Dorfromantik

I'm sorry, this is such a cute game that I wanted to like so bad, but it didn't gel for me, so I'm going to be a bit of a hater. My mind kept searching for a strategy in these blocks - is this like a giant jigsaw puzzle? Can I try to match the 'edge patterns' of blocks up to find the ideal place where the next block 'belongs'? (no you can't). Then what's the 'best' way to put the blocks together? (who knows) Is there a single ideal solution to each level? Why is there no feedback on whether I'm going down the correct path to the ideal solution? I really want to find the "correct" path to take. Or maybe there is no "ideal" solution at all? What does ideal mean after all? Is every path "correct" if we enjoy taking it? Good god this game is making me have a nervous breakdown.

This game has nice graphics and unfortunately not much else for the price. It's a jigsaw puzzle. You've a piece, it fits somewhere, you put it there repeat forever. The longer you play the longer it takes to find a place to put it. Not enjoyable for me I don't think I really "get it". I wouldn't recommend the game, it's a jigsaw puzzle. You can be awarded new 3d models for the pieces. Some pieces are exceedingly useful like that "water train station" tile (what?) that can be placed anywhere. Others like the two houses on one side, one house on the other side tile that I get non-stop are more difficult to place. Maybe it's a good game if you have nothing else to do but I can't help feeling like I'm too busy to be playing anything like this.

The simplest way to describe it is as a special form of dominoes: you have to keep placing these tiles but they don't (necessarily) have to match their existing neighbors, but the more they do, the more points you get; points let you keep playing. Matches are considered on each of six sides, but it's OK if they don't match at all, except for some special tiles like rivers and railroads, which have special "capping" tiles and can't be otherwise interrupted. It's not relaxing: to keep the game challenging, some tiles add quests (you have to add a certain number of houses/trees/fields in connected tile groups, connect a certain number of rail/river tiles) and while you can fail them, this means your tile stack, which is finite, won't be refilled, causing you to lose the game. Keeping track of current quests and seeing your stack shrink makes this game anything but relaxing. It's not beautiful: while the sytle is nice, and they have nice touches like boats sailing up and down the river, in a normal game your landscape just looks random, and anyway, you can't admire it, you keep looking for the best place for the next tile. After losing (running out of tiles) you can keep going in a creative mode, where you have infinite tiles and can delete or copy or create a matching tile, so you can do whatever you want. You can run Creative mode from the start, although the game doesn't make it clear. It's too limited to be fun, however; feels like an afterthought. While the UI for placing tiles is great, managing your games is obscure. Just go to Menu, then to "Your games" to start a new game or delete a current one (there's autosave). I was looking for a relaxing game, but this is anything but. They add special tiles like Windmill as you play and finish quests, but they're just another thing to track. After the tutorial and your first game, you have no reason to play again. If you are into matching games this might appeal to you, but if you want relaxation look elsewhere.

Where to start? Sigh. I'll start off by saying I really enjoyed this game the 1st few weeks. It started off as a awesomely chill game. The music was relaxing, the colors were beautiful and I was having fun laying tiles and completing the "challenges". But, as I progressed, it took a turn for the worse. I'm one of those OCD players that likes to play a game endlessly until I've earned every "achievement" but that will never happen here. Let me introduce you to my little friend "RNG". Not just any RNG, but the kind that raises your blood pressure and makes you smash your mouse like it owes you money. Once you get up to Ocean 4, Farmer 4 , Engineer 4 and Champion 3 the RNG will not only turn against you it'll laugh at you & give you the middle finger as it does so. It'll chew you up and spit you out like a stale McDonalds fry. I've got so many other challenges to complete but NOOOO the RNG say's that I'll do Ocean 4, Engineer 4 and Champion 3 EVERY SINGLE TIME until I go to my grave whether I like it or not. To add injury to insult when it does give you Ocean/Engineer & Farmer 4 challenges it'll give you EVERY tile but the ones to complete the challenges. Need 150 Farm tiles, HA!!!! guess what, you're only getting 40!!! Need 100 water tiles, YEAH RIGHT SUCKER, you're getting all city tiles EVERY GAME!!!! If you can handle knowing that you'll never get past the indomitable wall that the RNG puts up at a certain point of the game and that you'll never finish all the challenges then I would definitely recommend this game. More power to ya.

Personally, I dont understand the high rating on this game at all. I have had it for some time and played for a few hours but never got into it much. Its basically an at your own pace visual design. Not unlike paint by numbers with pencil and paper. Some goals for you to meet to advance as in placing a number of tiles, big enough lake, etc. And thats it. I think somehow this entered the GOG zeitgeist and became popular to review highly. I get it may not be everyones cup of tea, certainly not mine, but does nothing to warrant such a high rating at 4.5+. There is nothing innovative here. Tile games arent new. And the message of how "relaxing" and "calming" it is... I guess for some folks. Honestly, if you enjoy designing, I am sure you can find value here. My reason for posting this is more about the rating it gets than the game itself. I am totally flummoxed. Anyway, I got it on sale some time ago and have never touched it since. If you are looking for a "game" to battle boredom, get a pack of gum. Its cheaper and will last longer than Dorf.