It's incredible that hectic management sims like Greenheart Games' new Tavern Keeper use game loops that can make even dastardly procrastinators like me excited to do chores. It might be a miracle, or just a terrifying act of psychology, but it's definitely not easy to turn dread into comfort, says Greenheart co-founder Patrick Klug.
Klug tells PC Gamer that cutesy medieval fantasy Tavern Keeper wasn't really enjoyable to play in "at least" its first seven years of development. It wasn't until 11-and-a-half years had passed and Greenheart had cycled through six different versions of the game that it could be considered "fun."
But those first seven years were "a really difficult time," says Klug, since he had "to trust that, 'I know once we finish this system, and this system and this system will go together, that it will be fun, right?'"
But, uh. It wasn't. Things like Tavern Keeper's random storybook events "always felt like they took you out of the game, [...], and that hurts because I was always very adamant that I wanted this storytelling in the game," Klug says. It took "dozens" of tries just to make Tavern Keeper's storybook moments what they are now – role-playing opportunities that enhance the game's magic rather than kill it.
"It took ages to feel right," Klug comments. But Greenheart Games' decade of trouble finished with perfect fruit. Tavern Keeper, which is currently in its early access period, remains at an Overwhelmingly Positive review rating on Steam, with one popular review giving it the unparalleled compliment of feeling like "Rimworld, the Sims, Baldur's Gate, Zoo Tycoon, and Planet Coaster all over again."
