ON: Paralives
- ~”55 hours” played (via Steam, with caveat below)
First I need to qualify the (perhaps embarrassing) playtime for a game that’s only been out a week: there have been several times where I’ve left the game running during the day, so that number is inflated and I have no idea what a more accurate figure would be. With that out of the way, yes, this game is early access so there are bugs and content to be filled out, but I think this game is off to a stellar start, and am so excited to see where it goes. I will readily admit to being an obsessive builder and customizer as a general rule in games (evidenced here by that fact that I didn’t get to actually “playing the game” in live mode until the end of day 3 of my time playing), so take that bias into consideration, but I was frankly a little stunned at the levels of freedom and capability afforded in both the Paramaker (character creation) and build mode. You want that shirt tucked or untucked? You want a different shirt under that jacket? You want a pattern or print on that couch? You (for whatever reason) want that countertop to be wicker rattan instead of marble? You want that coffee table to be longer? Wider? Taller? YOU WANT THE COLORS (or wood tones) ON THOSE TWO SEPARATE THINGS TO ACTUALLY MATCH??? Done. All of it. hughjackmanthefountain.gif. Past that, the core systems of live mode do an excellent job of balancing the staples of the genre with some fresh ideas that give Paralives its own unique voice, like the (in my opinion) wonderful “together cards” system (though it will definitely benefit from some forthcoming card variety), or even the inclusion of some almost rpg(lite)-like character mechanics. The art style is really lovely and manages to actually make the Paras (characters) not look like horrors from the depths of the uncanny valley (who knew it was possible!). On top of all of that, the devs have firmly stated that even post full-launch there will be no paid dlc. All future updates will be free. I will mostly likely revisit this a handful of time through the (planned 2-year) early access period, but with such a solid foundation to build on I think these devs have something really special on their hands. I’m very much looking forward to the full release and watching this game continue to grow.
Antler Appraisal: I’ll admit to being disappointed that for all the creative customization, giving your Para antlers is currently not an option, though I’m SURE that’ll be added before early access ends (I can’t be the ONLY person who wants that, right??). For the moment I’ll have to make due with a few be-antlered decor items I found, including a delightfully festive mounted moose head with a scarf and some ornaments hung from its tines. Obviously one of these sits above the door in my Para’s master bedroom. – 2/5
PIQUED: Enshrouded
- Currently out in early access (since 2024), 1.0 release slated for this fall (2026)
Ok so this is kind of cheating since I’ve already played a bit of this (*checks logs*: wait, almost 30 HOURS played already?! I guess a fairly generous “bit” then…), but speaking of early access games, this is one I’ve decided I’m fully on board for, and am going to wait for the full release to really dive all the way in. Putting this next to Paralives made me pause and ponder why I wanted to wait on this one, while I was willing to pop in and out of the other, and I think it just comes down to the more cyclical or “episodic” nature of a life sim versus my tendency to think of a game like Enshrouded as more of a “one save file” deal (for the most part at least). The nature of progression and discovery in Enshrouded, at least for me, I think will be most effective when experienced all together in more of a single continuity. In any case, being such an (over)enthusiastic builder, I am practically giddy at the promise of what seems to be one of the most robust and feature-filled base-building toolsets in any survival/crafting game. Not to mention the depth and richness of the character progression, combat, movement, exploration, environments, the sheer heft of early access content drops/overhauls, and on and on. From the taste I’ve gotten so far (ok, maybe more like a chain restaurant appetizer “sampler” than just a taste) I am fully expecting this game to end up alongside (or perhaps even above??) the likes of Valheim at the top of my favorites in the genre, if not games in general, and I cannot wait for the full release.