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Is Mineko's Night Market the ultimate cat-themed crafting game, or is it too chill for its own good?

5K View2023-09-29

Mineko's Night Market

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SHOULD I PLAY MINEKO’S NIGHT MARKET?

If you’re a fan of cats and cozy life sims, this should be right up your alley. That said, if you’re hoping for fast-paced gameplay or complex shop management mechanics, you may want to look elsewhere. Mineko’s Night Market is a laid-back game about moving to a new town, making friends, and uncovering mysteries.

I went in expecting a game like Stardew Valley, but it’s actually much closer to Cozy Grove or Animal Crossing. I spent most of my time in Mineko’s Night Market collecting items, crafting, and completing quests for neighbors. It’s not for everyone, but if you want a chill game with lots of adorable cats, you should definitely check this out.

TIME PLAYED

I’ve played approximately nine hours of Mineko’s Night Market, which was enough time to get from spring to summer. I’ve also managed to open up a flower museum, invite new neighbors to my town, and rescue plenty of cats. While I’ve made a lot of progress during my playthrough, there are still lots of locations I need to discover, and there’s still plenty of room for more booths at the market. I have a feeling I’ll be playing this cat game for quite a while.

WHAT’S AWESOME ABOUT MINEKO’S NIGHT MARKET?

• Adorable art style. Mineko’s Night Market looks like a picture book brought to life. Obviously the cats are the star of the show, but the game is filled with cool little details. I loved seeing Mineko dance after finishing a crafting project, or watching hand-drawn waves drift by while I was fishing. Walls are decorated with pictures, and cat iconography is scattered across the world. These small touches really make the world feel alive.

• Simple, relaxing gameplay. Mineko’s Night Market is the perfect game to play when you just want to chill out and unwind. There are a few puzzles to solve, but it’s not a demanding game at all. It’s not overly childish, but it definitely feels like the kind of game a young kid could enjoy, especially if they have someone to help them out with the reading. Tasks sometimes got a little repetitive, but there were bursts of excitement that helped mix things up. The pace might be a little too slow for some players, but I really enjoyed the laid-back vibes.

• Charming story and characters. Mineko’s Night Market isn’t really plot-heavy, but it does have a story that revolves around an ancient fable about a magical cat. I was introduced to the legend at the start of the game, and I really enjoyed uncovering the truth behind the tale. I also had a blast talking to the local townspeople. The game is filled with goofy, playful dialogue, and that makes chatting with NPCs a lot more fun.

WHAT SUCKS ABOUT MINEKO’S NIGHT MARKET?

• Long load times. Mineko’s Night Market is a game that takes things slow, and I like that, but the load screens slow things down a little too much. If I wanted to pop into one of the local shops, I had to deal with load screens on the way in and the way out. Load screens also appeared whenever I traveled to a new location or went to bed at the end of each day.

Sometimes, loading only took a few seconds, but there were times when it took significantly longer. There were times when I avoided doing something because I didn’t want to deal with load screens, which isn’t great. I played on my Steam Deck, and while it’s possible it runs better on different hardware, this really isn’t the kind of game that should need a high-end PC.

• It needs some quality of life improvements. I really like Mineko’s Night Market, but a bunch of minor-but-frustrating issues got in the way of my fun. Selling items at my night market stall was easy enough, but if I wanted to sell directly to a vendor, I had to select items one-by-one or get rid of an entire stack—there was no way to split stacks up. A bus stop outside my home could take me to new locations, but if I wanted to visit multiple locations in a single day, I had to take the bus back home and then head out again.

Mineko’s Night Market has been in development for close to a decade, but it actually feels like the game could have used a little more time. It’s still very fun to play in its current state, but there are wrinkles that need to be ironed out. I really hope the devs continue to update the game so that it can live up to its full potential.

💬 Does Mineko’s Night Market look like the purrfect cat game, or is there another cat game that has your attention? Feel free to share a picture of your cat in the comments!