Reefland

Reefland
N/A
Metacritic
94
Steam
63.75
xDR
Our rating is calculated based on the reviews and popularity of the game.
Release date
17 October 2022
Developers
Publishers
Steam reviews score
Total
94 (72 votes)

Reefland - is a colorful city-building simulator with a relaxing atmosphere, where you are up to paint the island by placing buildings.

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Reefland system requirements

Minimum:

  • OS: Windows 7 64-bit
  • Processor: AMD or Intel, 3.3 GHz (AMD FX 8300, Intel i5 3000)
  • Memory: 4 GB RAM
  • Graphics: AMD/NVIDIA dedicated GPU, 2GB dedicated VRAM (Radeon RX 560, Geforce GTX 1050)
  • DirectX: Version 11
  • Storage: 1 GB available space
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Kiku
Kiku

A nice, relaxing game to mellow out to with some thinking to do. There is some strategy you would have to keep in mind for your placements, but overall there's no high stakes consequences other than redoing the map. I haven't seen any bugs/issues so far with my playthrough. The content is a bit limited, but I find it reasonable for the eraly access price.

Hankie
Hankie

I downloaded a few 'little' games and tried this one last. 4,5 hours of straight gaming later I can say I absolutely love it. I went way past my bedtime cause I didn't want to stop gaming. XD

Simple gameplay, which I love. It's all a mouseclick away. Lean back in your seat and play.

Combine buildings in the right spot to score points and reveal the map. Colorful, relaxing, city-building. Well done! I'll be back soon to play more.

The Stifmeister
The Stifmeister

I don't normally buy games like this, but Reefland caught my eye and it did not let me down after purchasing it!

This is simple, fun, and absolutely beautifully well colored game. It's the type of game that you can start up and play for a 5-10 minutes or you can play for hours. It has a very affordable price for what you get, and the content will keep you entertained for quite a while. It seems like they are still working on this game (Early Access) so I'm definitely excited to see what comes next.

I'd highly recommend this game to anyone looking for a simple, relaxing, beautiful, and great priced game! This is the perfect game to enjoy for when you're waiting on something, someone, or for time to pass.

~ Bearnwyn ~
~ Bearnwyn ~

Pleasant & relaxing

Enjoyed playing this.
It's not hard, no stress, just chillout for a while.

In the menu there's a Create Island option that's not yet implemented. Is this for making workshop islands? Don't know, will have to wait and see when it comes out of EA.

The graphics are colourful and the music is pleasantly soothing.

My only comment to the devs would be have an optional basic tutorial/overview. I wasn't sure what I was meant to do at first.

Definitely worth getting.

zombiworkshop
zombiworkshop

This isn't "inspired by" Islanders... it IS Islanders, but without the freedom, and thus makes it bland in it's current state.

Part of the fun of Islanders is that you can place your objects pretty much ANYWHERE... so collecting points always feels possible if you can just squeeze an object in the right place - and choosing the right position for those extra few points feels really satisfying. This game has nothing like that. It's hex based, so you've already got a limited number of locations - and it still has Islanders scoring system - which ends up being pointless as everything is either 1 or 2 hexes away.

So... in current state, I can't recommend this. Not only does this game feel like someone just went "I like Islanders, lets make that... but change something so it's legally distinct"... the change is minimal, but is the core of what makes Islanders fun. It doesn't seem to have any mechanic that goes WITH that change. Being HEX-based doesn't add to the game, but instead detracts and makes it more of a "checklist" than a game: Put the fences around the sheep, put the mines on the gold, put fisherman on the fish... Where's the fun in that? Unless something changes, play Islanders instead.

Oh, and if you like Dorfromantik, play that instead too. This is nothing like that, no expansion, no challenge, minimal fun. :/

SebbyPhantom
SebbyPhantom

Reeflander is similar to Islander and dorfromantic. You place buildings and try to get combinations that give more points, you have to cover a certain amount of the island to make it colorful and complete it.

It took me about an hour to complete all 15 levels, which is okay for the heavily discounted price i bought it for. some more mechanics are seemingly being worked on, like creating your own island to play on. I am interested to see what else will eventually be added.

Jan
Jan

A good chill game, but very short. after about 3 hours over a few days I'd played through the game, and got all the achievements. It is swish though, engaging the mind and I'll come back every so often when i want to spend half an hour playing with something very pretty.

jkymarsh
jkymarsh

Reefland is a colorful, well-designed, soothing city builder based on the premise that you can't really do anything wrong, you can only optimize more effectively than you currently are.

