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The tagline of “cozy farming adventure on the high seas with an adorable animal companion” is enough to get me very intrigued by a game, and developer VoodooDuck had to know they had a great idea when designing Collector’s Cove, because that’s one heck of a premise. I’ve spent quite a few nights now enjoying the lapping waves on my boat as I fished for new surprising catches, sprouted tons of fun crops, and outfitted my animal-carried boat with a productive set of machinery, trees, storage boxes galore, and lots more. That’s before even mentioning the new friendly merchants I met that are definitely not all the same person with different clothing. Truly, Collector’s Cove was like a pleasant bedtime tea; not overly in-your-face, and nothing too extravagant, but hits the right spot when you want exactly what it provides.
I'm On My Way!
The goal of Collector’s Cove is to increase your Collector Rank high enough to reach the actual Collector’s Cove, where your parents are supposedly waiting for you to succeed enough at your calling to finally have the privilege of being with them again. You rise in rank by feeding acquired “Fabled” versions of the many fish and crops available on the four different island environments to your large animal buddy, who carries your boat on its back. Undoubtedly the cutest part of the game, the adorable Lapras-like sea creature is your trusty partner throughout; ferrying you from island to randomly generated island in search of fresh fishing spots, endless farmable resources, and the occasional chest or hidden secret stash. The fun comes from the manageable gameplay loop of trying to fill out your “Compendium”; a guidebook that keeps track of all of the types of fish, sea creatures, veggies, plants, and more that you’re attempting to collect. Navigating coordination of what times of the day to throw out a line, and at what size shadow of fish reminded me of a less random Animal Crossing. The same goes with the crops, where you’re constantly having to keep the crops watered or in the right conditions for special growth into the fabled versions. These “fabled” fish and crops were only obtainable through very specific conditions, which you’re able to get hints as to how to earn them once you’ve acquired a certain amount of the base and “star” level versions of the item. As you feed your animal friend, reel in lots of fish, and grow new crops, you’ll earn perks and ranks in every category, which make all of these tasks more fruitful and efficient as you play, which I always appreciate. Chopping down a tree may feel interesting the 10th time, but by the 1000th time, I’d like to be able to knock it down without swinging four times. Luckily developer VoodooDuck respects the time you put into their game with these leveling perks being awarded automatically throughout the game as you discover more and more within it.
Collector’s Cove was a very “mark the checkbox” type of experience, but one that sometimes you just want to have in a game, especially one of this genre. The title didn’t lead me astray; you indeed are primarily tasked with collecting! What made it stand out was the creative ways you have to grow the special crops or fish, and the especially clever names and art made for them. It was a treat every time I watched a plant finish growing and turn into its unique fabled crop, delighting at the funny names, like a Pumpkin turning into a cute Cat-o-lantern, or a Chili bursting into an Underworld Chili. Likewise, every fish had its own inventive fabled alternative, like an Angelfish being replaced with an Onifish, or a Tropical Gar instead coming out on the hook as a Garandma. It’s this charm that kept me attached to the addictiveness of Collector’s Cove, even if the overall resource collecting and island hopping became a bit repetitive near the end of finishing up an island’s set of fish & crops.
Workin 9 to 5...and 5 to 9
You’re not just collecting without work though, as managing your planted crops and making sure they stayed well hydrated was always a priority, unless a rainy day helped alleviate your watering duties temporarily. There were one-time use plants and bigger, reusable trees, and each had seeds that grew into sellable crops after a certain amount of time as long as they were watered consistently. This currency was used for buying new crops, outfitting your boat with decorations, or upgrading it to allow for more space. Along with gathering fish & food, you also used tools like a pickaxe, shovel, and axe to mine ore, dig up sand, and chop down trees, respectively. I wound up practically razing each island I docked near, like a kobold collecting as many crafting resources as I could before scurrying back home to my boat with my forgeable riches. Using various crafting tables, you’ll find yourself in the common task of creating ores, planks, and more to be able to build better tools, new boat-specific equipment, and more. Not only that, but sometimes your crops and fish will be necessary to make new fertilizer or bait. Thankfully, storage is relatively cheap and easy to manage, and actually felt quite satisfying.
Rock the Boat
Tying up the last few things you can do in Collector’s Cove is the ability to customize not only your boat, but yourself and your boat’s animal companion. There are lots of options to freely choose from, and the game actively encourages it at points. My watery friend was a blue-striped antlered fellow one day, and a brown spotted ram-like creature the next. You’re awarded (and can buy with in-game coins and items) these accoutrements, along with special decorations you can dot around your boat to give it a personalized flair. I did find myself wishing for a bigger area sooner than the game allowed you to earn it, but that’s only because there was such a nice selection of island-themed items to show off! You're also sometimes lucky enough to have materials float by your boat that you can "plunger" in to get random materials. It's an easy little errand that could top off your current objective to accomplish a task, and could give a chance to pull in a decorative item or costume piece.
I Want To See Clearly Now
There was always just enough meat on the bones related to content to playthrough and enjoy, and the visuals and audio of the game managed to keep things comfy while still needing some little tweaks. My feelings on the graphical design decisions in the game were overall positive, but with some improvements or options made available to the player, could provide an even more cozy experience. The ground dig spots that you can use your shovel on were just a bit too hard to see, especially on the Haunted Islands, which remained dark and shadowed during all parts of the day. Additionally, the brighter levels, like the Sakura Islands, were oversaturated and just a bit too foggy and bloomy to constantly be resource-gathering within.
That isn’t to say the boat and islands weren’t beautiful, stylish, and overall enjoyable to be at. It’s a soft, graphically pleasant world of island expeditions, and one I was glad to sail out in again and again. The different island biomes, of which I believe there are four, had lots of personality and potential, and never became so daunting or unmissable that “fear of missing out” overcame me when I was gathering resources on them. Each was completely stylized differently than the next, and came with a new set of fish to catch and a couple new resources to collect and use to your liking. Plus, everything in the menus and compendium are easy on the eyes and simple to navigate. Maybe a bit more guidance on what the icons within the guide meant would’ve been helpful, as it took some time to figure out that it held info on how many items I needed of each type to unlock the clues on acquiring the fabled forms of each item. But that’s a small nitpick, and the availability of this info on the shopkeeper’s screen was even more valuable once I knew what to look for.
Familiar is Fine
When it came to audio available throughout the game, it had a very subdued, yet supremely comfy feel to it. It’s hard to not make comparisons to Animal Crossing again here, as the music changes according to the environment you’re in, the time of day it is, and other situations. There is also, thankfully, a calming accompaniment of ambient noises played while you’re out on the islands or your boat, that keep things especially cozy. However, the music doesn’t play as much as I would’ve liked sometimes, and I started to realize it was sorta quiet overall at certain times of the day. I’ll take calm and less chaotic over the alternative, though, so the vibe still works.
In Conclusion
Collector’s Cove doesn’t try to reinvent the wheel. It knows what it wants to be and has a very defined scope that it fills with bright colors, easy to understand goals, and exactly what you want sometimes. No daunting 100x100 grids or endless forests to destroy like the Once-ler from The Lorax; just a nice, easy-going, catch lovely fish and grow silly crops game. Oh, and do it all while enjoying the company of a wiggly, sleepy, pettable sea puppy. What more could you want now and then?
Thanks to the devs for a review key. Collector's Cove is out on Steam | EGS | Switch | PS5
