Recently while traversing the web and watching videos on social media, I have come across games that are referred to as cosy games. These types of games are very laid back, have minimal if any combat and have gorgeous art styles. Through my online travels was how I stubbled across Potion Permit, a game that first caught my attention with its art style after watching the trailer seemed like it could be a very fun game to play after a long day at work or if I just wanted to switch off and enjoy some little gaming. Away from the business that is Battle Royales and sweaty lobbies. This coverage will be covering my time playing it on the PlayStation 5 so without further delay let’s take a trip to the wonderful town of Moonbury.
The story begins with you the player taking on the role of a chemist in training, who is called upon to aid a small town called Moonbury, firstly you are tasked with helping the mayor’s daughter who has fallen ill and after many attempts by Moonbury’s witch doctor couldn’t do anything to help her. This is where you come in to save the day. Taking what little you have learned you are able to put your skill to the test and come up with potions and healing medicines to help keep the people of Moonbury fit and healthy. From there you will expand and grow as a chemist and get a better understanding of the lovely people of the town and its gorgeous landscape. As a player, you will Diagnose patients, gather resources, brew potions and cure your patients in this wonderfully addictive open-ended sim RPG.
Potion Permit allows the player to tackle their day in whatever way they want, whether that be taking care of the residents, gathering resources or doing a side quest. I love that it gives me the freedom to choose my own play style and even though there is a linear story running in the background you can still branch away from it at times.
The game is split up into a few areas:
- Taking care of the resident
- Gathering resources
- Building relationships with the townsfolk
- Watching Moonbury develop and grow
These areas each bring me joy and comfort in different ways and I’ll briefly cover them now. Taking care of residents is at the core of Potion Permit, if a member of Moonsbury falls ill you are to diagnose them, find the cure and make them get better as soon as possible. When looking after patients they have a time scale on when they need to get healed, the quicker you manage to heal them the more loyalty you’ll earn. Which gives you something to work towards. Diagnosing the residents is really fun as it is done behind a mini-game, these small little rhythmic-like games make finding the cure that little bit more enjoyable and don’t just feel like you know everything because if you make too many mistakes, you can get a very unhappy resident. When you have diagnosed the patient it’s time for you to make the potions, these are crafted in your cauldron and use a Tetris-like puzzle system to fill in the shape and craft the potion. This is super fun and can become quite addictive. Once you have crafted the potions you give them to the patient and they are cured. Simple and effective.
Gathering resources is where you go out and collect the items you need to craft potions, do various upgrades around Moonbury, your house and the clinic as well as confront the nasty monster that patrols the world surrounding the town. This can take up quite a lot of your day in the game but does get a tad bit repetitive after a period of time that’s why I like to break it up with building relationships with the townsfolk and learning about them. After you reach certain levels of friendships you get to unlock little story quests for that person and find out more about them, this is so cool and really helps mix up the gameplay. While you grow as a chemist the town also gets better, it will start repairing broken facilities which in turn will offer you more things to upgrade as well as the ability to craft and buy furniture for your house, so you can add that certain flare to your sleeping quarters.
I loved how it feels like this game has covered all the bases. There is so much to do like cooking, crafting and even taking baths in the bath house. You literally get sucked into this tranquil setting and just go with the flow. Even though there is some urgency at times it still doesn’t ruin the mellow vibe. I wish that you were able to decorate your house more and maybe get different clothes for your character that way it gives me more personality but that’s just me picking at things that aren’t really necessary for Potion Permit as it does a cracking job with all the other things it does right!
Graphically the game looks incredible, I love the pixel art style and the vibrating colours they have used for the environment and the different characters that you come across. It really elevates the cosy gamer vibes and makes me feel a peace even when an angry bear is attacking me in the woods. The soundtrack is catchy and mellow which I love and after a while gets stuck in your head and forever on repeat. Though I’m not going to lie, waking up and hearing that darn alert coming from the clinic is not something I look forward to hearing. There isn’t any talking dialogue in the game which is kind of sad but not needed really as you can just read through the text chat that comes up when you interact with Moonsbury’s 30 unique inhabitants, it wouldn’t be wrong saying that Moonsbury defiantly ticks the boxes for the most diverse community. I love all the characters and finding out their backstories as you further your friendship level with them. It really gives you something to look forward to when you aren’t running around gathering, curing and even doing a part-time job at one of the other locations in the game.
This game is one that I can see myself coming back to time and time again when I just want to switch off from the outside world with a big cuppa of tea and just relax. It’s a game that requires so little but gives so much. I can find myself playing it for hours and wondering where the time has gone, it is filled with so many tasks, objectives and side quests that you never feel like there is nothing to do. It can feel like a grind at time when you are gathering materials and managing your stamina but I never felt that my time wasn’t well sent while playing Potion Permit and I haven’t felt like this while playing a game for a very long time. I go honestly invested and enjoyed my part-time job as a chemist in a small town called Moonsbury.
Conclusion
After finding a huge fondness for cosy gaming I literally owe it to Potion Permit for introducing me to this side of gaming, it’s relaxing, rewarding and above all super enjoyable. I loved the mini-games that are used to complete part-time jobs as well as diagnosing and crafting potions, the art style is beautiful and the townsfolk are all loveable and really help create a wholesome atmosphere when playing. The best thing of all is that you get a dog as a companion, what more could you ask for? It does feel repetitive at times but I’m oddly okay with it and find it really comforting. Potion Permit is a must for any gamer looking to expand their horizon or just wanting to take time out from the current meta that the AAA companies are stuck in. I can honestly say without a doubt that Potion Permit is up there with one of the best games I have played this year and that holds its own when I have played games like Elden Ring, Horizon: Forbidden West and Dying Light 2 to name a few and for these reasons, I’m giving it a well deserved 9 out of 10.
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