There's no stress or pressure here to perform well - there are no timers in effect, no penalties to hinder your progress, and no objectives, aside from the fundamental one: achieve the highest score possible. Score is tallied by placing a set of randomized structures in their most optimal configurations around the island, earning points for proper placement and losing points for improper placement. For instance, your penned sheep don't appreciate you putting a scarecrow directly next to their abode.

The presentation is simple and delightful: each structure and landmass is colorful and perfectly beveled, looking like a pastel piece of candy you'd want to pop in your mouth. It's all smooth and elegant, and the transition from monochrome to color as you fill your island with buildings is utterly pleasant to look at. Atop this, the music and sound effects are on-point, fabricating a zen-like atmosphere sprinkled with gentle clicks and pops, all overlaid over the elegant soundtrack.

My primary gripes would be the following:
- A tutorial of some sort would be nice; yes, the mechanics are simple, but the complete lack of explanation of the game's mechanics and the brain-dead-simple UI combine to create a confusing first few minutes
- The earn/lose points representations could be refined dramatically - having to read lists of structure names to ascertain which can be paired together simply feels a bit archaic in these times of sleek UIs, icons, and HUDs

There's not a lot of depth or content here, but the vibes and presentation alone are worth the low cost. Sink into this beautifully-themed city builder and let the flawless color palettes and soundtrack carry you away.

Find more reviews and recommendations on my Steam Curator page, Indie Infinitesimal:
https://store.steampowered.com/curator/41769714/

ghostnextdoor
ghostnextdoor

I really like this game! I love Dorfromantik and this scratches a similar itch for me. I find it to be a bit easier, but still aesthetically pleasing, and you can still level up your placement and optimization if you care to. I only have about 7 hours on the books, but it's still got plenty of replay value for me - I'm really hopeful its development continues :)

If you're looking for a low-commitment, calming game in which it's easy to gain a feeling of mastery, try this one!

RunningRobert
RunningRobert

https://youtu.be/WDbBNR9FG-A

Reefland is a fun little colorful city builder like Islanders! However the game uses a grid system which I enjoyed a lot more since I didnt have to worry about perfect placement in the game! As you build up your little city it becomes more colorful. The game is fairly easy to learn, but one of those harder to master as you have to think ahead about how you will build your city so that you can maximize the points you earn.

The only downside is the game could be longer with a little bit more difference in the maps and how to play them, however for the price the game it is certainly worth it and I will be waiting to see if the Dev adds to the game!

AlyssaLCP
AlyssaLCP

Relaxing and cute little puzzle game that has a lot of potential to grow in complexity as each of the islands as of now, despite change in colors, and overall randomization, are all more or less the same and don't change in difficulty or tile placement options. It's a good game to unwind and focus on organizing your island, but there's a lot of depth and dimensions that hopefully is yet to come. 4/10

RoseTintedSpectrum
RoseTintedSpectrum

More of a mid rating at this point rather than a thumbs down, but it's one I'm going to be watching eagerly as it develops because I really like what's currently here... It just needs more meat.

Taking clear inspiration from games like Islanders, Reefland definitely puts a new twist on the formula by keeping things tight and enclosed, providing you with tiles that work against each other and making the game feel more board-game like than its peers. The issue at the moment is that there's no real scoring mechanic to go up against, you complete a level and you can move on to the next one, but there's nothing to differentiate each level outside the colours. Things don't expand outside the first level, and as such - once you've gone through the campaign there's very little reason to continue playing other than the basic level of enjoyment of simply playing it for a bit.

You can continue to play, adding to your island, after you've successfully beaten the level but there's often no real reason to. It's also incredibly easy to just win with haphazard placement, and I feel some balancing needs to be done on each of the titles to make you think a little more about where you should be placing things.

All that being said, the game is priced really well and I'm looking forward to seeing more - I think I was just hoping for a little more structure at this point.

Jenthar
Jenthar

So far I love it. Cute graphics, simple but super relaxing gameplay! If you are looking for a game to just mindlessly relax with, I can highly recommend this one!

