Developer: Different Sense Games, Lazy Bear Games
Platforms: PC (Reviewed), PS54, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S
Genre: Adventure, RPG
Publisher: Twin Sails Interactive
Bloomtown: A Different Story is a narrative JRPG. This game was developed by Different Sense Games and Lazy Bear Games and published by Twin Sails Interactive. There are a few games similar to Bloomtown: A Different Story, such as Sea of Stars, Persona, and Earthbound. This review was done on the PC, but it is also available for Switch, PlayStation, and Xbox.
Bloomtown: A Different Story is a single-player game where you play as Emily and her younger brother Chester, who visit their grandfather over at Bloomtown, a cozy and quiet suburb, during summer vacation, only to find out that it’s all a facade. Bloomtown, a demon world that is growing beneath the surface, arises through the disappearance of children, and it’s up to Emily and her gang to save the town! Emily takes up a conversation with Lucifer himself, who offers her great power through a contract in order to get rid of evil in Bloomtown. In a similar sense to Gravity Falls, you need to make the most of your summer vacation by exploring Bloomtown and creating your own demon-hunting squad with unique team synergies.
Bloomtown: A Different Story recommends playing with a controller, which will get players into a relaxing, journey-filled experience, but I found that even playing on the keyboard or mouse did not take away from the game. Both methods of playing were effective with no noticeable delays and did not take away from the gameplay; it really just depends on your preference. The game does not have a tutorial on the get-go, but once you get into the real fights, a helper by Lucifer goes through the different mechanics and tricks that can be used in the battle. There are several mechanics that the game has to offer, which makes the game so much fun. The controls, to some extent, are self-explanatory, where you can interact and move around, and anything that is new tends to be explained thoroughly, which is done effectively. Nothing in the game is left unexplained, which is really good for players. The game does offer two difficulties for players to choose from that can put players up to an even bigger challenge if they’d like (this also gives great replayability value).
The art style for Bloomtown: A Different Story is fantastic! The spectacular pixel art adds so much more detail to the game and gives a nostalgic feel. As the game is set in the 1960s, the level of detail that is added in the different locations/areas is exceptional, and when encountering them in the game, it really puts the player in awe. The amount of effort put into the visuals gives this game several plus points on its own. The seemingly pixelated visuals with attention to detail make this game so much more lively. This game has a stunning charm to it, and with the dynamic lighting, it creates a fantastic environment. Everything in the game stands out, either making it seem bright or dull depending on the location and time of day; it truly sets the atmosphere. Off the bat, the visuals for this game were something that had instantly roped me in, especially from the main menu itself, where a sudden, swift change in the atmosphere and theme had foreshadowed the true essence of the game. In addition to the visuals are the subtle animations that pull together the style of the game. Effortless cutscenes that are designed so smoothly are so fun to watch and tie together the story that this game has beautifully created. I like the option of being able to set these scenes to automatic/fast forward so it doesn’t waste players’ time if they have already seen what has happened beforehand. There is a lot of attention to detail put into this, and even with the characters themselves, they have such interesting designs. Most character designs in the game remind me of NPCs from Stardew Valley. The character design in this game is fantastic. I was honestly surprised by some of the enemy designs because they were so well done and really embodied monsters/demons. For instance, a broccoli knight/warrior was not something I would have expected. Even the corgi, Hugo, whom Emily has joined her team becomes this buffed punching dog!
One of the most exciting aspects of the game is the combat, and the music is very good. The sudden shift to battle music, which almost seems similar to something from Steven Universe, is so exciting. I quite like how there are lyrics in the music, which is different from other games and really puts the player into the combat groove. What’s even better is that the same song doesn’t always play in the battle but switches between a few. I would say the soundtrack is a definite banger. Whilst I was in the middle of doing the review for this game, I recommended to a friend to test out the demo as I really enjoyed this game. My friend also said that the battle music was such a banger and unexpected that it made the game twice as exciting to play. Besides the battle music, the music is perfect with the atmosphere the game is capturing. When Chester and Emily arrive in Bloomtown, the music is upbeat, strumming off a guitar, which fits a summer vibe, and as they discover new areas mellow, melodic tunes continue to fill the air.
