Tiny Houses, Big Creativity
For me, SUMMERHOUSE is a weird one. It’s a simple little game that allows the player to create a teeny tiny house, or series of homes, utilising the power of their imagination as they go. It’s a game without an end goal, leaving you to your own devices.
Whilst that is fine and dandy, and there’s a fair amount of tools and items included to play around with, it’s hard to become too enthused by what is included. I guess the unlocking of super easy Xbox achievements and Gamerscore helps, but I’d suspect that many will fire up SUMMERHOUSE before slamming the door shut on it within just a few minutes of play, never to pay a visit again.
Four Backdrops For Your Architectural Dreams
Four biomes await in SUMMERHOUSE. You’ve got a Scandi-style world full of ice topped mountain ranges and glimmering lakes. Then there’s a serene forestry land that feels very akin to Northern Europe. From there a more Far-Eastern cityscape opens up, along with the opportunity to wander the wild west and its finest deserts. But don’t think any of these bring too much in terms of variety; SUMMERHOUSE knows what it wants to do, and rarely does it deviate from that.
Each world is a single screen, slightly scrollable, but far from large. And in that scene is where SUMMERHOUSE plies its trade, providing you the tools to craft your new home, however you so deem fit.
A combination of cursor (controlled by the right stick) and movement (situated on the left stick) come together to allow you to move around that scene at will, scrolling this way and that, looking for the prime real estate plot. And once you’ve homed in on your starting placement, chucking down some blocks is super simple. From there, you’ll grow this house, this little world, through your own free will.
When The Canvas Feels A Little Too Blank
That’s where we fall down and why we can’t get excited by SUMMERHOUSE. Imagination lacking, we need end goals in our games for a session to feel like a success. And SUMMERHOUSE fails with that goal – it’s just you and some blocks, dropping them down randomly, seeing what sticks.
We’re sure the artists out there will find that a delight, with this perhaps suited to those who have gone doodling with pen and paper in the past, onto the delights of iPad, now looking for something similar on Xbox consoles. For us, it’s just lacking that sense of purpose needed to keep us invested.
More Building Pieces Than You Might Expect
You can’t complain about the sheer number of items and blocks available in SUMMERHOUSE though. We’re counting near 200 different blocks that can be placed, with more ‘characters’ unlocked as placements drop in. Some of those characters only arrive once you start combining items too, with a dog requiring some steps flanked by gorgeous plant pots in order for them to make an appearance.
There are multiple types of walls, roof types, windows, and doors to kick things off. Then you can easily drop in some graffiti, a mail box, vending machines and more. Parasols, washing lines and air conditioning units just show the amount of depth that can be found in SUMMERHOUSE, as you build out your scenario. But then, once those options are rinsed, and once you’ve got your scene poised, where does SUMMERHOUSE go? We’re not sure.
What SUMMERHOUSE does get right is the atmosphere it creates. There are no timers ticking down, and you won’t find a resource meter to worry about, nor an objective demanding attention. It instead hands over a toolbox and encourages experimentation. The charming pixel art style helps immensely, with every world feeling warm and inviting, despite their relatively small size. The act of building is pleasant enough in its own right. But that pleasantness doesn’t last long.
A Home For A Very Specific Type Of Player
It leaves Friedemann’s SUMMERHOUSE in a tricky spot. Yes, there is no doubt that this is a game that allows the imagination to run wild, and the lovely pixel art visuals and delicate backing track will aid with those vibes. But without an end goal? Without something to aim for other than the unlocking of achievements and Gamerscore? It leaves this as a game that will appeal only to the most niche of niche gamers.
With that in mind, chuck an extra point onto the score at the end if you fit that bill, but equally, we’d suspect many others will strip another point away. For us, it’s middle-of-the-road territory; a game we’ll forget about as soon as we’ve hit ‘publish’ on this review.
Important Links
Chill Out And Build In SUMMERHOUSE On Xbox, PlayStation, Nintendo Switch – https://www.thexboxhub.com/chill-out-and-build-in-summerhouse-on-xbox-playstation-nintendo-switch/
Buy from the Xbox Store – https://www.xbox.com/en-gb/games/store/summerhouse/9nk061rp17cm