Renkaiya
Renkaiya

I am a great fan of relaxing puzzle games. This one was an instant-buy for me because of the many hours I enjoyed Islanders, which is a puzzle game with the same kind of game mechanics.
However, maybe I have been spoiled by games as Islanders, Zenworld and Dorf Romantik. These are also relaxing puzzle games, but even though it is relaxing, it is still a challenging puzzle. This game, although relaxing, lacks the challenge for me.
I hope for Reefland to have something of a challenge in the future. Getting points is easy and thus I find myself placing the pieces wherever I want instead of puzzling, like a creative mode. I guess the store page also mentions that the puzzle aspect is uncomplicated, but for me it makes it less fun.
I would like to have a bit of a challenge. Maybe a higher point goal before reaching the next level, so you have to try and get every point you can for new buildings. Maybe a higher minimum of well-placed blocks before reaching the next island.
for the full sandbox experience it seems like fun to be able to create an own island, because these are quite too small to go on an all-out decorative spree.
With that all being said, I wish this game the best of luck! It is still in Early Access so I am looking forward to the coming updates!

Zippa
Zippa

Beautiful graphics and music is very relaxing. This game is great if you need to just turn off your brain and release some stress!

CareBear12
CareBear12

When I got the demo, I never played a game like this one before. I got so sad when I couldn't play it anymore until the official release. It lead to me getting Islanders and Dorf Romantik since I heard they were similar! This is a cute and relaxing puzzle game that allows you to turn your brain off. Fun to play!

UNI
UNI

A small game for a small price
All achievements earned in 100 minutes of gameplay
Graphics: 9/10 - Cute
Music: 11/10 - Very Relaxing
Sounds: 8/10
Gameplay: 9/10
Overall: solid 9.5/10

Sky715
Sky715

I have been playing many tile building puzzle games and this one is a good one. The dev is easy to work with and hears our concerns. This game is similar to "Tile Town" and "Dorfromantik", challenging and worth a try.

Mostly Harmless :/
Mostly Harmless :/

Another awesome terrain puzzler. Where a game of Dorfromatik will go on indefinitely based on how well you can place tiles and continue to drive up your score, Reefland has a much smaller scale with limited space and set of tiles. It's super easy to just chill, zone out and churn through multiple island/puzzles. Bought this for less than 5$, it's a total steal, feels like a complete product even though it's in Early Access.

Stonker Bonker
Stonker Bonker

---{ Graphics }---
☑ You forget what reality is
☐ Beautiful
☐ Good
☐ Decent
☐ Bad
☐ Don‘t look too long at it
☐ MS-DOS

---{ Gameplay }---
☐ Very good
☑ Good
☐ It's just gameplay
☐ Mehh
☐ Watch paint dry instead
☐ Just don't

---{ Audio }---
☐ Eargasm
☑ Very good
☐ Good
☐ Not too bad
☐ Bad
☐ I'm now deaf

---{ Audience }---
☑ Kids
☑ Teens
☑ Adults
☑ Grandma

---{ PC Requirements }---
☑ Check if you can run paint
☐ Potato
☐ Decent
☐ Fast
☐ Rich boi
☐ Ask NASA if they have a spare computer

---{ Difficulty }---
☐ Just press 'W'
☑ Easy
☐ Easy to learn / Hard to master
☐ Significant brain usage
☐ Difficult
☐ Dark Souls

---{ Grind }---
☑ Nothing to grind
☐ Only if u care about leaderboards/ranks
☐ Isn't necessary to progress
☐ Average grind level
☐ Too much grind
☐ You'll need a second life for grinding

---{ Story }---
☑ No Story
☐ Some lore
☐ Average
☐ Good
☐ Lovely
☐ It'll replace your life

---{ Game Time }---
☐ Long enough for a cup of coffee
☑ Short
☐ Average
☐ Long
☐ To infinity and beyond

---{ Price }---
☐ It's free!
☑ Worth the price
☐ If it's on sale
☐ If u have some spare money left
☐ Not recommended
☐ You could also just burn your money

---{ Bugs }---
☑ Never heard of
☐ Minor bugs
☐ Can get annoying
☐ ARK: Survival Evolved
☐ The game itself is a big terrarium for bugs

---{ ? / 10 }---
☐ 1
☐ 2
☐ 3
☐ 4
☐ 5
☐ 6
☐ 7
☑ 8
☐ 9
☐ 10

---{ Quick word from our Sponsor Raid Shadow Legends }---
I got all 15 achievements within 1 hour without having a bigger challenge anywhere.
It was fun and calming, but I think it should be harder or have a "choose your own difficulty" option.

It's simple, short and pretty much what you expect, you cycle though all buildings withing the first 6 or so levels, after that you've seen everything.

There is an upcoming "build your own island" feature which I'd like to see.

Sound Track is pretty cool :)

God.Joong 神 ahaaaa
God.Joong 神 ahaaaa

8.5/10 for its good vibes. There are not many things to do in this game, just sit back, sip your tea and relax. It is good enough to spend your time playing it. Enjoy ;)