Astronook

I've been looking forward to this game since playing the demo a few months ago, and it has not disappointed. Space theme? Check. Cozy? Check. Intuitive controls? Check. Not too complicated to pick up? Check. All this makes for a surprisingly relaxing game. Part of the gameplay loop in Astronook involves puzzles, in that you need to figure out how to trace imaginative geometric star constellations correctly. I sometimes get frustrated with puzzle games - I'm not very patient. I'm also not great with lines and geometry type thinking. So at first I could feel myself getting a little frustrated with some of the constellations. But I was enjoying the game's vibe enough that I kept at the puzzles, and my perfectionism started to dissipate. There's no prize for 'getting it right first time' (or even second, third, fourth, tenth time), and it doesn't matter if I have to try a constellation multiple times. The game is very gentle like that. Something about its sound design, its visuals, all comes together to feels like it's saying: it's okay to make mistakes, learn from it, try again, keep going, you'll get there. With that mindset, I started getting into a zen, creative feeling with the constellations. It's almost like pushing through the discomfort in a meditation session and getting to the more restful, settled part in your mind. The gameplay loop does include a couple of other activities too: a mini, simple collecting game of taking photos of planets and space events, printing the photos, and adding them to your scrapbook; keeping up with the astronomy news (which articles tell you where you find the special events in the night sky); and looking round the room to explore the thoughtfully-put-together (astro)nook you're spending your time in. The reward for finishing each level (which I define as a batch of - 10, is it? - constellations and finding their nearby planets) is a little bit of your back-story, memories to do with a particular family member. I'm not far into it yet, but already it's laying the groundwork of a small but personal story that will bring Feels. I want to know more about the story; it's compelling enough to want to know more, and its breadcrumb-style delivery adds extra incentive to progress through the constellations. There is an in-game tutorial, which has been incorporated well. The game itself is not very complicated so the tutorial isn't lengthy. It consists of concise, simple, helpful tidbits that are exactly the right amount to familiarise you with in the game's activities, and then it leaves you to it. There are hints available on each constellation as well if you get stuck and do want help, and it's a thoughtful little touch that there's a setting for changing the length of time before a hint pops up. There's an immense amount of love that oozes out of this little game. It's clear that the solo dev has put a lot of effort and care into this game. It's not a 'barebones shove it out the door' game, but rather it feels like the dev has thought through every little detail and really devoted time to this game. I kept being happily surprised by little things I noticed and liked. The gentle humour but very human 'to do' list on the wall in the room (nook) you're in. The warm candles, steaming tea you can sip, the squishy space toy that makes a noise when you click it. The pretty planets: when I find a new one I feel like I want to get the best possible picture of it, but also like I want to spend time just -looking- at the planets through the telescope... Just to name a few things. I do highly recommend this game. If you like space, puzzles, cozy - any of those or a combination - then this is for you. I suspect it won't be a long game, but can't comment on that yet. The art style isn't intended as realistic, and neither are the constellations/planets themselves real, so don't expect this to be analogous to looking at the real night sky. That's not what this game is trying to be. Instead think of this as a relaxing, creative, pretty game, with a chill music track and sound effects that complement the game well, and a story that might tug on your heart strings.

A cozy game for introverts. Instead of taking care of things and hoping your neighbors like their presents you're sitting by yourself with a telescope charting the stars and taking pictures of cool stuff in space. You're thinking of times past and reflecting on what it all means in a comfy room. I find this very relaxing. The line puzzles get complicated, but there is a hint system you can use if you aren't in the mood to challenge yourself. No bugs or problems so far. I think it's worth the money!

third review wololo simple but enjoyable. some of the constellations are kinda hard (only on group 2 so idk how much the difficulty scales) but thankfully hints exist to deliver me from my foolishness. more interactivity with objects in the room would be a cool feature for future updates

I work in the astronomy field, and this cozy game is a wonderful love letter to stargazing. I can't recommend it enough.

In my everyday life I’m not particularly focused on planets or constellations, but I do find them interesting. That’s exactly why this game caught my attention. I first played the demo and now I’ve also experienced part of the full game. The puzzles where you form constellations feel incredibly cosy and the music really enhances that warm, relaxing atmosphere. On top of that, the idea of receiving news reports and using them as clues to search for specific planets is really fun. It also makes exploring space engaging in a very original way. I would definitely recommend this game!

I am only an hour in and I'm already finding this game to be joining the ranks of "games to unwind to". I had an interview today and have decided to reset my brain by buying this game & playing it casually. So far, the music and motion of the game has definitely calmed my nerves! The interactive ability around the room itself so far is delightful but simple, with the main focus of the game being connecting the dots to match the images on the info screen and taking a successful photo with the typical shutter focus timed event. It's intuitive, easy to get the hang of, and I can say easily addictive with trying to get better images of the constellations and planets clearing going to be my evening! I really hope that there are planned updates with new constellations, discoveries etc in the next months/years to come because I can see this being a game I will return to time and time again 💕 Refreshingly satisfying and simple. Exactly what it says on the tin.

HOW DO YOU DRAW THIS KOALA AAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH !!!!!!! (i like this game a lot)

My grandfather died a little over a month ago now. When I was a little boy, he and I used to look up at the starts and he would teach me the names of the constellations. He was far from a perfect man, but for obvious reasons this game hit me pretty hard on a narrative level. It's very cute of course - I love the constellations. I love the added mechanics of the blue, red, and locked green stars. They made a very basic puzzle type much more interesting and challenged me to think in different ways. The music added to the atmosphere, and I enjoyed the fantastical feeling of the setting and how that whimsy lent itself to the narrative. You did a good job. Thank you.

天文＋星座のラインパズル。 最初は単純に一筆書だがステージが進行すると終点の青星 分岐の赤星などギミックが複雑になっていくのがポイント 現実の88星座に比べると変な星座が多いんでほっこりできます。

if only astrophotography was as easy as it is in this game...