LogFAQs > #978204229

Ok, one quick bit of housekeeping. I'm swapping Echoic Memory and SKEW. Echoic Memory had issues, but I literally could not bring myself to play SKEW one more time even though it was a more technically sound game. Congrats Echoic Memory!

Game #27 Complete! The Botanist

Throw This Quote On The Back Of The Box: "Ever beat a game 100 times in a single day?"

Final Thoughts:
This one was really hard for me to rank. It is one of the more charming games on the Playdate but it is also one of the most insubstantial. I was as high as 8 and as low as 24. I can't think of another Playdate game where I played it for like a minute and was totally in. The art is fun and they do a lot of really clever little things with the style. That's worth something. That keeps it out of the pits.

But at the same time this game is 15 minutes long and they're asking $9 for it. That's a felony in Delaware. I thought I had finished the intro segment and I was like "wow can't wait to see what you do next, The Botanist!" And then I turned and saw The Botanist jump out my window and sprint into the forest. I know indie games tend to be short and they're made by one person and its a passion project and all that fun stuff. I'm a firm believer that a game doesn't need a minimum length. Or I was. Now I'm a firm believer that if you charge me $9 for a 15 minute story I have the right to punch you.

That's not even the biggest issue though. The story isn't good. The story barely feels like anything. This guy is on a quest for a special planet and he finds it through dumb luck after doing the wrong thing and lading on the wrong planet and then there's a pirate and then there isn't a pirate and that's it. It has the feel of a story being made up on the spot by an eight year old who isn't good at telling stories even by the standard of eight year olds. Honestly if I was even half interested in the plot here I probably would've ranked this a good chunk higher but I just wasn't. My favorite part is where the computer screen said "don't shoot!" on it. My second favorite part of the story was nothing.

I feel bad ranking this as low as I am. I also feel bad ranking this as high as I am. If your game ranked below this I'm basically telling you "I would prefer to watch a stylized commercial than play your game".

Should You Play It? Eh. I don't think it is worth $9 so probably not.

Final Score: 3. Charming for as long as it lasts but it lasts about half a Futurama episode. Snak was borderline broken but it was at least a game. I'm slotting this just about Whitewater Wipeout on account of them both being short, nothing sort of experiences but this one being a more charming short, nothing sort of experience.

Games Completed: 27/142.

Game Rankings:
27) HANA Spacetime Fantasy
26) Boogie Loops
25) Hidey Spot
24) Bub-O Collect
23) The Lushes Land
22) Nightingale
21) A Joke That's Worth 0.99 Cents
20) Whitewater Wipeout
19) The Botanist
18) Snak
17) DYG
16) Lost Your Marbles
15) Grand Tour Legends
14) Demon Quest '85
13) The Fall of Elena Temple
12) Flipper Lifter
11) Questy Chess
10) The Keyper
9) SKEW
8) Echoic Memory
7) Omaze
6) Sasquatchers
5) Castle Tintagel
4) Casual Birder
3) Zipper
2) Pick Pack Pup
1) Crankin's Time Travel Adventure