Review of ‘Wall Town Wonders’ – Perhaps Too Laid-Back for Modern Mixed Reality

Wall Town Wonders feels like a glimpse into the future of gaming, where the norm includes wearing AR glasses all day. Imagine managing a bustling tiny town populated by Sim-like creatures floating through your room in hot air balloons, living out their day-to-day while you attend to yours. Visually, it’s a feast for the eyes, but the gameplay lacks depth, raising the question of whether we’re ready for this type of experience with the current XR headset technology.

Wall Town Wonders Key Info:

• Publisher: Cyborn
• Available On: Quest 3/3S
• Reviewed On: Quest 3
• Release Date: November 21, 2024
• Price: $20

Gameplay

As is the hallmark of casual games, Wall Town Wonders maintains a low difficulty level, leaning into a relaxed atmosphere. The initial thrill comes from peeking into different buildings and watching the tiny inhabitants busily going about their routines—like spotting a little chef making a pizza or observing two villagers piloting a bi-plane in your living room.

Once you breeze past the approximately hour-long tutorial, the game introduces you to various mini-games that unlock as you build new structures. These might include defending a vertical farm with a wrist-mounted crossbow to zap pesky bugs, fishing in a pond on your floor, or guiding airplanes through your room with just your hand gestures.

Despite these activities, most of your time will be spent waiting for villagers to produce resources like wood, money, and food automatically. The core gameplay cycle revolves around developing foundational building types and upgrading existing structures, with over 100 different buildings to explore. You can even customize the appearance and location of buildings, giving you the freedom to craft a setup that’s uniquely yours. The outcome is a visually impressive array of dynamic set pieces that inject a vibrant energy into your room.

While the game gives villagers autonomy, letting you choose when to engage, it quickly feels like watching fish swim around in a tank or ants in a farm. You’re free to interact and assist them in mining or farming through optional mini-games, but the appeal fades quickly. My attention waned after a few hours, and I often just wanted to ignore the town’s activity and find something more engaging, as the mini-games felt more like chores.

Immersion

I’ve always been captivated by virtual dioramas; they can be stunningly immersive by condensing detailed worlds into miniature scales. Wall Town Wonders uses quaint European village vibes, painting your walls with scenes that make you go "awww."

Yet, here I am writing this review on a conventional monitor, not in a headset. Like many, I typically unwind with my favorite games and social apps during a few free hours at the day’s end, infrequently mixing work and play unless I’m reviewing something, of course.

I envision a future where display resolutions are so crisp that typing in a VR headset feels as natural as on a monitor, and comfort is such that you forget you even have one on—this would be perfect for casual games designed to be enjoyed sporadically, much like a smartphone game. However, Wall Town Wonders seems to want us to overlook the current XR hardware limitations. Its random mini-games and chill, aquarium-like environment seem too casual for extended play on the Quest.

Some players might argue that I’m just not the ideal audience for Wall Town Wonders. Fans of games like The Sims or Townscaper might find my perspective less charitable. Fair enough!

Objectively speaking, though, the game relies too much on point-and-click laser pointers for interactions. You get a few moments to pick villagers for exploration missions or pull gadgets from your wrist for tasks like bug-shooting or plant-watering. Despite trying to integrate hand-tracking from the get-go, I found myself reverting to controllers for ease. The focus on laser pointers feels like a missed chance at creating truly immersive gadgets beyond the single-use items offered in mini-games.

Comfort

The impressive number of buildings available prompts you to stay active, as you’ll need to explore every inch of available wall space. While seated play is an option, you’ll probably end up moving around.

Most buildings can be kept at eye level for convenience, but some activities require you to look down, which might be uncomfortable for those sensitive to neck strain. Nonetheless, Wall Town Wonders’ smart decision to elevate the village to wall height, rather than having you peer over a tiny map, is a step in the right direction for future XR town-sim designs.

Wall Town Wonders Comfort Settings – November 21, 2024

Turning

• Artificial Turning: No

Movement

• Artificial Movement: No

Posture

• Standing Mode: Yes
• Seated Mode: No
• Artificial Crouch: No
• Real Crouch: Yes

Accessibility

• Subtitles: Yes
• Languages: English, Chinese, Dutch, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish
• Dialogue Audio: No
• Adjustable Difficulty: No
• Two Hands Required: No
• Real Crouch Required: No
• Hearing Required: No
• Adjustable Player Height: No

Wall Town Wonders offers a richly detailed and charming experience, but whether it truly captivates depends on how players engage with its unique blend of visuals and gameplay.