadly, there is no real input you as a player have besides just giving them what they ask for. After all the DLC’s I wonder if there’s more to see, because the developers seem to hint at that.
In any case, this was a wild ride and one of the most addictive games I’ve played in the last year. If you enjoy games like Stardew Valley or Animal Crossing even, this might be an interesting alteration of the genre. It doesn’t take itself seriously but has a lot to offer if care to dig deep enough. And I mean who doesn’t love communist donkeys?
‣ Thoughts: I never thought I would come back to finish this. The first time around I quit after more than 50 hours of playtime, because I simply felt overwhelmed and mentally tired of all the tasks that were thrown at me. Thankfully a random YouTube video that got recommended resurrected my interest in the game and I restarted my playthrough after 3 years.
I am so happy that I came back to Graveyard Keeper, because I truly think it is a fantastic game. There are a lot of fetch quests and random tasks thrown at you without any real guidance, but once you get into the rhythm of the gameplay your brain becomes an endless factory of perfectly calculated maintenance tasks. Imagine your daily routine in Stardew Valley: taking care of your animals, planting corpses, watering them, visiting your favorite villagers, buying supplies etc. but then quadruple that mind process and try surviving. Every task requires pre-planning and every execution of said task needs correct timing, resources and acquired supplies. Forget just one step, run out of food, leave an item and you might miss out on a quest and be forced to wait 7 in game days. It sounds brutal, but that timed week loop forces you to always think ahead which in turn rewards you every time.
The game is absolutely ridiculous in almost every aspect. It has the most unfair fetch quests, the most bizarre characters and a completely unhinged story that ends in the most generic way possible. However, getting to these moments has you doing so many varied tasks that are all equally rewarding that you just can’t stop. Every little item crafted, potion brewed, burger cooked is given with a beautiful pop up and flashy skill points that are all sucked up like a vacuum with amazing sound design. And that’s why Graveyard Keeper is a dopamine factory. I am genuinely surprised how memorable most characters in this story are. They have funny and serious dialogue and actually make you care. Sadly, there is no real input you as a player have besides just giving them what they ask for. After all the DLC’s I wonder if there’s more to see, because the developers seem to hint at that.
In any case, this was a wild ride and one of the most addictive games I’ve played in the last year. If you enjoy games like Stardew Valley or Animal Crossing even, this might be an interesting alteration of the genre. It doesn’t take itself seriously but has a lot to offer if care to dig deep enough. And I mean who doesn’t love communist donkeys?