Potionomics

 PC
User Score
7.7

Generally favorable reviews- based on 19 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 13 out of 19
  2. Mixed: 4 out of 19
  3. Negative: 2 out of 19

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  1. Heraldrick
    Apr 22, 2023
    10
    Potionomics executed every idea it had to perfection. The moment to moment gameplay in making high quality potions versus bartering their value up is addictively good. The character interactions and overall writing is high quality, makes you feel like you are talking to complete and fun people, all while backed by a progressive underpinning which I cannot get enough of. The visuals are thePotionomics executed every idea it had to perfection. The moment to moment gameplay in making high quality potions versus bartering their value up is addictively good. The character interactions and overall writing is high quality, makes you feel like you are talking to complete and fun people, all while backed by a progressive underpinning which I cannot get enough of. The visuals are the absolute best use of cg-animation I have ever and may ever see with characters being unbelievably expressive in what is a clear labour of love. With the music having entered some of my playlists for reading and relaxing in my down time. I fully recommend this title to people who are even ambivilant towards the genres present in this title.… Expand
  2. whalepudding
    Nov 9, 2022
    6
    It's quite cute and charming, with absolutely gorgeous animations with fun and quirky characters, but the "gameplay" is extremely lacking. The gameplay is basically just clicking through menus and playing a very basic card building mini game. It was enjoyable for a couple hours but got stale and repetitive really quickly. It's a shame because I really wanted to enjoy it, but there justIt's quite cute and charming, with absolutely gorgeous animations with fun and quirky characters, but the "gameplay" is extremely lacking. The gameplay is basically just clicking through menus and playing a very basic card building mini game. It was enjoyable for a couple hours but got stale and repetitive really quickly. It's a shame because I really wanted to enjoy it, but there just isn't enough here to keep you engaged.… Expand
  3. Nemyue
    Dec 29, 2022
    5
    It was amusing for the first 2 hours then it becomes boring because you basically do the same thing 6 times with additional unpleasant factors that limit your choices.
  4. Twodo
    Nov 5, 2022
    10
    Very positively surprising game. The graphics are not the best (but it’s a personal preference) and plot is okay with some interesting twists. I give it a 10/10 purely for gameplay. This is a perfect combination of a simplified Potion Craft + Slay the Spire, that adds new mechanics every couple of days, but does not overwhelm you with them. Additional plus for friendship mechanism thatVery positively surprising game. The graphics are not the best (but it’s a personal preference) and plot is okay with some interesting twists. I give it a 10/10 purely for gameplay. This is a perfect combination of a simplified Potion Craft + Slay the Spire, that adds new mechanics every couple of days, but does not overwhelm you with them. Additional plus for friendship mechanism that teaches you new selling methods based on chosen friends, this is just brilliant. I wanted to try it out due to liking both Potion Craft and Slay the Spire, and I am over 20 hours in the game and see no signs of stopping soon.… Expand
  5. DoffitoK
    Oct 29, 2022
    8
    I never liked "Make your own shop"-type of games.
    But Potionomics was another level, i absolutely loved the visuals, soundtrack, animations, the dating sim part of the game (Quinn is the best love route don't @ me.) Although it can be a little repetitive and HARD IN SO LITTLE TIME, is enjoyable the card system, the stress really fells like a punishment but not in fair, you I'll never run    I never liked "Make your own shop"-type of games.
    But Potionomics was another level, i absolutely loved the visuals, soundtrack, animations, the dating sim part of the game (Quinn is the best love route don't @ me.) Although it can be a little repetitive and HARD IN SO LITTLE TIME, is enjoyable the card system, the stress really fells like a punishment but not in fair, you I'll never run out of money if you know what are you doin.

    The game is fair in everything.. and it's fun!!    … Expand
  6. Nightscape_
    Jan 6, 2023
    8
    Aside from missing some quality of life features and some mechanics not mattering, I don’t have much to criticize as the game is very charming. If you are someone who has enjoyed the Atelier series, card games, and/or dating sims that are very well written with fun characters and gameplay mechanics, I would recommend checking out Potionomics.

    What stood out the most had to be the    Aside from missing some quality of life features and some mechanics not mattering, I don’t have much to criticize as the game is very charming. If you are someone who has enjoyed the Atelier series, card games, and/or dating sims that are very well written with fun characters and gameplay mechanics, I would recommend checking out Potionomics.

    What stood out the most had to be the writing. I am a retired sociology professor and this game felt like it was written by fellow social scientists. I have never heard a game bring up concepts such as decision fatigue and impostor syndrome before. The characters' discussions of economics and financial structures was very fun. I was half expecting them to start discussing conspicuous consumption and Marx's observations of utility and materialism of goods. It is like the writers understand about living in a neoliberal globalized market with little to no government regulation over the free market. But the best part has to be that the game’s writing is not woke!

