Diaries of a Spaceport Janitor

 PC
User Score
8.9

Generally favorable reviews- based on 3368 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 2,964 out of 3368
  2. Mixed: 23 out of 3368
  3. Negative: 381 out of 3368

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  1. Dusk18
    Mar 4, 2017
    9
    This game is beautiful. If you're looking for an experience where you can just jump into a creative world and live in it - this is it. The city is odd and dense, the inhabitants create a sense of business, and the skull floating your shoulder becomes a constant reminder that it takes effort to escape the ordinary.

    There are very little graphical "bugs", screen bending is a condition    This game is beautiful. If you're looking for an experience where you can just jump into a creative world and live in it - this is it. The city is odd and dense, the inhabitants create a sense of business, and the skull floating your shoulder becomes a constant reminder that it takes effort to escape the ordinary.

    There are very little graphical "bugs", screen bending is a condition that requires curing, and the flickering on posters is a part of the game's atmosphere. The stalls are expensive because they're catered not to you - an ordinary janitor - but to the great and brave adventurers who you would one day hope to be.

    Your first step to adventure begins in the city's sewers, part of a large interconnected network of ancient dungeons, where you find your skull friend. After that, the game becomes a cure to rid yourself of the skull - while also managing the daily necessities of work and life.

    Diaries of a Spaceport Janitor is by no means for everyone. For some, it's a nice place to escape to. Some enjoy the experience. Others find meaning in the strange gender-bending, trash-hording, sewer-crawling aspects of the game. For me, it's something new, and it's brave in what it does. You can get lost in this game. Whether you try to rid of the skull that haunts you, or simply life your life in hopes of making a more decent living, is all up to you. It's a bit analogous to reality in that way. Whenever I find myself playing this game, I can't help but feel a bit inspired.    … Expand
  2. sonofaditch3423
    Jun 25, 2020
    10
    Quite possibly the most chill adventure game ever. Burn trash, chat with the locals, and get rid of the screaming skull (which is your only companion.)
  3. updoots23
    Jun 26, 2020
    10
    It's a game that allows you to collect portraits of idol singers, automatically putting it among the all-time greats.
  4. icansys
    Jun 27, 2020
    10
    Peep out the track "Incinerate" from this game's OST if you somehow don't think it deserves a ten. I assure you it SLAPS.
  5. Jellyghost
    Dec 2, 2021
    10
    Oh I love this game so much. When I think "indie game," this is exactly what I want.

    The world feels so big outside of the little box you're constrained to, being an impoverished worker who physically and financially CANNOT interact with the promises of adventure that all of the items and NPCs hint at. You pick up these crazy weapons and spells and items, but you can't make any use of    Oh I love this game so much. When I think "indie game," this is exactly what I want.

    The world feels so big outside of the little box you're constrained to, being an impoverished worker who physically and financially CANNOT interact with the promises of adventure that all of the items and NPCs hint at. You pick up these crazy weapons and spells and items, but you can't make any use of them aside from selling them for 2% what they're actually worth, because you're a JANITOR and nothing more, and you never will be, because that's how the system works. Everything feels so much bigger than you, and the first few days you spend in the spaceport just feel so overwhelming from the sheer scale of the world speeding by around you. It's sort of what I imagine being an immigrant to an alien city feels like, where you know how to get by, but everything is still horribly confusing and scary and new, and you don't know if you're doing the best thing because nobody will help you.

    The game is a lot more like the Souls series than most of the games that actually try to emulate FromSoft design, it's got a lot to say about cycles and being caught in a sort of devastating curse that forces you to spend all day every day grinding towards a seemingly impossible goal.

    (There is one little game-breaking bug if you forget to pick up the ziggurat tablet piece, that's all)    … Expand

Awards & Rankings

85
#85 Most Discussed PC Game of 2016

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
69

Mixed or average reviews - based on 7 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 5 out of 7
  2. Mixed: 2 out of 7
  3. Negative: 0 out of 7
  1. CD-Action
    Mar 6, 2017
    85
    A huge, lively space bazaar is overwhelming at first, but you tame it little by little and get into a bitter-sweet routine. It’s a lesson in accepting permanent destitution, limiting your ambitions, and enjoying small things. If you’re after a breathtaking story, you’ll be disappointed – as opposed to those who take pleasure in constant exploration and have a knack for trading. [03/2017, p.68]
  2. Games Master UK
    Dec 4, 2016
    52
    One for virtual tourists only. [Dec 2016, p.83]
  3. DarkStation
    Nov 2, 2016
    80
    I fell in love with my little blue poor janitor in her small alien world. I don’t know if the game started its life as something of a jest against usual gaming trends but it has turned into a poignant metaphor of today’s world, like how it feels to be struggling, different or alien to your surroundings. I must warn you though, this game is not for everyone and certainly not for those who only seek their thrills from the latest big-budget extravaganza. Or is it? Maybe a modest but honest game like Diaries of a Spaceport Janitor can help to see these strange new worlds beyond AAA-games.
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