Virtual Cottage 2

I really wanted to recommend this game, and maybe if they update how this works in the future I can change my opinion, because this has a ton of great features and beutfiul designs of the objects. The music is nice, the different locations are lovely, the fact that you can invite friends over or go to a public cafe and just silently chill with others is great. Being able to insert your own music is also good. It has the standard pommodoro timer feateurs, task lists, journal and so on, and you can customize you avatar fairly well though I was surprised that we don't get to see its face, but it the end thats fine. But what kills the game for me is how the motivation system or reward system is set up. Most of these types of study type games slowly level you up AS you work, so that the more you work the more points you get to unlock new items or whatever it is you are unlocking. That gives you a sense of purpose an helps you stay focused, because the game rewards you for the work you are doing. But Virtual Cottage dosen't do that. To unlock the furnature in the game, you simply have to open the game once a day and it gives you a few new items the day you open it, thats it. You don't get anything else that day no matter how much you work or don't work. You could simply log in each and get your reward and never use it to study or work on anything. Its incredibly unmotivating. When i was first useing it I actually couldn't belive thats how it really worked, I kept expecting that after the initial log in items, I would unlock more things as I worked with the pomodoro timer, but hours went but and nothing. I get these types of games to try and keep me motivated but doing it this way is the opposite of that. I might as well just have a youtube study music video on the screen with one of those animated backgrounds, it basically is the exact same thing. I hope they can take some feedback, and update the game in the future, restructure it so that items are unlocked as you work rather then simply as a log in bonus. Until then, I can't see this helping me.

10/10, I recommend. For people like me, who don't go to places like a library or cafe out of specific reasons (partially because I don't like crowds, partially because my way to and from the library takes so much time that it's a hassle) but need and want the atmosphere + motivation such places offer, this is an amazing alternative. There's several things to note here: - The rewarding system is a little different from the typical study / work motivation apps. It doesn't reward by how much you work, rather by if you come in each day. For me, this doesn't make a negative point, however. I didn't get this program to get rewarded, I got it to get work done. - I really like the customizability of the two smaller rooms. Down to the smallest thing, you can customize yourself - given that you have the decoration items and apart from moving the furniture around. But I truly like that you can even change the patterns / color of every and each wall. - The public cafe that random strangers join and study together in without further interactions apart from stickers is very nice, especially for introverted people. There are other rooms, like the library, park, the train compartment and the work space. I truly like these rooms, though I think it would be nice if at least one of these spaces could also be a public space - because unfortunately I don't have any friends that have this game, nor do I have regular study buddies to share those pretty rooms with... :') - Your progress can be tracked in several ways. There is To-Do lists that can be made, with categories for each task that can be collapsed and reopened - which makes it really easy to oversee and track what you need to get done for what. The journal shows what days you've done work at, how long you focused (it even only blends in the exact time you focused minus the breaks! I thought that was a nice touch), which tasks you got done (any task you mark as done in your To-Do list is shown in the journal). You can even jot down notes and habits (though I haven't used those functions quite yet). - And most importantly for me: the music, the ambient sounds and effects are an incredibly nice touch. There are several ambient sounds that can be played, but most importantly are the ambient sounds that are exclusive to the space you're working in - the cafe has cafe sounds (like plate and cutlery clinking), the work space sounds like people talking incoherently (not too loud, just comfortable enough), the library has paper and book flipping sounds. There are a few more, but I think that's enough to show how much the developers put into these small details. It's more than worth the price for the amount of work you can get done with it - it motivates me more than any other study / work program I've looked at before, solely even for the fact that I can see others working in the cafe without anyone disrupting anyone. At least that's my personal opinion and experience. :)

