Bug & Seek
Summary
Bug & Seek is a delightful video game of collection with adorable pixel art, real-life bugs to capture, and an intriguing mystery to unravel in the quaint town of Buggberg.
Assessment
Bug & Seek is a relaxing collection game in the vein of Animal Crossing: New Horizons with a dash of Stardew Valley. This well-made game is suitable for players of all ages and skill levels, with smooth graphics and easy to learn controls. Additionally, the game is full of fun dialogue and terrible (in a good way), bug-related puns and timeless pop culture references to keep every type of player engaged and laughing.
The premise of the game is simple: collect bugs of every variety and rarity, learning about them in the process. Players can complete jobs with specific bugs to earn gold, add their favorite bugs to the struggling insectarium, or embark on bug-collecting quests for the locals. Throughout this, players will gather clues regarding the Great Bug Heist, which left the insectarium in ruins, unraveling the mystery of “whodunnit?”
Light-o-Meter
Artwork: 5 out of 7 Little Lights
Storyline: 5 out of 7 Little Lights
Gameplay: 6 out of 7 Little Lights
Theological Message: N/A
Age-Appropriateness: Perfect for kids of all ages (it’s just bugs and puns)
Overall: 6 out of 7 Little Lights
Talk
I was first of all excited to finally review a videogame for SALT and second of all delighted to review this particular game because it is absolutely adorable. I pretty much knew that I was going to enjoy it before I had even downloaded it, but it immediately captured me with its charm and ridiculous amount of bug-related puns and ease of play. I also enjoyed the fact that it does have a bit of a plot — finding out what really happened during the Great Bug Heist — but it can be ignored if the player simply wants to collect cool bugs, making the game a bit customizable to the player.
In terms of gameplay, this one is a little grindy (you will spend hours just…collecting bugs…that’s kind of the entire point) but enough happens with the changing of the seasons, the day/night cycles, and the mystery of the Great Bug Heist that it never falls into boring territory. I think my singular complaint is with the mission system. In the game, you can take on bug-collecting jobs that have specific location or time tied to them, however, is that there was enough overlap in where the bugs are found that the specified location of a job didn’t really matter. For example, if a job asked you to find bugs in man-made structures, well, you could also look in bushes to collect enough bugs to fill the order. However, that didn’t take away my enjoyment of the game at all, and I fell into my lovely little routine of bush-shaking, tree-punching, and flower-disrupting to fill orders to collect gold.
Given the fact that each bug correlates with a real-life bug, I think this game could be a spectacular homeschooling tool. Thirty minutes of playing this game, followed by in-depth research into the types of bugs found? Sounds like a wonderful alternative to going outside and catching bugs, especially if the weather is inclement or you live in the middle of a city. The bugs in the game also range beyond North America, so there is also the element of researching cooler and neater species than just green grasshoppers or the occasional harvestman. Additionally, its simplicity means that it can run on a variety of computers, from top-of-the-line gaming rigs to old clunkers that are good for mostly just surfing the web.
Wrap-up
Bug & Seek is a wonderful game of collection, with a myriad of cool bugs and funny locals to talk to. This game is great for both families and gamers looking for something relaxing — yet slightly educational, with real-life bugs to catch — to play.
Where to Enjoy
Apple App Store: Bug & Seek on the App Store
Steam: Bug & Seek on Steam
So Peculiar Website: Bug & Seek | So Peculiar
Switch: Bug & Seek for Nintendo Switch - Nintendo Official Site
We were given this piece of media free of charge in exchange for a review. At Brainy Pixel, we keep our reviews honest to help our brothers and sisters in Christ navigate the worlds of both Christian and secular media, supporting the artists and creatives we care about wherever possible. We made no guarantees of a positive review, so if this piece of media ranks highly, in our opinion, it deserves it!
This review is for this specific product and this product alone. In no way, shape, or form is this review meant to be an endorsement of the private lives, individual choices, lifestyles, or behaviors of those company(ies), publisher(s), creator(s), producer(s), author(s), artist(s), etc. associated with this product. It is God's sole providence alone to judge, and we make no claim to this right. With our reviews, we're simply looking at the value and merits of this specific product alone through the content and perspective of a Christian worldview. We pray you find it helpful and useful.
