Summer in Mara

 Switch
User Score
7.4

Mixed or average reviews- based on 37 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 20 out of 37
  2. Mixed: 11 out of 37
  3. Negative: 6 out of 37

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  1. SuperkenGaming
    Jun 25, 2020
    5
    Summer in Mara
    More of a summer job than a vacation
    Summer in Mara a farming exploration game where you play as koa who sets out to discover the mysteries of the ocean and its islands. and there isn’t much to discover… Summer in Mara seems as though this might be a stardew valley or animal crossing type game but its not… every mechanic of this game is equally kinda just there… This is    Summer in Mara
    More of a summer job than a vacation
    Summer in Mara a farming exploration game where you play as koa who sets out to discover the mysteries of the ocean and its islands.
    and there isn’t much to discover…
    Summer in Mara seems as though this might be a stardew valley or animal crossing type game but its not… every mechanic of this game is equally kinda just there…
    This is more of a fetch questy game.. that’s the hook.. you talk to characters, they tell you what they need, you go find it, buy it, grow it, or create it… on paper this sounds like a relaxin time.. I love me some trading quest games, go get this so you can get that to trade it for this to get the quest item you need… I love that kind of stiff.. but in summer in mara this is the entire game and it’s a chore from start to finish, everything is really fueled by your garden back in your home island one way or another.. you need money if youre going to buy items, you need plants to craft items.. so you have to have a little garden going to have recources to sell or craft with… but its quite exhausting to constantly get quests that require you to travel back and forth between two islands just to craft something.. you cant craft on the go, oh you need some juice? Let me run all the way back to my boat, sail to my island, run uo the hill, and craft some, run back down, sail back across the ocean.. run to you.. oh wait im exhausted… the game automatically throws me back to the beginning of the island, let me eat some food real fast.. run to you again.. heres some juice, quest complete.. oh now I have seeds I need to go plant and come back with them… it’s a constant back and forth from island to island.. its not relaxing and calming.. it’s a time wasting drain… not only that there is just so much about summer in mara that keeps this game from being enjoyable.. the game feels stiff and awkward.. the music awkwardly just disappears for long periods of time, and you have a hunger/energy system… you cnt just explore these tiny little islands at your will.. you have to make ur youre not hungry or exhausted while youre gathering items and completing quests.. otherwise the game will waste more time by pulling to back to the start of the island.. this mechanic has no business exhisting in a game like this… its unrewarding enough.. now you want me to waste my resources on myself just to make me grind that much longer to afford an item I need in the shop to craft something else…
    Summer in Mara I went into hoping for a little mental vacation, I breath of fresh air and destressing..
    but instead im running around doing chores, and punished for wanting to explore inbetween these chores…
    I give summer in Mara
    a 5/10    … Expand
  2. Gantelmann
    Jan 30, 2021
    5
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Eintöniges von A nach B gerenne.
    Grafik ist schön aber auf der Switch sehr geringe Renderdistance.    … Expand

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
59

Mixed or average reviews - based on 30 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 6 out of 30
  2. Mixed: 17 out of 30
  3. Negative: 7 out of 30
  1. Cubed3
    Oct 28, 2020
    80
    Although there were a few faults and issues in the game, none are game breaking, and updates have removed some faults and added quality of life improvements. Anyone who likes mostly calm games involving lots of quests and some farming will enjoy being Koa in Summer in Mara. With multiple backpack designs and clothes to collect through quests, and finding all the crabs with messages from early game supporters, there is plenty to do in Mara before the game ends, and afterwards too. There aren't extra quests post game, but fulfilling all the quests is satisfying in itself, and the varying environments with some items to harvest are memorable enough to return to for fun.
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  2. Digital Chumps
    Sep 3, 2020
    65
    On its own, Mara in Summer is the perfect game if you have plenty of time and are not looking for a challenge. The main protagonist, Koa, is a very charming protagonist and the idea of sailing from Island to Island while meeting new residents and saving your own Island is a pretty neat concept. However, with stagnant characters, quality of life issues, and strange platforming issues, Summer in Mara feels like it's in desperate need for a quick tune up much like Koa’s boat!
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  3. GameCritics
    Aug 11, 2020
    45
    When it works and the quests follow a natural flow, Summer in Mara can be wonderful. At its best moments, I found it to be relaxing and effortlessly charming. Sadly, the horrendous backtracking, time-wasting filler content and frustrating resource management make it less of a vacation and more of a job.
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