HowLongToBeat Short Reviews Log

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This post gathers all of the short video game reviews I've posted on HowLongToBeat.com.

A-K

• Atelier Ryza 1: Ever Darkness & the Secret Hideout
• Bear and Breakfast
• Clawfish
• Famicom Detective Club: Emio - The Smiling Man
• Fantasy Life
• Frog Detective: The Entire Mystery
• From Madness with Love
• Giraffe and Annika
• The House in Fata Morgana: Dreams of the Revenants Edition
  

L-Z

 

• The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom
• Little-Known Galaxy
• Live a Live
• Lonesome Village
• LumbearJack
• Monument Valley
• Moonglow Bay
• Peak
• Poco
• Schim
• Shadows Over Loathing
• Snufkin: Melody of Moominvalley
• Toem

 

Comments

Giraffe and Annika

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Giraffe and Annika

Score: 4/10

Time: 7h 59m

Thoughts:

Genuinely dislike this game lol. The art/music/etc. isn't so bad, but the platforming is frustrating, and not in a good game designed way. You slide off of platforms all the time, and the camera fights you. Maybe this is how older 3D platformers used to be.

Completed: March 9th, 2022

The House in Fata Morgana: Dreams of the Revenants Edition

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The House in Fata Morgana: Dreams of the Revenants Edition

Score: 10/10

Time: 30h

Thoughts:

10/10, awesome visual novel, I cried a lot! The music is absolutely amazing too.

Completed: May 22nd, 2022

Live a Live

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Live A Live (2022)

Score: 10/10

Time: 32h 38m

Thoughts:

I still think about the story even now! The gameplay was fun and I really enjoyed the anthology format.

Completed: August 27th, 2022

Bear and Breakfast

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Bear and Breakfast

Score: 6/10

Time: 24h 30m

Thoughts:

Had a fun time with the hotel decorating and management. The story seems unfinished.

Completed: February 27th, 2024

Shadows Over Loathing

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Shadows Over Loathing

Score: 7/10

Time: 24h

Thoughts:

Had a lot of fun doing the different quests, but the ending felt like it lacked impact.

Completed: March 24th, 2024

Atelier Ryza: Ever Darkness & the Secret Hideout

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Atelier Ryza: Ever Darkness & the Secret Hideout

Score: 7/10

Time: 51h 10m

Thoughts:

This is my first Atelier game and I really enjoyed the crafting elements! The cast of characters is really sweet, and I'm looking forward to the next Ryza game (eventually).

Completed: July 17th, 2024

Schim

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Schim

Score: 6/10

Time: 4h 55m

Thoughts:

Fun, but the difficulty is all over the place.

Completed: August 7th, 2024

Snufkin: Melody of Moominvalley

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Snufkin: Melody of Moominvalley

Score: 8/10

Time: 4h 40m

Thoughts:

Very cute game. Definitely going to check out more Moomin stuff!

Completed: September 4th, 2024

Moonglow Bay

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Moonglow Bay

Score: 6/10

Time: 26h 52m

Thoughts:

It's a relaxing, if repetitive game.

Completed: September 24th, 2024

Toem

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Toem

Score: 8/10

Time: 4h 39m

Thoughts:

Cute and short adventure game

Completed: October 1st, 2024

LumbearJack

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LumbearJack

Score: 6/10

Time: 2h 21m

Thoughts:

Got this for free on Epic. It's a short game with an eco-friendly and anti capitalist narrative. The gameplay was simple and the puzzles were fairly easy, but I had a fun 2 hours. Not sure if I would get it at full price, but it's decent on sale.

Started: 2025.04.04

Finished: 2025.04.05

Poco

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Poco

Score: 8/10

Time: 2h 00m

Thoughts:

Great little adventure game with a nice soundtrack. Really enjoyed this one, and I appreciated the non-spoilery hint system for when you get stuck.

