Tales of Terrarum is the kind of management game that I can see myself getting lost in for a while because there is always something else that needs doing. I take over a territory as a descendant of the Francz family and become the mayor of a new town, with the main goal being to turn a struggling settlement into something prosperous. What I liked straight away is that it is not just a city builder. There is farming, crafting, exploration, combat and plenty of character management mixed together, so the town gradually feels like a living place rather than just a collection of buildings.
Building up the town is probably the part I enjoyed the most. I can set up production across farming, forestry, fishing, livestock and industry, then use those resources to keep everything moving. There is a nice satisfaction in watching one part of the town produce something that another part needs. I liked having to think about what I should focus on next rather than simply placing buildings wherever there is room. The whole system has a relaxed pace, which makes it easy for me to check on the town, make a few changes and then watch things develop.
The residents are another big part of the game. Craftsmen handle production and can create things like equipment and skill cards, while adventurers are responsible for exploring and fighting. I can give people jobs and manage the buildings around the town, so the residents feel like they actually have a purpose. I also liked the attention given to their needs and moods. There is a day and night cycle, and keeping people comfortable can help the town run more effectively. It gives the management side a little more personality than simply watching resource numbers go up.
The adventure side gives me a nice change of pace when I am tired of managing the settlement. I can send adventurers into unexplored areas to fight enemies and search for rare resources and treasure. There are also pets and beasts that can accompany the adventure, which fits the cute fantasy style nicely. The game includes other activities such as guilds, vocational tournaments and world bosses as well, so there is quite a lot going on outside the basic town building. I liked having both the peaceful management side and the more active adventure side available.
The biggest problem for me is that the free to play structure is always sitting in the background. There are in app purchases and chance based purchases, and some of the progression can feel designed around keeping me coming back regularly. I do not think this completely ruins the experience, but it does stop the game from feeling as relaxing as it could be. There are also so many systems that it can take a while to understand what everything is doing, especially when the town starts becoming more developed.
I also think the game can sometimes feel more like a collection of connected systems than a completely focused simulation. Farming, cooking, crafting, exploration and combat are all enjoyable, but none of them is especially deep on its own. For me, the strength comes from how they work together. I can gather resources, use them for production, improve my residents and then send adventurers out to bring back more things for the town. That loop kept me interested much more than any individual feature would have.
Overall, I think Tales of Terrarum is a charming management adventure with a lot of content packed into its colourful fantasy world. I really liked building the town, assigning jobs, setting up production and then sending adventurers away to explore while everything else continued developing. The free to play systems can be distracting and there is definitely a learning curve because of how many different mechanics are involved, but I still found the overall experience enjoyable. It has a nice balance between relaxing town management and more active adventure, and I can easily see myself spending a lot of time just making the little settlement better.
Rating: 7.3/10
