You should play Mondealy if you have the chance to. That’s our review. If you want to know why we say that, read on, but ultimately, we’re going to tell you to play Mondealy. If you don’t like visual novels, that’s fine. If you don’t like pixel art, that’s fine. If you don’t like indie games, that’s fine. Go play it. That’s as high of an honor as a game can get from us and we’ll gladly hand it to this year’s best visual novel adventure game.
Mondealy is a journey of friendship in a weird world that exists slightly below our own. The best way to describe is what happens in Undertale if the barrier went down but no one left and classism is at the top of the discussion list. Modern culture weaves through with love and affection as Michael journeys through a world that evokes both nostalgia and a constant creeping curiosity to find out what happens next.
Gameplay & Story
Mondealy is your pixel art adventure game true and true. The art is beautiful, the music serene and the controls work as they should. The game lets you do things and get the results you wouldn’t expect. The saddest part of your adventure is going to be its ending, which I hope the developers work towards a sequel.
The first day is available as a demo, I highly encourage you to try it. You’ll likely just as I be drawn into a world you can’t put down. Characters who are so well written that you actually enjoy the time it takes to talk to random NPCs.
The scripting is well done as well. For instance, at one point you’re interrupting someone’s private picnic. Keep talking to them and they’ll continue their dialog and then leave. That gives the game additional charm and polish that can often be rarely skipped over.
The characters are adorable and will draw you into their lives. There’s some optional content too if you’re interested. Be sure to keep lots of extra saves as you play because it’s definitely one of those you’ll need to go back if you want to get a really good ending type games.
There’s not much else to say: amazing story, great graphics and it plays like your standard adventure game with an inventory system.
The game has a conclusive ending and your actions can contribute to it. That’s a nice touch!
Music & Vibe
The main allure to me is the music and the general vibe. The writing as I said is really good and very apropos at all times. The game lets you do things and rewards you for the obvious, like saving at awkward times or walking into the street at the very start of the game.
The game is roughly 4-5 hours long depending on how many collectables you collect and how much you want to play in the forest to collect mushrooms (I don’t know why but that is actually really fun loll!). There’s not a lot of puzzle elements, research, note taking or anything like that. You can say walking simulator, I’d say visual novel with RPG elements but both can be true and it be an amazing experience.
The Undertale vibes are really strong but it doesn’t copy much of anything. Whereas something like Duck Simulator 2 basically just outright copies the Undertale combat system; Mondealy instead explores the vibes and the source community that Undertale came from. This gives it a unique charm that makes it a story of its own.
100 soundtracks in this game. 100!
Slower Sections
The music is great but towards the end the game does slow down more into a cinematic visual novel than any kind of game. The freedom snatched from you feels awkward even if the overall visuals and music are great. The story isn’t paced perfectly but that really adds to the charm.
The only other complaint is some of the graphics could be really tightened up. The walkway up to the upper area is far too blocky compared to the other sections. There are some other areas that if tightened up a bit more, the game would be even more spectacular.
The ending section could have some more content to tie it together a bit more. The game goes weird in a good way and then back to normal again but more of the weird would have been welcome.
Summary
Mondealy at MSRP is roughly $10 which is well worth the price of admission to the story. If you’re not sold, look for the demo. If you find the game to be fun, don’t hesitate to support them by acquiring the game on other platforms.
We requested and received a key for the game, but have had no other interactions with the developer as of the original publish of this review.
