Early Access Review - Travellers Rest

Developer: Isolated Games

Publisher: Isolated Games, IndieArk

Available on: PC (Steam)

I love a good management/life simulation game. They're perfect for those days when I want a sense of accomplishment while completing tasks and building up my in-game business while relaxing. In Travellers Rest the task is simple: take an old, dilapidated tavern and turn it into the rest stop worthy of the largest crowds.

Still in Early Access

Travellers Rest has been in Early Access for quite a few years now. I picked up the game about 2 years ago and there wasn't too much to it. The game was initially just a loop of serving beverages and food while decorating my tavern. Purchases were made via mailbox and areas to explore were pretty limited. The gameplay loop wasn't too bad initially and I didn't mind the lack of content until I'd played for more than a few days.

However, after those few, I put the game down and decided to wait for updates. I would revisit the game once in a while to brew some beers and get holiday decor but the game would really only occupy me for about a day. Then came the City & Story update.

Updates, patches, and events, oh my!

One of the things about Travellers Rest that keeps me returning is that the game gets regularly updated and patched. New content is constantly developed. Events happen around the holidays and they're good for keeping around returning players, especially when events are time-limited and the holiday-specific decor is only available to get in the game during those periods.

Travellers Rest has had its own slew of bugs included with each update but regular patching means I don't end up setting aside the game forever when I do encounter them.

After waiting some time for a major update that wasn't a holiday event, Travellers Rest had a major content update: the City & Story update. The story part of the update gives the game's gameplay loop a reason to exist: You want to become the top innkeeper of the realm. To do that, you're going to have to take an old tavern and clean it up. The City & Story update also introduces a new element to Travellers Rest: a story tutorial. The story tutorial is pretty fun and takes some of the tedium of learning how to brew, farm, cook, decorate, and fix up the tavern out of the initial gameplay because it's worked into the overall story of the game.

The story update is not complete so the story matters much less once in the swing of building up the tavern and decorating it while serving customers.

The other part of the City & Story update that made playing again appealing is that now I can visit the city and instead of ordering goods via the mailbox, I can go from shop to shop to purchase what I need. Crop seeds, meat, fish, crops, blueprints, machines, furniture, and more can all be taken care of with a shopping trip into town. New NPCs exist to interact with however, they lose their shine after a few interactions.

Now, that isn't to say the gameplay loop doesn't lose its luster after a while again, but it still keeps me returning to manage my inn/tavern and upkeep it. I recently returned to Travellers Rest to check out the Beekeeping and Irrigation update. It's a great update adding more efficiency to crop and bee-based product management.

The Roadmap

That said, despite the long Early Access, Travellers Rest shows plenty of promise in its development. When updates are delivered, the game's mechanics and gameplay continue to be enjoyable. The devs are pretty welcoming to suggestions with an active Discord and the community is quite helpful at providing tips.

Isolated Games have a publicly visible Trello board (linked on Steam) to look at with future potential updates: Upcoming NPCs, new locations, new game mechanics, and plenty more. I look forward to replaying at each update and once the game is complete, I'm sure it'll be well worth the wait.

Verdict

If you're looking for a new cozy management game and want to brew alcohol while managing a tavern, Travellers Rest is well worth checking out, even in its Early Access state. However, if you want a complete game, you should wait until the game is completed. If you're good with games taking their time and want to support a developer as they build up their game, get Travellers Rest now. For now, I recommend the game but I'm sure once it's complete, I'll change my rating to a must-buy.