Brewing up some laid-back fun.
QUEST LOG #23: ALE ABBEY (DEMO)
This game is still in development, and as such, everything is subject to change, and what I talk about here might not be quite the same in the final release.
I usually find myself with only enough time to play one or two demos during the Steam Next Fest, as some are locked after the event, and thus unplayable, even if downloaded. I wanted to make a bit of an effort to play some more this year though, and amongst those that I tried was Ale Abbey, a management/tycoon game based in an… Abbey, in which you have to create, brew, and export beers. I’m not familiar with the developers, Hammer & Ravens, not having played any of their previous titles and I’m not hugely familiar with the publisher, Siro Unlimited either, although I know of some of their titles. But that’s what’s so nice about the Next Fest, experiencing games from new developers and publishers - and Ale Abbey was a joyful experience, despite being quite a short one.
In Ale Abbey you start out with a rather basic structure, a nun, a monk, and a few other people meandering about. After a quick tutorial, you’ll soon be contacted by the Bishop, and he’ll assign tasks to you that will lead you through the various mechanics and systems of the game, introducing you to these gradually as you progress. These are initially very simple, such as building a new room or placing specific pieces of furniture or equipment, but later become more difficult, with requests to brew beers with specific properties, such as certain colours or flavours.
As for the bulk of the gameplay, you’ll be researching, making up new recipes, and exporting your goods to the various nearby settlements. In creating your recipes, you have the option to choose a style, bit it a blonde, and old ale, light ale, or a plethora of others. From there, you choose your ingredients, and adjust the levels to match the recommended amounts - you’ll see four measures on the right of your screen, and it’s a balancing act to get all of these in the green zones. From there, you choose your brewer from your list of nuns and monks, and once complete, you’ll get to name your creation. After all that, it’s time to brew, and using your brewing stove, you can select one of your created recipes and who you want to create it. The qualities of the person making it can alter the final outcome, so make sure you choose your best brewer here. After you’ve selected how many litres you want to make, you pay for the ingredient and start brewing. This takes a little time, but once its done, you have the choice to export to a local village, store in your cellar (if you’ve built one), or assign to an order request, assuming it meets the requirements, be it amount, type, flavour, ingredients etcetera.
While all this is going on, you can be researching a multitude of upgrades via the tech tree. There is a lot going on here, although most of it is limited in the demo. These trees will unlock furniture and decoration for the abbey, new rooms and equipment, as well as various upgrades to your brewing and maintenance, as well as a raft of other bits and pieces.
As well as building, maintaining, and decorating the Abbey, managing your brewing, and the little group of nuns and monks you recruit, you also have to negotiate with the local outlaws, who, if you please them with offerings of money or beer, will be of benefit to you, but if you neglect, will raid your supply lines. This is very limited in scope in the demo - there might be more to it in the full game, but it’s a nice little addition. Other additions that aren’t quite highlighted in the demo, but are hinted at is the merchant that sets up shop outside your walls, and a storage mechanic. This I can only assume will be for the buying and selling of resources (most likely ingredients). This is hinted at in the last screen of the demo, but as always with these demos, everything is subject to change. Other things hinted at that might be in the full release are custodians, pilgrims, more ingredients and beer styles, ale competitions, seasons, and various masonry styles to customise your abbey.
It’s hard to judge the longevity of the game from the demo, as it ends after an hour or so of gameplay, but what I can say is that I wanted to play more when it ended, so that’s a good sign. Games like this scratch a certain itch, and with something like ale brewing, it’s never going to be the most stressful game in the world, which is exactly what you want sometimes. The period soundtrack, simple aesthetics, and rather relaxing gameplay loop makes Ale Abbey the perfect game to sit back and relax with. There is a chance the full experience might sour like a bad brew eventually, but I don’t think so… I’ve gotten a taste for this little game, and I quite fancy a whole barrel of it.
Time for a nice beer after all that, I think. Have you tried the Ale Abbey demo? What did you think? Sometimes it’s nice to play something placid. What other tycoon/management games have caught your eye lately? Let me know in the comments!
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