i've played through this game, start-to-finish (dlc included), twice. 100% the second time. i'm pretty sure i could do it again and want to do it again and the only thing stopping me is a quiet voice of reason saying "those 200 hours would be better spent on something else".

fantasy life is... a lot of things, all of them good. its story is aimed at kids and is so warm and hopeful in a way that's kind of contagiously wholesome. the graphics are cute and bubbly in the same manner. uematsu brings his a-game and gets really creative with the music in a way that i found surprisingly memorable and unique. the game mechanics are all relatively simple but give you enough to do that you never feel bored.

in a way, the game feels a little bit like an mmo (more specifically, a lot of its gameplay elements remind me of final fantasy xiv), but without the sense of crowded loneliness that often entails. you just have a lot of options on what you can choose to do or not do, and it really helps feel like you get to pick the experience you want to get out of the game. the option for multiplayer makes it really easy to not feel too hung-up over having to cover all the classes on your own, too.

i love games with crafting, and i loved how gathering and crafting in this game feel like mechanics and not just thoughtlessly added menus. the minigames are hectic, gathering essentially has non-battle bosses, and any of those classes could just go ahead and run through the whole plot if they wanted.

i'm not even sure where i'm going with things anymore, but i love this game and everything about it cheers me up and feels fun and comfy and i only wish there was even more of it.