Urban Jungle Review
Urban Jungle is an Unpacking clone that doesn’t iterate enough on the concept with underdesigned gardening puzzle gameplay.
Urban Jungle. Credit: Kylyk Games / Assemble Entertainment
Cozy casual gardening simulator Urban Jungle is Kylyk Games’ first PC release after experience making mobile games. It’s a game inspired by Unpacking that doesn’t go far enough beyond that inspiration with the light gardening-themed puzzling it adds to the formula. Despite this game being nominally about gardening, it’s impossible not to compare it with Unpacking if you’re at all familiar.
The game is structured by a woman’s story as she grows up and makes her way through life. After moving to a new city with her mother and brother, she uses the love of gardening instilled by her grandmother to brighten up her spaces and bring her comfort. She continues to do this every time she ends up somewhere new.
Urban Jungle. Credit: Kylyk Games / Assemble Entertainment
The core of the game is placing plants in a 3D space. The puzzle portion comes into play with scoring; placing plants so that their light or humidity requirements are met, along with accounting for their apparent like or dislike of other plants, creates combos that earn you a score. Gain enough points, and the story moves along to your next home. You also begin to unpack boxes, like Unpacking, and putting away your belongings.
Even though the game has basic goals in each level that earn you extra currency, organizing and decorating your space never feels as rewarding as in Unpacking. If anything, the exercise becomes a bit frustrating because Urban Jungle doesn’t have snapping when placing things. Urban Jungle’s story also didn’t feel as poignant as Unpacking; I’m not sure if it’s despite or because Urban Jungle uses a bit more dialogue to tell its own.
The plant placement gameplay doesn’t have enough meat to it. Perhaps the game takes too casual an approach since it doesn’t matter much how you place your plants. You can simply mash them all together in groups to meet the requirements and move on. I was reminded of Verdant, a board game about creating a cozy domestic space with plants, which feels like it does a lot more with this concept despite being played on an abstract card grid.
The best thing Urban Jungle has going for it is its visuals. The soft 3D graphics with their shaded solid-colored textures are cozy and welcoming. The game’s environments have a cute dollhouse feel, and the careful color coordination makes every screen pleasing to the eye. A lot of care and polish went into the art, but it’s unfortunate that it feels far more developed than the gameplay concept and design.
Urban Jungle. Credit: Kylyk Games / Assemble Entertainment
Despite its short play time, Urban Jungle ultimately bored me. It doesn’t live up to the game it’s copying, which gave me a much greater sense of fulfillment because it created a nostalgia for a life I didn’t live, the character’s life. Urban Jungle should have been more about the gardening puzzle, which wasn’t developed enough as a concept to carry the game.
Urban Jungle is available now on Steam.
Overall Score: 4/10
Played on: PC and Steam Deck
