#bug game

Bugaboo Pocket released today on Steam! (Will be out on switch later 2025).

bug this or that agere game!!

Lately, I haven't been doing so well with my mental health. I have many physical problems with my back, muscles, liver, eyes, etc. This week has especially taken a toll on me due to a procedure I need to determine a problem with my optic nerves swelling randomly. Let me tell you, reader, I feel like a plague child at times. I call myself that quite often. Some think I'm joking, but I'm not, really. It all feels too real, the pain, and being told one thing and now being told I was right for being suspicious. Honestly, I didn't expect to finish another game so soon, but I just had to with this adorable game called Kabuto Park. I thought I would take a moment to talk about it and how it's helped me with my mental health. I hope ya'll don't mind me getting personal.

Two developers made this game. Their goal was to make a game where you went to a camp and caught bugs. You meet a lot of faces and even get to battle your way up as a champion. If this sounds familiar, it's because it's very much like the Pokémon games. Not many people know that the creator of the Pokémon franchise got his inspiration from bugs and catching them as he grew up. I loved the idea of having actual bugs fight rather than your typical caterpies and beedrills. It was very refreshing. Some of the beetles I had caught, I didn't even know were a thing. Not to mention that the designs of these cuties are very adorable! I would love a plush of the Hercules Beetle. Who knows, maybe in the future, they'll make a MakeShift petition! I'd vouch for it, for sure.

I didn't have anything that I didn't like in this game. It was very relaxing and chill compared to other games like Stardew Valley or Slime Rancher. I like to just take a break from pixel art and 3D art styles, so the 2D simplistic art style was refreshing for me. There isn't a lot of animation in this game, either. I find this not lazy but rather unique for the vibes it's going for. It feels like you're looking through an old postcard collection when looking at the still images. I like postcards, so of course I adored this decision. It also wasn't very busy or overwhelming for me to get from task to task. Very straightforward and easy to understand. There is also a terrarium you receive from your friend named Hana, which lets you look at all the bugs you put under FAVORITES. It's nice to watch the little guys just have fun crawling around. I also found it very relaxing, especially for deep breathing exercises.

One fact that I didn't expect to do while playing this game through was to get all of its achievments! Honestly, while there may not be as many as other games, I think having small goals can help give the player another goal to have rather than a million. It felt so nice to just get some achievements for chilling out and battling, or catching bugs. They even have shiny bugs in this game with a different color palette. Sometimes, they may be bigger and stronger, too. 

Overall, I had a relaxing time with my buggy companions! I hope the developers think of adding some kind of multiplayer mode. I think that would be fun! I'm gonna give this cutie patootie game a 9/10. You should play it if you're having a bad day or if you just need something positive to focus on. It helped me a lot through this rough week I've had, so I hope it at least brings others joy, too.