Dinkum Nintendo Switch Review

Dinkum Nintendo Switch

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Hello, welcome to Dinkum. You can create your own island here and…hey! Watch out for that crocodile! It looks like it wants to take a bite out of you. Please just step over this way. That’s it. You got it. Okay, now check out our review of Dinkum for the Nintendo Switch.

When an invitation goes out to move into the middle of nowhere and start a brand new life away from the city, you jump at the chance. A little old lady is waiting for you and off you go to an island where the two of you (mostly you) will be creating a new community from scratch.

Dinkum’s story is quick & neat but its the gameplay that will grab you (sometimes literally!).

Dinkum is, at its heart, a simulation game. Its focus is building an island for yourself and incoming residents to live. The gameplay is a mix of Animal Crossing and Harvest Moon, with dangerous animals thrown in! Watch out for those crocs and sharks. whew.

Time in the game moves fast, like Harvest Moon, but you can take things at your own pace and unlock things as you go. The game feels more Harvest Moon than Animal Crossing but the sense of community building and crafting the landscape feels a bit New Horizons.

There is a lot of crafting in Dinkum, perhaps a bit too much. Some of the crafting is a bit too complex. Do we really need to go to all that trouble to just make nails? Every time! There are a lot of things to make, with some things being easy and other things being harder. It gives you a lot to do but it also can be a bit of a pain.

And you can’t just buy tools in Dinkum, you attain points and then use them buy licenses to use the tools first. sigh. Also the tools will break, so you’ll be spending a lot of money to replace them. Despite its complex systems though, there is so much to see and do in this game that is fun.

The island you get is huge and as you go, you’ll get better ways to get around in the environment, find new things and more residents will come and unlock new facilities for you to use on the island. There’s so much to see and do in Dinkum. You do feel accomplishment when you unlock things or create complex objects. Discovering new things is fun.

If you like games like Harvest Moon, Animal Crossing and other sims, then you’ll probably like Dinkum. Some of the tasks could be a bit simpler, but the sense of discovery is what will grab you. You won’t run out of things to do and new ways of making your island better. Though, you might wish the graphics were a bit better.

Dinkum is, on the surface, a good looking game. However, its characters are very plain looking and its backgrounds are a bit bland. Also some of the animations, such as walking, could be better and there is a lot of noticeable object pop-ins in the far background. That said, Dinkum is a good game that sim fans will want to check out on Nintendo Switch.

Overall, Dinkum is a fun sim game. There are even some dangers (crocs! sharks!) that keep things interesting. Some of the crafting and other mechanics are a bit too complicated at times, but the sense of discovery will keep you coming back. There is so much to see and do! If you love Animal Crossing and Harvest Moon, then you’ll likely want to check out Dinkum.

A digital code was provided for this review. Dinkum is out today for the Nintendo Switch and Nintendo Switch 2.

Article By Daniel Fugate

Daniel Fugate has wanted to be a writer since he was seven years old. He has a bachelor's degree in English and he's a huge Animal Crossing fan. The Nintendo Switch and Xbox Series S are his favorite systems. His e-mail is [email protected]

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Twitter: @df2506