Review: Slime Rancher

Slime Rancher is an indie game currently in development by Monomi Park. The goal of the game is essentially to care for Slimes (those famous jelly-like creatures you encounter in most MMORPGs). The gameplay has the same feel as the classic Harvest Moon, but of course comes with its own unique and distinct features.

The game features various classes of Slimes, tools, food, and equipment that can be upgraded over time. The difficulty increases depending on how many Slimes you own—meaning the more Slimes you care for, the tougher the game becomes, but you’ll also earn more money.

You earn in-game currency by selling Slime plorts (they defecate right after eating), and that money can be used to unlock new corrals, upgrade existing pens, open new areas, and purchase various pieces of equipment. The price of each plort fluctuates daily in the in-game market.

Each “Slime” requires special care, whether in diet or habitat. Some Slimes need protection from light, others eat only meat, and so on. Certain Slimes are aggressive and may even attack you.

You also have a home base where you can sleep and check your email. Sleeping speeds up crop growth and chicken production, but it also makes your Slimes hungry and restless. When Slimes get hungry or bored, they’ll try to escape their pens. To calm a Slime, you can place a music box in its corral (available as an upgrade), but a music box alone won’t help if the Slime is starving.

Several bugs are common in the game and can detract from the experience. One is the Auto-feeder bug, where feeders fail to dispense food—so if you head out to explore and return, all your Slimes may have escaped. Another frequent issue involves collision with rocks, sometimes requiring you to restart the game to get unstuck. These are the most “worrisome” bugs, but aside from them, most others don’t significantly impact gameplay.