SVG REVIEW: Discounty

This is a transcript excerpt covering the score awarded to Discounty on the So Videogames Podcast, episode 453. For further coverage, please see episodes 452 and 451.

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Brad: Okay, just wanted to, finally, for the final. Final time, circle back on Discounty. We’ve been talking about it off and on for at least a month or so. finally rolled credits last night, and I will say, I was kind of surprised that I rolled credits. this is the case where I really like the game left me wanting more. I would have gladly played another ten, 20 hours of this game, and I kind of wished that there was so a little bit of like, it sounds bad to say that I was disappointed it was over, but I was kind of disappointed it was over for those who might have missed it

Discounty is a game.. a 2D indie? kind of a top down. Well, I don’t know, 2D, just whatever. How do you call it? I always struggle, I’ve been in the video game arena for like 40 fucking years. What do you call a game that is 2Dut you’re not looking straight down. But the characters are like side view, but like also the map is 2D. What the fuck do you call that besides 2D? I don’t even know.

Carlos: We’ve said three quarters view.

B: But it’s not three quarters view, though. It isn’t isometric. It’s not… whatever. Fuck it. Whatever. It’s the same thing as Stardew Valley, you know?

C: Yeah, yeah, yeah.

B: Okay, I need, like, a really definitive… I can’t just say 2D because that’s too broad. But it’s not top down either, because you’re not looking at characters heads. What the fuck? 40 years and I still can’t describe it. Anybody listening? Help me out. What the fuck is a good title? Okay, it doesn’t matter anyway. Moving on…

So you move to town, you start a grocery store, and you stock the shelves and you rearrange the store, and you run the store every day, which is really well done. It’s very streamlined and fast and fun. But then you’re also dealing with side quests in the town where it seems like something spooky is going on or something weird is going on. And so you’ve got like these side quests which are not super long and involved, like they’re very light, they feel very appropriate for the game. So you’ve got like your side content, which keeps you busy during night time. You’ve got your store content which keeps you busy during the day. It’s just really, really well done. It’s really measured and polished and balanced. Graphics are great. I think the controls are nice.

I think the UI is great. Everything about it is really well considered. I think the scope is right on. I’ve had just like a blast playing it. It just feels like a very, very well put together game from somebody who really thought carefully about what they were doing and really made sure all the pieces fit together. It was great. I had a blast the entire time from start to finish. The only thing I think that I had an issue with, and this is kind of what I just mentioned a second ago, was like, it feels like it stops a little abruptly. I’m not going to spoil anything. I absolutely think it’s worth playing. I loved it, had a great time. Would recommend it. No problem. , it just feels like when you get to the next big thing, it kind of is like, and there’s the end and I’m like, oh it ended a little bit too abruptly for me. But again, I guess it’s better to leave me wanting more rather than going on for 20 hours too long. Yeah. Like, you know, oh, I’m so sick of this.

C: Which we’ve had.

B: We’ve definitely have had. That’s the norm. Honestly.

C: Two follow up questions. First, how long have you played… how long, how many hours then?

B: I mean, it’s hard to say because I was playing a little bit every night before bed. I want to say it’s like not longer than 20 hours. It might even be shorter than that.

C: Well, that’s not bad.

B: No, no, it’s very reasonable. It’s probably in fact, it’s probably shorter than that. It just seems longer because I was playing it in such small doses.

C: Second question, can you keep playing after credits or is it not that kind of game?

B: You can like you can keep playing if you want to just if you just really like super enjoy running the store, you can keep doing that infinitely. But there are no more like side quests. There’s nothing else really to like to do other than to run the store, which is fine.

C: Ok well all right, well, I still I’m still interested and I still might pick it up because.

B: It’s a good time. It’s a good time. I don’t want to end on a downer because I had a blast with Discounty and I would love DLC or a Discounty 2. I want the developers to expand what they built on. I think the mechanics are smart, the size is smart, the pace is smart — it’s it’s just really, really well done.

C: A good problem to have.

B: It’s like the best possible complaint.

C: Yes. I was just talking to my buddy Damien last night about short games. And again it came back with Silksong and he just played a couple and I feel bad. I can’t remember the names of them. I’ll I’ll find it. And you can put in the show notes. But he just played two and he beat both of them and I’m like, you know. Or he beat one and he’s about to beat the other. And I’m like, oh my goodness, that’s what I want right now in my life. Yeah, I want to beat these short experiences. And we go in cycles, you know, like sometimes I want Assassin’s Creed and just like to live in those worlds forever. Yeah. But just recently, like, Diablo is different because I can put that up and pick it up and put it down. You know.

B: It’s more of a lifestyle.

C: Yeah, yeah. But other games like hell, which we’ll talk about in the show, you know, they’re if they’re pretty huge in scope, I’m like, oh, I don’t know. You know, I just want to like beat something. So yeah.

B: Well, before we get off of this Discounty, I do want to give it an official score, since I talked about it so many times, and I’ve gone through the whole journey with the people here listening.

So I feel like it’s a great game. Like I said, at the end of the day, my only complaint about Discounty is that I wanted more of it, and that’s probably the best problem you could possibly have. It was great from start to finish and I wanted more, but it does what it does well — it gets in, it gets out, and it’s a great example of of how to deliver a measured experience. And I feel like a solid eight is a good place for that to live.

C: I totally I totally predicted that score from you.

B: Did you? Okay.

C: In my head I said it’s he’s gonna say eight.

B: There you go. Eight out of ten.

Rating: 8 out of 10

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Disclosures: This game is developed by Crinkle Cut Games and published by PQube. It is currently available on PC, PlayStation, Xbox and Switch. This copy of the game was obtained via publisher and reviewed on the Switch. Approximately 20 hours of play were devoted to the single-player mode, and the game was completed. There are no multiplayer modes.

Parents: According to the ESRB, this game is rated E and contains Alcohol Reference. The official description reads: Discounty is rated E for Everyone by the ESRB with Alcohol Reference. This is a role-playing/simulation game in which players help a character salvage a grocery store in an old harbor town. Players organize and restock shelves, assist customers, and befriend local characters. A bar location is named the Drunken Tern, with billboards depicting a bird with bubbles over its head.

Colorblind Modes: There are no colorblind modes available in the options.

Deaf & Hard of Hearing Gamers: All dialogue comes in the form of text which cannot be resized or altered. There are no audio cues needed for play. This game is fully accessible.

Remappable Controls: No, this game’s controls are not remappable. There is no control diagram. The left stick moves the character, the face buttons handle interact/confirm/cancel. The plus button brings up a menu. The entire control scheme is fairly straightforward.

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