Islanders: New Shores

I sometimes reflect on the issue of slow-paced games. How I can read that people think some of them are too "boring," "slow," or similar. For me, this slow pace is almost never a problem or disadvantage. I say almost, because there are experiences that others see as meditative but that I have no interest in. For example, I don't find the Farming Simulator series particularly fun, but on the other hand, I've spent countless hours playing Euro Truck Simulator, and yet I thought PowerWash Simulator was a fantastic pastime and relaxing in just the right way. For me, it's more about whether I find the game itself entertaining, rather than dismissing something because the pace is too slow. I rarely, if ever, get restless from what's happening on screen, no matter how calmly it is portrayed.

I think this is something to keep in mind when playing Islanders: New Shores. It's a very calm game, one where the whole city-building concept is as stripped down as it can be. It starts with an empty island and you get a few buildings to place. The aim is then to place them so that they score points depending on each other, and to avoid them getting minus points. It's very simple; a building has a base score, but this score can increase (or decrease) by placing it close to other nearby structures that it wants to be close to, quite simply. For example, a "City Centre" increases the points of all city buildings as long as they are close enough, and a sawmill increases in points if there are trees within the bubble that indicates how far the boundary extends, and so on.

The aim is then to reach a certain number of points in order to be awarded a new set of buildings. If you don't reach the set number of points, the game is over and your quest to achieve the highest possible score simply has to start again. It's a bit like a "roguelike" game in that you start again on the first island and try to get as far as possible again. The structures of the different islands force you to think creatively, where space is often the biggest challenge. Building a small town is simple at first, although placing the buildings in connection with what raises its score can be a bit tricky. But in later levels, you have to trust that you've puzzled it out correctly. In addition, you don't know where to place a building to get the highest possible score, as you have to find where the score is highest. With one click, however, you can see which buildings a structure gets a boost from, and before you place it in its final location, you can move it around and the score appears on the screen, so it becomes a game of searching for the perfect area.

Buildings can be rotated and turned, and there is a small system of a fixed grid, but otherwise it's a bit like Tetris. In later levels, you also have to think ahead, as a fountain or park that you get later, for example, will score the most points if it is located in the middle of a bunch of buildings. So you have to leave space for that, as it quickly becomes cluttered, but without losing any clarity. Buildings can be placed relatively freely, but there is also a kind of grid/snap system, which can be a little frustrating as it often looks like something will fit but doesn't want to be placed exactly where you want it.

I got quite a lot of playing time in the predecessor. What I can say after my playing time with this one is that it doesn't do much differently. The concept is the same, the visuals have changed a bit, but everything feels incredibly familiar, a little too familiar, on the whole. There are some new features in the form of new buildings and something called "Bons," which are a kind of special item that gives you an upgrade or a bonus of some kind. Despite this, it feels more like I'm playing a kind of add-on than a sequel that has changed the concept. The game's charm is intact, however, and the small changes are welcome, but it's hard not to feel that this is a sequel that is very, very cautious in how it differs.

Visually, it's really cosy. It's as minimalistic as the game design itself, with cute little buildings. Everything is clear, with distinct differences between the structures, and everything is accompanied by cosy little tunes. If I had to wish for one improvement here, it would be that it feels a little "grainy", as if the resolution could have been a little higher. When I pick up my Switch in handheld mode, it also becomes clear that this is a title that works very well on the go, as its design is just as charming on the console's small screen.

There are two main areas where I think Islanders: New Shores falls a little short. The main one, as I already mentioned, is that there isn't really much that distinguishes this from the first part. There are two game modes; one of which is to collect High Scores and the other is a pure Sandbox mode, where the challenge and how you tackle the concept is completely equivalent to the first part. Most of the buildings from the first game, albeit slightly visually altered, are present, and points are awarded (or penalised) on the same premises. For the first few hours, it doesn't matter much, as it's still extremely cosy and entertaining, and the new features do their job. But after playing for a while, it becomes apparent that not much has changed.

The second issue is that the roguelike structure doesn't really work satisfactorily. Once you fail to reach the required score, the round is over and you have to start over from island number one in pursuit of a higher score than before. Sure, the islands' environment and design are generated differently between rounds, but the first islands are just a transport route to the real challenge. You place the same buildings in the same way and simply collect the points required to move on to the next island. More exciting structures such as platforms and larger buildings are only unlocked as you progress, and towers and circus tents appear as options when your scores start to rise, but getting there is always the same process...

This can be applied to titles with rogue elements in general, but there is often some form of reward that remains between rounds; for example, new playing cards, heroes, or weapons that change the next round and, above all, a challenge that often has to be tackled immediately when you start. Apart from some of the special items mentioned that can be saved between islands in the current game round, there is nothing like this, which is a shame. I understand that the pursuit of a new high score should be equivalent, but some form of campaign mode or even a simpler story mode with more specific challenges would have made it more varied.

Despite this criticism, this is another title that reinforces the "just one more round" feeling in an extraordinary way. It's very entertaining, and you always know how you can do a little better next time, by making a design a little more efficiently. Even though you can move on to a new island once you've reached a certain score, you can also stay where you are and try to increase your score for as long as possible, then move on to the next one when you can't build any more where you are. It's meditative, relaxing, enjoyable, and very cosy, although perhaps a little too familiar for those of us who played the predecessor.