Hybrid farming/monster (slime) collecting game with an insanely addicting gameplay loop. Collect slimes of all varieties, combine them into new slimes, feed them, collect their plort (poop) and sell it at a market with fluctuating market prices. The more difficult the slime is to handle on your farm the more valuable (in general) their poops are. You could focus your farm on many different setups and combinations. There is a lot of room for creativity to make your farm feel unique.

A game like this clicks well with my brain which enjoys repetitive tasks and some micro managing (aka, the grind). I really like seeing my gold go up and up and up as I become a more efficient farmer and put in the work.

There are multiple biomes, secrets to find, treasure to unlock, and technologies to discover. I found it very satisfying to finally gain access to a new area that had been previously sealed off and watch the island open up and by the end of the game I knew the island very well, having ran it's paths many times.

I also really appreciated the difficulty of the game. I played on adventure mode and it is VERY easy. That is to say, relaxing. This is a game I would play to unwind at night, check in on my slimes and do some exploring. The punishment for death can be harsh, as you will lose everything you are carrying (permanently) but it is quite hard to die. 99% of my deaths were from me falling off the edge of a cliff. Oops!

Recommended!

It was pretty fun for a couple of hours, but it got REALLY repetitive. In the end I was just running around the overworld trying to find gordos to feed or capsules to open and asking if I was having fun. I wasn't! I mean...

It was nice to find new slimes to capture, but otherwise the overworld got pretty boring and there were not a lot of objectives that spoke to me. Making money was just a big empty grind for the most part, unlocking colors or minor decoration pieces after multiple in-game days of work was just tiring, and the story was not my thing. The loop of collecting resources, opening capsules and selling plorts wasn't as rewarding as it could be.

I wouldn't discourage other people to try Slime Rancher. It can be pretty charming with its slimes, but that tired me out pretty quickly with how the game wanted me to progress through the game. Hours were flying and not much was being accomplished. Cute but insubstantial.