Dinkum is most of the best parts of Stardew Valley with all of the best parts of Animal Crossing. The game is hardly original but it uses a formula that works. Also big plus that the game is a super light install and it runs on almost any hardware.
The biggest issue I have is that the 'treadmill' just doesn't work for me. The way any of these games play is by making things annoying enough that you want to upgrade your tools and buildings to lessen the annoyance, without being so annoying that it makes you want to put it down prematurely. It's a difficult formula to get right, and for me Dinkum just doesn't quite nail it. I find the stamina system to be too punitive and the tools break too quickly. The game requires some good fortune to get to a place where you can build repair tables and even then the cost of them is reasonably high. It's hard to see the bigger picture when you're playing early in the game and it can lead to a feeling of 'why am I doing this?'
Some of this cleans up as you hit the mid-game and things become a little clearer but I found myself getting back to that same point. And some of the tedium you hope would clean up, never quite does (fucking crocodiles). The NPCs are surface level like in Animal Crossing but without most of the charm or visual appeal. The artstyle isn't bad but it isn't half as cute as this genre tends to demand. Out of the big hitters in this genre, Dinkum is probably the least visually appealing.
There are a few things worth noting though that do really make Dinkum standout. The multiplayer is fantastic, it's the best implemented in the genre. Shared progress and the ease of dropping in and out makes the game feel like it was made for a multiplayer experience and comes out feeling nearly as much as something like Valheim as it does Animal Crossing. The multiplayer 'base building' nature with shared quests and money and such really alleviates a lot of the game's tedium. I also am a big fan of the 'terraforming' ability the game gives you by letting you dig and move dirt and create entire new landscapes and shapes. Nothing else in the genre is quite so free.
If you like games like Stardew, Animal Crossing, Portia, Littlewood, then you'll really like Dinkum. And if you like to play those with friends, it's very worth playing Dinkum. It's got some warts but it's in early access so by the time this thing wraps up it'll probably stand alongside the best the cozy island gaming genre has to offer. It already kinda does.
The biggest issue I have is that the 'treadmill' just doesn't work for me. The way any of these games play is by making things annoying enough that you want to upgrade your tools and buildings to lessen the annoyance, without being so annoying that it makes you want to put it down prematurely. It's a difficult formula to get right, and for me Dinkum just doesn't quite nail it. I find the stamina system to be too punitive and the tools break too quickly. The game requires some good fortune to get to a place where you can build repair tables and even then the cost of them is reasonably high. It's hard to see the bigger picture when you're playing early in the game and it can lead to a feeling of 'why am I doing this?'
Some of this cleans up as you hit the mid-game and things become a little clearer but I found myself getting back to that same point. And some of the tedium you hope would clean up, never quite does (fucking crocodiles). The NPCs are surface level like in Animal Crossing but without most of the charm or visual appeal. The artstyle isn't bad but it isn't half as cute as this genre tends to demand. Out of the big hitters in this genre, Dinkum is probably the least visually appealing.
There are a few things worth noting though that do really make Dinkum standout. The multiplayer is fantastic, it's the best implemented in the genre. Shared progress and the ease of dropping in and out makes the game feel like it was made for a multiplayer experience and comes out feeling nearly as much as something like Valheim as it does Animal Crossing. The multiplayer 'base building' nature with shared quests and money and such really alleviates a lot of the game's tedium. I also am a big fan of the 'terraforming' ability the game gives you by letting you dig and move dirt and create entire new landscapes and shapes. Nothing else in the genre is quite so free.
If you like games like Stardew, Animal Crossing, Portia, Littlewood, then you'll really like Dinkum. And if you like to play those with friends, it's very worth playing Dinkum. It's got some warts but it's in early access so by the time this thing wraps up it'll probably stand alongside the best the cozy island gaming genre has to offer. It already kinda does.