The Good Lifehas not been doing well in reviews. TheSwitch version is in the red on Metacriticand is the lowest-ranked version of the game so far. Part of the problem reviewers and other players seem to have with it all ties back to technical issues. With time maybe the game can get better.
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It happened forNo Man’s Skyso it can certainly happen withThe Good Lifeas well. It’s not all negatives for the game though. Fans of the director’s other games, likeDeadly Premonition, might feel right at home withThe Good Life. There is plenty of quirky charm to adore here so let’s go through some positives as well.
10Best: Character Design
The character design inThe Good Lifeis out of this world. Everyone is uniquely dressed and they look like they’re made out of clay (or something). There are not many games that try this art style, withLost in Randombeing the closest and most recent title that comes to mind.
The main character, Naomi, has hilarious catchphrases and facial expressions, while the townsfolk are all charming in their own way. If nothing else,The Good Life’s characters are visually interesting.
9Worst: The Graphics
The character design is flawless but the rest of the graphics leave something to be desired. The overall world is bright and colorful but it can look dated, at times coming across like an older game from a past generation.
There’s an odd juxtaposition between seeing well-designed characters run around in a broken world of low-grade polygons. The most troubling part about it is the draw distance which can make buildings and other set pieces look blurry.
8Best: The Story
At the very core ofThe Good Life, Naomi is tasked with investigating the sleepy town of Rainy Woods wherein she finds out people can turn into animals. She also gets inflicted by the curse which allows her to transform into a cat or dog.
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There’s much more to this life sim than that. Saying anything beyond that premise would be a spoiler but let’s just sayThe Good Lifehasa lot in commonwithDeadly Premonitionin terms of themes.
7Worst: Time Based Content And Complicated Upkeep
There area lot of examplesof howThe Good Lifeties intoDeadly Premonitionwith more than just the story. For example, events are timed, meaning players have to keep track of when stores are open or when meetings need to take place.
Players must also upkeep Naomi with a variety of meters, including health, alertness, stamina, fortitude, and so on. Basically, there’s a lot to keep track of. Nothing is bad about these systems but it can feel a little overwhelming.
6Best: “Goddamn Hellhole”
That is one of Naomi’s most used catchphrases. By the end of the game, players may find it hard to get it out of their heads. This is in reference to Rainy Woods which she feels is a backwater town without much to do.
That may be true but it’s that sleepy characteristic that makes Rainy Woods come to life. There aren’t many games set in small little villages like this let alonein open-world games.
5Worst: Poor Performance
The graphics aren’t the only dips inThe Good Life. Most issues stem from the overall performance. The voice acting, while good, is accompanied by the lip-sync being comically off. The load times on the Switch are not perfect.
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The Good Lifeis far from the slowest release on the Nintendo Switch but it could definitely be better. The frame rate can also go so low that the gamecan look like a stop-motion animated film.
4Best: Swery’s Oddity Shines Through
Swery, aka Hidetaka Suehiro, is one of the most unique Japanese developers making games right now. Fans of his will not be disappointed by the absurd situations that arise fromThe Good Life.
Turning into cats and dogsmay sound weirdbut that’s nothing compared to some of the wild events players will see later in the campaign.The Good Lifealso has a lot of great references to Swery’s other games and pop culture in general.
3Worst: Map Issues
The game’s map could be a lot better. Firstly, players can’t zoom in, making it hard to read where roads go. There is no way to add markers for manual side quests either. There is fast travel system but it too is a bit broken. Players can warp to their house from any point on the map at the cost of stamina.
They can pay money to warp home from shrines too but players can’t manually warp to shrines from wherever. It’s expensive and complicated to travel.Money is preciousin the game too.
2Best: The Dedicated Skip Button
The Good Lifefeatures a skip button for cutscenes, like most games, but that’s not what is being referenced here. There is a literal skip button that allows Naomi to skip around playfully inThe Good Life.
How many games do that? It’s a bit frustrating that Naomi can’t jump as well but since her animal forms can jump, it’s not a huge problem. The skipping adds to the overwhelming charm of this life sim.
1Worst: The Combat
There is little combat inThe Good Life. It’s not there right away but eventually, Naomi can kick, her cat form can pounce like an assassin ina stealth game, and her dog form is the strongest of the three.
All three combat styles are a bit wild and unruly. Thankfully, there aren’t many mandatory battles. Most combat situations involve killing animals for pelts or ingredients so that’s a positive at least.
The Good Lifewas released on June 17, 2025 and is available onPC,PS4,Switch, andXbox One.
