The Wandering Village

“The Wandering Village is a solid city-builder with a comfortable learning curve. It offers a challenge while drip-feeding you new ideas along the way.”

“To me, this is a good representation of what a Cozy Game can be and one game I can see myself returning to here and there if I want to just relax for a bit. Yes, the waiting can get tedious and the happiness upkeep is a chore, but, hey, like Meat Loaf once said: Two out of three ain’t bad. Besides, what other game allows you to live on the back of a giant docile creature that wanders a Ghibli-like world?”

“"Would you build a village on giant's back?"”

“The Wandering Village has a grasp of the building blocks of its genre, but never truly capitalises on its core mechanics or its premise. Rather, it presents an enjoyable but somewhat shallow city-builder that just happens to also be on top of a wandering behemoth, rather than truly embracing and exploring what that could mean in gameplay terms. While its visuals and audio are both lovely, there is little here to really sink your teeth into, particularly for a veteran of the genre. The Wandering Village is worth a visit, but I wouldn't want to live there.”

“The Wandering Village is the perfect game to add to your city sim collection, with its random biomes and sizable research tree, it offers its own twist to the genre. The added story was well told and never felt forced on my villagers or me. If you like city builders, then this is a must play.”

“This is a lovely game that rewards patience and empathy, and is best enjoyed with a relaxed mindset and a soft spot for massive creatures with big sleepy eyes.”

“The Wandering Village offers us Onbu, which is great. It's great to shape our relationship with him and care for him; however, as a city builder, the game rhythm is pretty flat and lacks memorable moments. It all runs pretty smooth – maybe too smooth.”

“The Wandering Village is the kind of game that you can end up spending a lot of time in, and may just leave you feeling reflective and pensive.”

“The Wandering Village is a stunning colony sim that is at once approachable for any player but at the same time offers some complex challenges to contemplate and consider. Limited by just its story mode, as well as a finite space which to build and some frustrations in the game’s core systems, it’s not a flawless game, but it is one with heart, with life, and with an enjoyable loop that you will long remember after finishing.”

“The Wandering Village delivers an impressive, captivating experience on Xbox Series S, evolving beautifully from Early Access into a full release. Its unique premise of building a nomadic village on the back of a colossal creature, enhanced by a new emotional story mode and a Studio Ghibli-esque art style, creates an incredibly atmospheric and immersive world. While minor frustrations exist with vague villager needs and clunky console menu controls, these are easily overlooked in what is ultimately an outstanding and highly recommended city-builder with heart.”

“"The Wandering Village" pleasantly surprised me. I don't particularly like most city-building strategy games because there's usually only one correct way to complete them, and it's easy to fall behind if you research certain buildings too late or don't build them quickly enough.”

“Genre fans and newcomers alike will find something fascinating within the world of The Wandering Village; though hampered by a slow pace in its early hours, the game continues to astound in everything from its visual design to its ever-expanding gameplay loop. A must play.”

“With beautiful Studio Ghibli-esque aesthetics, The Wandering Village is a city building sim with real soul. Beneath it all, there is a really beautiful metaphor at play with a wider message regarding the relationship between a civilisation and its environment.”

“The Wandering Village is a lovely game with an interesting mechanic of travelling on the back of a giant creature. While its visual style severely restricts the freedom of building, it adds to the mood very well and sets the game apart from “ordinary” builders. The developers had a vision and didn't shy away from realizing it. It's a shame that the campaign is a huge disappointment for me.”

“The Wandering Village is a worthy addition to the city-builder genre. It's a mostly undemanding hybrid that mixes sim management with a touch of pet care. A slight experience, with an uninspired and slow-moving story, but it still manages to charm in its own quiet way.”

“The Wandering Village launches into early access as a complete city-building simulator experience, but with plenty of room to grow. Minor bugs and quality-of-life improvements can go a long way to complete the player experience for this otherwise beautiful world that offers a unique look at the way humans impact the world around them.”