Started: 2025.06.10

Finished: 2025.06.11

Fantasy Life

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Fantasy Life

Score: 8/10

Time: 75h 37m

Thoughts:

It's been such a fun time playing this game. While the dialogue can run too long at times (wish they had an auto-play function for the dialogue!), the characters were charming and funny. I got super addicted to playing this game, and I still have plenty left to do. For now, I've completed the main story and leveled up all the lives that I was interested in to Master-level.

I've already ordered the next game in the series. If you love cozy rpgs with crafting elements, this is THE game!

Started: 2023.05

Finished: 2025.06.23

Frog Detective: The Entire Mystery

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Frog Detective: The Entire Mystery

Score: 7/10

Time: 3h 30m

Thoughts:

Enjoyed going through the investigating, though I wish the cases were a little more complex. Each case basically turns into the trading sequence from Link's Awakening. I still had a fun time!

Started: 2025.06.21

Finished: 2025.06.23

The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom

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The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom

Score: 8/10

Time: 33h 10m

Thoughts:

I had a fun time with the exploration in this game. Running into new Echoes was engaging until they stopped being useful. I liked the new approach to gameplay and the open ended solutions for the puzzles.

Started: 2024.10.02

Finished: 2025.07.14

Little-Known Galaxy

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Little-Known Galaxy

Score: 7/10

Time: 60h 32m

Thoughts:

Rolled credits at 60 hours, but I still felt like I had a ton left to do! This game is super grindy, but it was fun to play farming sim in a different setting than usual. There weren't that many crew events/cutscenes triggered from (my) normal play, so that was a bit disappointing. Not sure if there is any story content after the credits roll, but there are still main quests and a planet to explore.

Started: 2024.12.19

Finished: 2025.09.01

Famicom Detective Club: Emio - The Smiling Man

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Famicom Detective Club: Emio - The Smiling Man

Score: 6/10

Time: 15h 25m

Thoughts:

For a detective game, most of the detective work ends up being completely useless.

There was so much padding and filler that I almost fell asleep playing. The only thing I can really praise is the production values.

This was my first exposure to the Famicom Detective Club series, and I'm pretty sure this is the worst one.

"Cops are real pieces of shit." <- Absolutely correct quote from a character in-game.

The game would have been better if there was a section where you investigated as Utsugi and was able to solve the mystery yourself.

Started: 2024.10.05

Finished: 2025.09.09

Monument Valley

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Monument Valley

Score: 7/10

Time: 2h 5m

Thoughts:

Very short and sweet puzzle game. Most of the puzzles (except for the last level) were pretty easy. Also, why did she turn into a bird lol.

Started: 2025.09.08

Finished: 2025.09.08

From Madness with Love

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From Madness with Love

Score: 7/10

Time: 8h 10m

Thoughts:

I had fun playing through this visual novel! It's a dark BL game with some interesting twists. Note that there's not really any happy endings, outside of the (probably) non-canon DLC.

It was enjoyable, and there were plenty of CGs. Each route only takes about 2 hours, so it didn't feel padded out either.

Started: 2025.06.11

Finished: 2025.09.28

Clawfish

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Clawfish

Score: 6/10

Time: 48m

Thoughts:

Perfect for experiencing the frustration of a claw game.

Started: 2025.10.02

Finished: 2025.10.02

Lonesome Village

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Lonesome Village

Score: 6/10

Time: 11h 50m

Thoughts:

The puzzles are too easy, I never struggled with them at all until the end, where the game suddenly forces a timer on you to solve them.

The Zelda references are just that, references. There's no combat in this game, and there are no items that let you back track and find new areas.

All the villagers you save from the tower give you annoying fetch quests in order to increase your heart/friendship level with them. I did a lot of them, but there's no reward other than some minor cosmetics, or items that help you with other fetch quests.

This is a "cozy" game, and there's not any stress associated with the task completion. The story isn't that deep either. I can't say I absolutely loved playing this game, but it was an okay way to pass the time.

Started: 2025.10.02

Finished: 2025.11.16

Peak

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Peak

Score: 7/10

Time: 5h 38m

Thoughts:

Simple yet enjoyable game. The new Roots map is pretty hard though.

Started: 2025.09.06

Finished: 2025.11.18