ISLANDERS: New Shores

I love the original, and this is better than it, albeit marginally. If you can get the original on discount at half the price of this one, go for the original. If you just want to play the better game, go for this one. It feels pretty much like a DLC. The game play is addictive, yet repetitive. A full run, if you don't get stuck along the way, will take you somewhere between 20 and 30 hours, easily. I achieved a top 300 score, which is bound to go down in the future, as I don't think I'll attempt another run for quite a few years.

Something about this game just resonates deeply with me. I feel a real sense of ownership over my success. There is so much to consider when making choices and planning, and I know that I can't possibly be tracking it all consistently, so i know that I'm trying my best. But it's not punishing, I feel ownership over my mistakes as well, and that feels good too! I loved the first game and had a similar experience with it. I really didn't imagine that there would be a sequel, but New Shores is so good! It's really a significant elevation of the first game that fills it out a lot more and gives more interesting and dynamic choices to make.

I really liked the first game, but found myself struggling to enjoy the sequel. While I still greatly appreciate the presentation, and really laid back vibes, I just didn't find the game loop to be as compelling as I would have hoped. Multiple runs (despite different biomes) have all felt identical so far - you show up on an island that seems to have barely any room to build anything, and you just kind of hover the building all over the place until you see the highest number, and eventually it tells you that you can move on before you've ever really built anything interesting, then you seemingly repeat this process over and over again. I surely believe there is some added depth that I'm not taking advantage of, but the game just doesn't seem to be teaching me any of it, or having me naturally come across it. Still greatly respect the game, but just didn't find it as interesting as I'd hoped.

The concept of the game is good with your decision making of where you put buildings is a cool concept. The issue is the game loop becomes repetitive and a slog pretty much instantly. Boons are a nice concept but most of them end up feeling really lack luster. The islands may look different but for the most part they play pretty much the same. Would be nice if you could see what something benefits form before pulling a building pack. This game is just a couple more concepts or more unique buildings from being a game with much more longevity.

Launch to black screen

lovely game, played the original for years as stress relief, and the new additions of biomes and boons only increase the replayability and enjoyment.

Islanders 2 is a wonderful continuation of the first game. It has everything I loved in the first game (calm but engaging gameplay, wonderful atmosphere, interesting buildings and interactions), but it also improves the game massively, in subtle ways. There are more buildings with more possible interactions, making planning more intricate and varied. The new powers added are interesting, although I have not had the opportunity to experiment with them too much yet. The option to choose the type of island you go to next and knowing that will impact the buildings available is an amazing addition, as it adds more variety between islands and runs (the first game could become rather streamlined after a while, as eventually you'd get all the buildings you could) And of course, the game is beautiful. The designs are more intricate and varied, while still being anchored in the style from the first game. It feels like a fitting continuation. Plus, the mechanics are improved, placing buildings...

The game is so nice! Relaxing with a lot of strategic thinking and well designed!

Not a Fan of this at all! The first game is a master piece, I wish they just did some DLC instead of adapting this game to their name! RIP

Super fun game that is addictive. My only con is that sometimes buildings (I'm looking at you, shaman hut) can feel "sticky" when moving around.