作業用ツールというものを体験したことが無く、この手のジャンルは初めて購入。 長時間の作業の中、1.2時間に一度画面を見る程度に集中したかったため、最低限の機能を備えたものとしてこちらを選びました。スケジュール・タイマー等の時間に関する標準的な機能とキャラクター及び室内の家具カスタマイズ機能があります。環境音やBGM等も穏やかで良好でした。立ち上げた日数によって少しずつ家具が増える解放要素もあります。 キャラクターが目立たないため目の前に画面があっても意識が持っていかれない点がかなり良いと感じました。 その他、犬・猫・鳥といったペットを配置できることが良かったです。実際にいるペットだからこそ配置しても自然に画面にとけこむのでなんとなく居てくれる感が味わえました。 その他休憩しようと思ってふと画面を見たらかわいい幽霊が出現していて一言もらえるような、ほっこりすることもありました。多分長時間の放置で出るのかもしれませんね。クリックすると消えていきました。 マルチプレイも搭載しておりフレンドを室内に呼んで一緒に作業することも可能なようです。ゲーム的な要素は全くといっていいほど無いため、遠く離れていてもお互いが本気で別々のことに集中したい時に有効かもしれませんね。 作業ツールの立ち上げが習慣化している人には地味すぎてあまりおすすめできないかもしれませんが、1.2週間に一度の作業のために立ち上げる場合には、本気で集中できる良いサポートとなると思いますのでそういった方にはおすすめします。

Very cute game! All the daily login rewards are adorable, and non-punishing if you miss a day (or weeks) it doesn't matter since you're able to just pick up where you left off. All the furniture is adorable, and there's so many ways to customize all the spaces you have. The task system is fantastic, and feels very rewarding to check off. Overall very worth it, and has been very important for my studying the past few months lolol

everything i wanted from the first gamee

rating: 4/5 it's better than the first game for sure!! :D i love how we can decorate the apartment and have more apartments to customize differently. i also LOVE the daily rewards and the journal/weekly tracker, i use it a lot. plus, the fact we can change clothes and hair is really cute!! and the multiplayer mode is one of the best things about this game! having it running in the background is perfect (i play this game mostly while i read hehe)

really good for monitoring daily studies

I love using Virtual Cottage 2 as I work. I set it so I set it to 10 minutes to see how much I can get done. I've been really productive with using it so far! I'm excited to see what new features I unlock to decorate the cottage or the apartment. I'm excited to explore the other locations!

Плюсы: + Приятный визуальный стиль. Приглушённые гармоничные цвета не отвлекают от задач и успокаивают. + Разнообразие локаций для работы. Большой плюс особенно по сравнению с предыдущей частью. + Неплохая оптимизация относительно визуала и функциональной насыщенности. + Возможность ненавязчиво работать вместе с друзьями. Есть чат и минимальный интерактив, который не перетягивает внимание на себя и не отвлекает от работы. [b]+ Во время перерывов в помодоро персонаж встаёт и идёт пить кофе или переключается на чтение. Визуальный пример заразителен. Отойти от компьютера и размяться или хотя бы просто сварить кофе и посмотреть в окно в разы легче, когда это делает твоё виртуальное альтер-эго. Я очень ждала этого в подобных приложениях и пока не нашла подобной фишки больше нигде.[/b] Минусы: - Встроенная музыка показалась совсем слабой. Эмбиент не раздражающий, но очень примитивный. Есть возможность добавлять свою музыку, но не все хранят lofi на компьютере. От таких приложений ожидаешь - Не очень удобный список задач. Выполненные задачи не исчезают и не переносятся в конец, а просто висят зачёркнутые посреди списка. Выглядит сумбурно. - Журнал выглядит сырым. В нём просто логируются выполненные задачи. Было бы здорово добавить аналитику. Безусловно, большой шаг вперёд по сравнению с прошлой частью. Все необходимые функции (таймеры, списки задач, музыка, коворкинг по сети) работают отлично. Микропоощрения в виде ежедневной выдачи новых украшений для дома работают на удержание аудитории и дают позитивное подкрепление.

It's a fun and simple way to help keep track of your studying and to encourage you to continue working with the daily check-in gifts. Very helpful :)