The gameplay for Bloomtown: A Different Story is endless in the sense that no day is left boring and allows players to choose from several things to do. It has some RPG elements like Stardew Valley, where you can garden, sell/buy items, go fishing, cook food, craft items, work at a grocery store, and so much more. This game is dependent on character interaction and explorations. As Bloomtown: A Different Story is heavily dependent on the narrative aspect of the game, it makes for the game to have a different pace and is enjoyable for players to stray away from the main quest and focus on other side quests and interactions. Bloomtown also plays in a day-to-day cycle where certain tasks take up an amount of your day, and then once it becomes really late, some tasks cannot be done. This helps players keep their priorities straight and balanced so they don’t forget to do the essential things. The weather cycle is also really nice, which adds a great sense of atmosphere and realness to the game.
What I really liked was how the map in this game is designed, as it is laid out and labelled with everything in each area and also allows for fast travel. This is great to keep track of all the quests/activities that need to be done. I quite like how the map is not overly detailed but rather shows you an overview of the area, which you can interact with. On the map, especially, I love how you can see Emily’s icon move from one space to another as you open up the map. There are several things I could list about the level of detail in this game that I just adore. The clues also make it so that you do not get lost with where to go. In addition to this, the quests show up in a cute manner where they spring up at the top in a banner with a ‘poing’ sound effect. Everything within the game in terms of the UI and menu is detailed in a way that matches the art style of this game. The menu is very interactive as you check Emily and Chester’s health/shield status, check the amount of money you have, check your equipment and collections, and even unlock other tools for the future. Another little piece of detail that I just have to mention is how, when players want to cross the road, they cannot cross from anywhere but rather only the yellow zebra lines. These details just make the player want to explore more and more to find out what else could be discovered.
Another quality this game has is the traits that Emily possesses. When starting off the game, you are given trait points that you can use on your character. Trait points will help develop skills such as smarts, charm, etc. This is a great way to increase the essential traits for Emily that you think will help you throughout the gameplay. As you make choices for your traits throughout the game, you will eventually get dialogue/action choices that will show you the probability of it working. In this game, in order for the chance to work, you need to roll a set of dice, and if it meets the success criteria, then off you go. I found this mechanic to be a clever way to get players to pay more attention to the trait points they choose but also to add a bit of randomness. When making these choices, you can also level up by gaining stars that will increase the traits Emily possesses. This makes dialogue interaction really important, as you can pick between options that might give you a better gain in the quest than others.
Besides the quality of life aspect of this game, there is the bigger picture, which is the combat, and the combat is filled with no complaints whatsoever. The combat for Bloomtown comes in a turn-based form where each character gets to pick from an attack of their choosing. For combat, you can pick from five different options: item, demon, melee, gun, and guard. Each of these options serves a different purpose. Unlike most other turn-based games, there usually does not tend to be a long-range option for attack for all characters, but here enemies that are behind other enemies can be attacked through using the gun rather than using a melee. What’s even more fun is that as you play through the story of Bloomtown, you start to become friends with local townspeople who have their own abilities that can be useful in battles. Each character has a different skill set, demon, and melee that can be better for some enemies than others. This makes the player think through their attacks and requires some sense of strategizing to double up on combos and attack with stronger spells. Through combat, you can also do an analysis to see which spells enemies are weaker from and use demon attacks like ice/lighting to create highly damaging combos. Combat is a great way to level up the characters that will increase their stats and unlock newer spells for their demons. It is always better to be overprepared for the boss’s battles rather than be under-levelled. The game also lets you tame demons when they are down. Taming demons allows players to fuse them with other demons, which will increase their characteristics and levels and give them a chance to gain spells. This will then allow you to assign another demon to the characters on the team!
Fights really only take place in the ‘Underside’ where players can explore different rooms to find loot chests and take on enemies. The labyrinth type of areas that are found in the ‘Underside’ also have little puzzles for players to solve to move on to the next area. Bloomtown: A Different Story is a wonderfully crafted game where players become roped into a story that unfolds through the interactions they come across. These include things like exercising, taking on battles, and even buying better weapons and accessories to take on the bosses that are filled in this supposed quiet town. There is an endless amount of stuff to do in this game, from the main quest to side quests, and that is just fantastic.
Are you looking for a JRPG game where fighting demons won’t be the only thing that takes up your time in Bloomtown? Explore the town, pick up jobs, make friends, or take it easy, as it is up to you to spend the time to your liking. Bloomtown: A Different Story creates a thrilling narrative with stunning visuals that get players to keep an eye out for several details. Nothing is more exciting than doing a bit of gardening or fishing and later going to the ‘Underside’ to take on the horrific demons that are corrupting Bloomtown. It is up to you to save the town, so be sure to check out Bloomtown: A Different Story!
Overall: 10/10
This is S & S. We are world game explorers. We play games. We have played over 10,000+ games! We travel, we write reviews AND we play more games!!!!
