Review of ‘Wall Town Wonders’ – Perhaps Overly Laid-back for Modern Mixed Reality

Imagine a world where playing casual games involves donning AR glasses that bring your living room to life with tiny hovercrafts floating by. That’s the vision behind Wall Town Wonders—a game that feels plucked straight from a future where augmented reality seamlessly blends into our everyday lives. Despite its captivating visuals, it doesn’t offer enough depth to hold your attention for long. This leaves us wondering if the game hit the market a tad too soon for the current tech-savvy crowd using XR headsets.

Here’s the scoop on Wall Town Wonders: published by Cyborn, it’s geared for the Quest 3 and 3S. It made its debut on November 21, 2024, and will set you back $20.

Gameplay

Jumping into Wall Town Wonders, you won’t find any steep learning curves here. The difficulty stays on the lighter side, perfectly complementing the chill atmosphere it aims to foster. Initially, you’ll likely enjoy poking your head into various town buildings to catch your mini-villagers in action—they could be whipping up pies in a snug kitchen or piloting a miniature bi-plane across your home.

Once you’ve breezed through the hour-long tutorial, you’ll discover that the heart of Wall Town Wonders lies in its mini-games, unlocked as you expand your town. From defending a vertical farm from pesky critters using a nifty wrist-mounted crossbow to reeling in a catch at the pond on your floor, there’s a variety to keep you busy. You’ll even guide tiny aircraft with simple hand gestures.

Nonetheless, much of your time will pass by waiting for your villagers to churn out essential resources like timber, money, and food, a task they handle autonomously. Your main goal revolves around expanding and enhancing your building collection—over a hundred in total—and customizing them to suit your fancy. The end result? A chic, buzzing microcosm that makes your room brim with energy.

It’s worth mentioning that the game almost runs itself due to your villagers’ autonomy. You decide when to dive in and engage, akin to watching fish in a tank or ants at work. You’ll have the opportunity to chip in by helping them mine, farm, or erect new buildings, but engagement here is more of optional mini-games.

Despite the initial charm, my excitement started to dwindle over time. I found myself desiring more challenging interactions as the mini-games felt like little more than a series of random chores. This lack of engaging content dampened my eagerness to revisit beyond the initial few hours stretched over separate sessions.

Immersion

There’s something irresistibly charming about virtual dioramas and their intricate designs. Imagine a quaint European village unfolding upon your walls, bringing heartwarming detail to life. For all their development, I’m still not using VR for everyday tasks like writing this review. Most of us only carve out some leisure time at the end of the day for gaming or social apps—not during work unless it’s tied to a review.

I envision a future where advances in display resolutions and comfort will allow us to wear headsets all day without feeling burdened by them—ideal conditions for casual games that you can dip in and out of, akin to smartphone apps. But currently, Wall Town Wonders feels like it’s asking us to ignore these tech limitations. Its patchwork of mini-games and meditative vibe almost feels too easygoing for dedicated playtime on Quest.

For fans of titles like The Sims or Townscaper, my experience might just suggest a mild disconnect rather than any flaw in Wall Town Wonders. While the overall setup leans heavily on hand-tracking and point-and-click interactions, I found myself defaulting to using controllers for practicality. It seemed like a missed opportunity to have more immersive tools beyond the sporadic use of in-game gadgets.

Comfort

The game’s sheer inventory of buildings keeps you on your toes, literally compelling you to scour every inch of your room’s vertical space. Though you can technically play seated, you’ll likely be more active, as buildings at various heights demand a lot of neck-twisting; however, placing them at eye level is a thoughtful comfort tweak. This arrangement feels far superior to constantly bending over a tiny map or repositioning the virtual world for viewability. It’s an innovation I hope more town simulators adopt in the world of XR going forward.

Wall Town Wonders Comfort Settings – November 21st, 2024

• Turning: No artificial turning
• Movement: No artificial movement
• Posture: Standing mode (Yes), Seated mode (No), Artificial crouch (No), Real crouch (Yes)
• Accessibility:
  • Subtitles: Yes
  • Languages: English, Chinese, Dutch, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish
  • Dialogue audio: No
  • Adjustable difficulty: No
  • Two hands required: No
  • Real crouch required: No
  • Hearing required: No
  • Adjustable player height: No

Overall, Wall Town Wonders offers a delightful initial dive into AR gaming with a unique town management perspective. Yet, without significant gameplay depth, it might struggle to maintain a long-term hold on players amidst today’s rapid technological evolution in gaming interfaces.