★★★★★ Very fun with one little note
Tue Sep 10 2024 CheesygThis is honestly a pretty fun game for a mobile. I’ve already completed two 20 year runs and will likely do it a third time because there’s still opportunity to do even better the next time with what I learned the last two times through. I also appreciate that the aesthetic changes you buy with bananas carry over (even if you have to wait until you make it to a bigger office for some of them).
Speaking of the bananas, however, I have had some trouble with getting the quests to actually go through. More than once now I’ve done what the quest says (release a game of a specific type) and it hasn’t delivered the bananas. I’ve tried it both in developing and releasing a new game and a sequel. A couple of times it’s acknowledged it maybe the next time I loaded in and said that it had delays (accidents, traffic jams, etc.). I wish there was some sort of acknowledgment to say that you completed it and they’re on their way, but whether it recognizes you’ve completed it or not, the “confirm quest” button just reiterates what the quest is asking for. Even when I have completed the quest and later get bananas delivered, it doesn’t acknowledge the quest as complete.
This is really just a minor side detail and doesn’t impact gameplay which is why I’m still giving this game 5⭐️ because the game itself is a pretty fun one and you can experiment with different combinations and directions.
★★★★★ Very fun!
Tue Jul 20 2021 xcredenceThe basic premise involves choosing a platform, a genre, and a thematic category for the game. The development process is broken up into three phases, Story-writing, Graphics, and Sound. It takes the basic premises described above and pile on a ton of strategic elements that really make the game a joy to play from a management standpoint. Outside of improving individual employees, each individual aspect of development has its own experience/level that can be developed, as your team becomes more experienced. A lot of the fun involves balancing making games, with training, with research while making sure there’s enough money until the next big hit. There’s also a very strong appeal to wanting to “make just one more game” or making new engines just to experiment with how new features impact sales. I had no issues with the basic control scheme, if the game hooks you in as it did with me, make sure you allocate enough time for play. It’s the perfect sort of game for mobile devices and there’s so much to do here in terms of developing personnel, researching items, and making games that there’s loads of replayability for quite a long time.
★★★★★ Loads of Fun But Could Use Tweaks
Mon Dec 05 2022 JaremoI’ve played this game for many weeks, and I have to say it has a hard learning curve. There was a lack of direction at first and I wasn’t sure what some of the various stats of my characters actually accomplished. After trial and error, however, I began to find my success with the game, and grew a sudden appreciation for the challenge. It took time, but I got there.
I enjoy the game for its simple complexity and its progression. The concept is fun and engaging. The moments I have where something clicks and I find ways to advance my company’s progress is exciting to experience. I just wish there were better instructions about the game. Sometimes I wish I could click on character stats and get details about it, or understand if some of the job titles of characters matter at times or not (for example, I have characters who have higher stats in sound than my sound engineer. Does them being a sound engineer carry more weight than the fact that their stat is lower? If not, should it?). I know there is a ‘manual’, but it’s 29 pages of short messages. Kind of clunky and vague at times because of the format.
Overall, the game is fun, but can be challenging at first. Don’t give up, and try not to browse the web for quick answers. Makes the grind worth it.
★★★★★ The concept is fun but the end game is garbage.
Mon Jul 12 2021 BladeMeDoItThe game is fun up until you understand how to play the game and/or get to the end game and depending on how good you are at the game that could be in a hours time. Once you get to the end game and start cranking out “Hall of Fame” games consistently there’s no real challenge or reason to keep playing. In fact once you start making Hall of Fame games it becomes more of a challenge to not make a game that goes into the HoF. And once you get to a certain point money becomes a non factor because there’s nothing to buy. You are just making money with nothing to really spend it on.
All of That being said the real end goal is to make a “Game of the Year” game and that seems almost impossible. I have made 29 straight “Hall of Fame” Games, 15 straight games that have scored a perfect 40 rating all of which have made #1 on the top sales chart and I have yet to make a game that has gotten “Game of the year” instead the award is constantly given to a game with a name that’s a pun to a real world game. At a certain point it just felt like the game was against me and even if I would “beat” the game it just feels like it would have no substance to it.