    While there are LGBTQ aspects, no groups of people or cultures are tokenized and stereotyped just to check off some box for inclusion like you see in current year Disney, Marvel, Pixar, BBC, and the CW. No one is belittled and ridiculed due to gender or ethnicity like Luke Skywalker in the Disney Trilogy. Instead, the characters feel like real people interacting, but more flamboyant. There are no Mary-Sue’s who are instantly good at everything and always right like you see in Rings of Power, Disney Star Wars, or Captain Marvel. Instead, the game's writing focuses on the importance of believing in yourself, culture, society, and friendship. Characters actually have flaws and depth. The best way to put it is if you enjoy The Orville and Cobra Kai, you will enjoy Potionomics; If you enjoy Disney Star Wars and Amazon’s Rings of Power, you will hate this game.    … Expand
  7. Alyte
    Mar 14, 2023
    9
    Pros:
    + Lifelike characters who have real problems, like imposter syndrome
    + No stereotyping, all characters felt like they had real reasons that they had the problems they had + Literally cannot cheat on your partner (I'm looking at you Persona series) + Soundtrack was wonderful, very good at setting the tone throughout + Game looks gorgeous, the models were expressive and convincing    Pros:
    + Lifelike characters who have real problems, like imposter syndrome
    + No stereotyping, all characters felt like they had real reasons that they had the problems they had
    + Literally cannot cheat on your partner (I'm looking at you Persona series)
    + Soundtrack was wonderful, very good at setting the tone throughout
    + Game looks gorgeous, the models were expressive and convincing and the 2D art was charming and made me smile.
    + Did not shove LGBTQIA+ involvement down your throat, characters sexual orientation and pronouns weren't the important part about any of them, just a part of their identity. It didn't feel like pandering, it felt like representation.
    + Gameplay was fun. The managment of ingredients and potions was the most fun version of any management game I've ever played, and the deckbuilding was superb. I absolutely loved the bargaining stage.

    Cons:
    - Cannot continue past day 50. Should unlock free play after completing the story so that people who missed out maxing all relationships or who want to achievement hunt shouldn't have to start fresh and try to completely optimize a run. This is the biggest problem with the game by far
    - Pacing was great until about day 30. i felt so stressed about optimizing my monetary gain that I neglected the social aspect, but then realized that I was so filthy rich and I had already brewed the competition potions so I just stopped running the shop and instead focused completely on relationships, which are the best part of the game.
    -Cannot sort my potions inventory, so it felt like I had to check all of my pages for which copy of health potion I wanted to give to my heroes

    Overall, my biggest problem with this game is that I cannot play more of it. At least not without resetting progress, other than the complete lack of post game/free play, excellent game.    … Expand
  8. OnyxWeapon
    Oct 29, 2022
    4
    While the graphics and style of this game are simply gorgeous, I have to rate my experience negatively with this game. I will never understand why game developers are so obsessed with putting arbitrary time pressure mechanics in these kind of games. Even Koei Tecmo realized with their Atelier game series that by removing this limitation, you open up your game series to a whole newWhile the graphics and style of this game are simply gorgeous, I have to rate my experience negatively with this game. I will never understand why game developers are so obsessed with putting arbitrary time pressure mechanics in these kind of games. Even Koei Tecmo realized with their Atelier game series that by removing this limitation, you open up your game series to a whole new audience: people that just want to chill and enjoy the gameplay loop.

    You can market this game to a hardcore audience AND offer alternatives to the time limit. I.e. put in different difficulty levels that alter the time limit and/or potion level requirements during the boss battles, give the player a choice to simply disable the time limit altogether or work it in your story by giving extended time limits after a failure, etc.

    By not offering any of these options to the players, the devs are knowingly setting them up to invest their time in multiple failed runs, restarting the same gameplay loop over and over again, or pushing them to using a guide, to get a heads-up on how to min-max their time before the boss battles.

    There is no denying there's a lot of potential in this title. But as it stands now, unless you're committed to brute forcing yourself through this RNG-infested, time gating, mess of a game, the only draw you'll find here are the pretty pictures and animations.    … Expand
  9. Shimmeywill
    Oct 23, 2022
    10
    Satisfying gameplay loop with charming characters, cute animations and music.
  10. Gitpullorigin
    Oct 22, 2022
    9
    Very comforting game with amazing art style and animation. Gameplay is not necessarily groundbreaking but it is fun to build relationships with characters (who are similarly well done and are well thought out). Runs great on a Steam Deck.
  11. BunnyGirl1
    Oct 25, 2022
    1
    Although the main character is cute it cannot save the game from it's incredibly tedious gameplay loop. Don't waste your money.
  12. Mene0
    Apr 21, 2023
    8
    Absolutely fantastic game. Beautiful and well written. Some UI/optimization problems but can be overlooked.
    The biggest problem is the lack of an endless mode. In a sim game like this, it feels very weird to not have it. I hope it gets added in the future so I can play more.

Awards & Rankings

94
#94 Best PC Game of 2022

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
80

Generally favorable reviews - based on 11 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 8 out of 11
  2. Mixed: 3 out of 11
  3. Negative: 0 out of 11
  1. GameSpace
    Jan 3, 2023
    87
    Potionomics will blow you away with its intertwined mechanics, wonderfully made features, thoughtful gameplay and charming characters. There are certain weaknesses and a regretful lack of freeplay mode, but the time spent in the game is well worth it.
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  2. KeenGamer
    Dec 5, 2022
    80
    This game is fun. Honestly? I think I had too much fun and that meant I wasn't paying attention to all the little things that built up and kept drowning me. But if you're careful, pay attention, and keep up with the game's demands, it's well worth it. The characters are amazing, the plot is fun, and the gameplay is addictive. It's a little tough if you're not good at multitasking, but if you're a fan of the shopkeeper genre, this is one you can't miss.
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  3. Tech-Gaming
    Nov 9, 2022
    80
    Potionomics’ different ingredients blend together well, mixing everything from deck building, resource management, and even options for romance into its shopkeeping simulation. Hopefully, the developers can temper the bitterness associated with the in-game competitions.
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