Maroc - 3RD-STRIKE.COM - A La Une - 24/Mar 05:15

Collector’s Cove – Review

Over the past few weeks, we’ve mostly been dipping in and out of Pokopia for our cozy game fix. However, while there’s certainly plenty of work in rebuilding the post-apocalyptic Pokémon world, that’s something that takes time… real time. We’re not fans of messing with our console’s clock for time travel shenanigans, so during our “downtime”, we’ve been playing a different cozy title: Collector’s Cove. It’s ostensibly a farming sim game, albeit one that looks and feels quite different from its contenders in the genre. Is being different enough to make it worth playing though? Story Unsurprisingly, Collector’s Cove is a game about collecting things. More specifically, you play as a novice collector whose parents have already set off to the titular Collector’s Cove, a legendary place only accessible to top-ranked “named” collectors. Your goal is to follow in their footsteps by building your own collector’s rank. This is something you do by filling out your compendium with fish, crops, and other discoveries, so that you can eventually be reunited with your parents. Along the way, you’re guided by a small cast of quirky characters. Chief amongst these is your animal companion, a Nessie-like creature that you customise and name yourself. It’s atop their back that you’ve constructed a ship/farm. Collector’s Cove doesn’t feature deeper narrative developments; instead prioritizing atmosphere, collection, and routine over storytelling. Graphics Visually, Collectors Cove comes across as colorful, cozy and inviting, with a soft, stylized art direction that puts emphasis on warm lighting, bright environments, and a relaxing seaside atmosphere. The islands that you happen across come in distinct themes, ranging from tropical or icy to sakura-inspired and even haunted. Small details, like whimsical designs for so-called Fabled items (more on those later) and charming, simple animations, help give Collector’s Cove some character. That said, the game’s overall vibe may be a bit too positive overall, and we were missing the edge that made Pokopia stand out in the genre. We’re not saying that Collector’s Cove should’ve gone for the post-apocalyptic angle, but even its haunted islands come across as a bit too cheerful, making the game feel lacking when it comes to carving out a memorable identity. In terms of performance, Collector’s Cove mostly does what it needs to do on Switch 2, keeping up a stable and consistent frame rate, although minor visual issues, like invisible walls and clipping, undermine immersion at times. Sound With no voice acting present in Collector’s Cove, the game’s soundtrack has to do the heavy lifting. The music fits the game’s laid-back tone, delivering a set of relaxing, cheerful tunes that fit with the different environments and activities that you’ll engage with during your collecting journey. We did find that music was underutilised at times, and there were occasional stretches where little to no music played. At these times, the ambience took over. To the game’s credit, that ambience took an important role when it came to filling in silence. Gentle ocean waves, subtle environmental noises, and small audio cues like fishing splashes or the creaking of the ship, contributed to the overall feeling of being at sea, even when the music dropped out. Gameplay The core gameplay of Collector’s Cove revolves around a simple, cozy loop of farming and exploring, all built around a low-pressure, routine-driven experience. You sail between small islands on the back of your plesiosaur-like companion. During your travels, you’ll catch fish, grow crops, and gather resources, slowly but surely filling your compendium and improving your collector rank. As your rank increases, new regions, tools, and upgrades are unlocked, ensuring a constant sense of progression. Progression is steady and organic rather than challenge-based. There’s no combat, no real penalties, and very little pressure. Simple tasks like farming, fishing, crafting and feeding your companion all contribute to leveling up and unlocking improvements over time. A big part of the Collector’s Cove experience comes from managing your floating farm. You grow crops on your boat, water and harvest them, and sell or use them to craft items like fertilizer and bait. Fishing works alongside farming as another key activity, feeding into the game’s crafting and collection systems. These systems are further tied together through the pursuit of Fabled versions of items: special variants of fish and crops that require meeting specific, sometimes quirky conditions to obtain. A normal clown fish can become a “comedian fish”, for example, after meeting specific conditions, or you’ll need to walk through a crop three times before harvesting to obtain a Fabled variant of said crop. The way to obtain these Fabled items is often deliberately vague, breaking up the base routine and adding a puzzle-like layer to Collector’s Cove. Because you can take on Collector’s Cove at your own pace, there’s no need to rush through the game. Given that the game has a tendency to get repetitive over prolonged sessions, this is a title best enjoyed in bursts of an hour or so, lest repetition starts to kick in and ruin your enjoyment of what is otherwise a fantastic game to unwind with after a stressful day. Your achievements aren’t going anywhere anytime soon, so why should you? Adding to this philosophy is that this is a fairly short title, especially for a farming sim. You’re looking at a runtime of roughly 12-15 hours, which admittedly feels fair for the €19.99 RRP. This is the kind of game that feels right as a “companion game” rather than something that should be your main focus. Conclusion An ambitious take on the genre, Collector’s Cove offers an experience that’s undeniably that of a farming sim, but feels quite unique because of how it approaches said experience. The way you manage your farm from the back of a companion creature and navigate between different islands, and the puzzle-like Fabled item mechanics make for a refreshing break from the standard Harvest Moon or Story of Seasons formula. The only thing holding back Collector’s Cove from its full potential is an overall lack of depth, making this a game more suited to short bursts rather than prolonged farming sessions.