This game has potential to be addicting and great but it just falls on its face toward the back end when it should be more challenging and rewarding.
★★★★★ ENTERTAINING
Thu Jan 09 2025 i. i nnchfhfhdis smsGame Dev Story is a delightful and highly replayable simulation game that puts you in charge of managing your very own game development studio. One of its standout features is its charming and retro-inspired pixel art graphics. The visuals are simple yet highly appealing, evoking a sense of nostalgia that pairs perfectly with the theme of creating games.
What makes this game truly fun is its depth and strategic layers. You get to hire and train staff, develop innovative game projects, and balance budgets, all while aiming for critical acclaim and commercial success. Each playthrough feels fresh, as you experiment with different game genres, target audiences, and console partnerships. The random events and unlockable features ensure that no two runs are exactly the same.
The pacing of the gameplay is perfect for both short sessions and extended play, making it easy to pick up and enjoy repeatedly. Whether you’re a fan of simulation games or just looking for a relaxing yet engaging experience, Game Dev Story+ is a must-play gem that never loses its charm.
★★★★★ This game is great. But I’ve encountered a bug.
Thu Jul 28 2022 Choco Cat 😺Okay, so first things first, this game is awesome. I enjoy the art and the concept. I am addicted and I love your company. But, I’ve found a bug that makes my experience frustrating.
So, I constantly save my progress, so I don’t have to start all over, right? And every time I decide to close the app, I make sure to save my game, and everything’s fine after that. But after I open the app to play again, I click “continue” and I click my save that I’ve saved earlier, and I’m back at the original office! This has happened 5 times, and each time I start over and say, “It’ll be fine, I’m a master of this game”. But this is time I was frustrated. I had hired a hacker, had 30 million in the bank, I had upgraded to the biggest office you can get, and I was working on my own console! All my other games I had saved didn’t get this far, and I was very disappointed in your game after I’ve been playing it for a year and had a nice experience.
Yes, the app is updated to its most recent version, and my device is too. Please fix this bug so I can continue enjoying your app. Thank you.
★★★★★ Pretty good with little complaint.
Mon Sep 26 2022 AlrightJeffThis game has been a good way to kill time. It is enjoyable even if a bit repetitious. The concept and execution are wonderfully done for a simple sim game, although I would have appreciated a better explanation of the stats/jobs. I appreciate the silly names for about everything from your employees to the gaming industry products. The release of consoles in game feels like a pretty good reflection of what we had in reality from the PC through some VR game systems. I even felt a bit of reality nudge when making games for systems whose real world analog failed. Not sure if it’s on purpose but when changing jobs the game won’t let me chose certain options, even when the character already has the job available. The same people always show up for interviews. I wouldn’t call them complaints but my only issue was with the game leaving you questionable options from hiring “booth babes” to being able to make games like “dating shooter”. A tiny bit of thought there wouldn’t hurt. Overall I’ll keep it on my phone to play more.
★★★★★ Slow Start but Good
Sat Jan 08 2022 ProtonRadzGame is really slow at beginning as you start out as a nobody studio. I even had to dig into emergency funds at one point as I went negative. However few years after I started progressively making more money and I just managed to get all the good awards (there is an award for having the worse game and there’s a penalty for it) across the board at the 20th game award show.
Once you get high enough you can make sequels to your games (they have to be Hall of Fame games to make a sequel) and even make your own console. I haven’t gotten to point of being able to make consoles yet as I can’t seem to find any hardware engineers to hire. I’d imagine this would be huge money as you no longer have to pay to license with another studios system. Instead they’ll have to pay you to make games on your system. Not sure how console creation works but hopefully it allows customization. I’ll try to remember to update review once I reach that point
All in all I recommend trying the game out and getting past the beginning as that’s where the fun begins.
