The original Islanders was a revelation for me. That may sound strange, but prior to the release of Dorfromantik, Islanders was a relaxing game that I could play to challenge myself while also enjoying a low-impact puzzle game experience. Playable entirely with the mouse, Islanders was a fun, simple experience. Now, that experience has evolved into a sequel called Islanders: New Shores.

In Islanders: New Shores, you have two modes: a High Score mode (similar to the original Islanders) and a Sandbox mode. In the high score mode, you progress through a variety of procedurally generated island biomes, placing buildings to raise your score. As you place buildings and raise your score, you get more buildings.

You are also able to utilize a new mechanic called Boons, which change how your runs work. Some give you new buildings, others can change how much score you get from your buildings. These Boons are a game-changer, and some Boons can be applied to the entire island itself, giving you surprising ways to enhance your run.

If your score is high enough by the time you run out of buildings, you can move on to the next island. As you go, your score will increase until you eventually can’t meet the required score. There’s a certain serenity to slowly building the island, because there is no time limit involved. It is just you, your buildings, and soft, gentle music in the background.

There isn’t much more to say about Islanders: New Shores. It is an overall improvement on the original game, it has Twitch integration, a photo mode, and plenty of ways to adjust your gameplay with both a gamepad and keyboard. The best part is that the developers have already provided a roadmap for new (free) updates, including buildings, biomes, and more.

If you haven’t played Islanders yet, then Islanders: New Shores is a better overall option. If you are looking for a new, calm, cozy game to play in the background while you work or just simply unwind after a long day, this is absolutely it. Alternately, if you loved Islanders like I did, this sequel is more of what you loved, just better.

A PC Review copy of Islanders: New Shores was provided by Coatsink for the purposes of this review.

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Islanders: New Shores

$9.99

10

Score

10.0/10

Pros

• Calm, Relaxing Music
• Entirely playable with Mouse, Gamepad, or Keyboad
• Enhanced gameplay with new buildings and more
• Expanding roadmap with upcoming content
• Easy and fun to pick up and play