Wireframe 2019

60 / wfmag.cc

Review

Rated

GENRE

Survival

FORMAT

PC (tested) /

Switch

DEVELOPER

HopFrog

PUBLISHER

Humble

Bundle

PRICE

£14.99

RELEASE

Out now

Info

Review

May the Forest be with you

’m not as much of an outdoors person

as I used to be. I’ve been camping a

few times, but the bulk of my outside

adventuring came when I would play

in creeks and woodland as a youth.

In many ways, Forager reawakens that sense

of childlike wonder in the natural world. It’s an

exploration of how beautiful nature can be.

You’re a lone scavenger existing in a land

untouched by modern society. Piece by piece,

you create industrial structures like forges and

furnaces, allowing you to craft items, but the

meat of the action comes about through

exploration of the world and performing other

activities such as cutting down trees, killing

enemies, and solving puzzles.

Because, despite being referred to as an ‘idle

game’ – and keeping many hallmarks of the genre

• Forager takes some cues from the Legend of
  Zelda series, with exploration and combat being
  a key focus. This doesn’t mean loot and crafting
  isn’t important. It totally is, and it doesn’t save
  the game from becoming a massive grind. While
  there’s enough variety during the opening hours,
  you’ll have already built most of the buildings and
  materials by the tenth hour of play, with only a
  few final upgrades you need to work towards.
  To break this up, there are many locations
  dotted around the map that offer rare artefacts
  to increase your stats. There are temples which
  behave similarly to Zelda’s dungeons, where you
  must travel through a winding maze, defeat a boss,
  and receive a substantial reward. You can also
  encounter NPCs who request items. You usually
  need to craft these, further emphasising the grind.

It’s a shame Forager’s pacing feels so rough,

because its combat isn’t any more fun. Fighting

enemies is too easy, with all attacks being

comfortably avoidable. Even the dungeon bosses

don’t feel threatening, as their attack patterns

are predictable and countered with ease. It’s a

survival game that isn’t difficult to survive in.

You need to eat to keep up an energy bar that’s

slowly ticking down, except food is an abundance

rather than a rarity, making consumption a

frequent annoyance rather than a struggle.

Still, I think there’s something to admire

here. No matter how much you pollute the

environment with your constructions, Forager

refuses to loosen its embrace of the natural

world. Wait long enough, and the trees, rocks, and

flowers will repopulate and overwhelm the land.

Your carbon footprint is always temporary, as the

game’s natural world returns to its own, quietly

bewitching equilibrium.

Forager

I

VERDICT

There’s a fun crafting

experience to be had

here, but a large grind

and dissatisfying combat

system prevent Forager

from reaching its

full potential.

57 %

Review

Rated

HIGHLIGHT

There’s a moment in Forager

where you find a family of

anthropomorphic beets, dancing

away in the sunshine. “We love

you,” they say proudly. They then

gift you a reward. It’s a minor but

extremely wholesome encounter.

REVIEWED BY

Olly Smith

 It’d be more interesting if each boss had

a unique attack pattern attached to it.

 Eventually, you can expand outwards by

purchasing land to make new discoveries.