It seems that ever since the release of Stardew Valley there has been a never-ending stream of titles that have looked to horn in on its success. Not only have many tended to also be farming sim RPGs, many of them have cribbed elements of its style and structure, though pretty well none have managed to be much more than poor facsimiles in the end. The thing is, the concept of mixing together RPG-style character development and stories with a simulation of some sort is a great one. It has just taken some time for a developer to produce something that can compete for attention in the space, without being just another carbon copy. With its focus on building up a small corner market into a thriving supermarket, Discounty really appears to have struck gold!

Starting with the very satisfying store management sim side of the experience, having played quite a number of games in this same vein over the past few years, I’d say this is clearly one of the best. It isn’t just about keeping your back room and shelves stocked, or just worrying over the aesthetics of how things are arranged. Depending on the shelves you use, where you put them, and the different displays you can place with them, you can absolutely drive people to impulse buy things you either have too much of, or have an incentive to sell. Since you’re the person who’ll negotiate with different local vendors, and you’ll get a variety of benefits from making them happy, most of the time you’ll be working to sell their products as quickly as possible. In addition though you’ll have daily and weekly goals to meet for reward points, and since those can unlock essential gear like a proper scanner (which is a godsend) and new products you’ll really want to keep an eye on them as well. While there would seem to be plenty of time in the day, you can expect to barely get to bed on time or ready for the store to open simply arranging everything in different ways to try to optimize your results.

On the RPG side of the fence, there’s quite a lot to like, and much of it revolves around it being a small town where everyone seems to be up in each other’s business. This will lead to quite a number of storylines that won’t just help you get to know the majority of the town’s residents better, but that will also often give you the essential help you’ll need to continue growing your business. One problem you’ll encounter is that there’s clearly a faction in town who isn’t interested in change, and your business threatening to get bigger absolutely creates some friction. The good news is that with some patience, and enduring a few hiccups every once in a while, you’ll continue on to success. What really works nicely is that you’ll almost always have a mix of both long-term and shorter-term goals to meet, and the result is that almost every day you’ll have extra things to remember to do or look for, building up a serious “just one more day before I go to bed” vibe, which is always a great sign.

If there were any downsides to note, one is that aside from being free to set up your store, and work through issues at your own pace, there are few opportunities to really put your mark on things in-game. You won’t be building any meaningful relationships or trying to woo any townsfolk, and for the most part your relationship with everyone is written in stone for you just to work through. Honestly, given the care put into making everyone pretty unique, and there being some fun storylines to work through involving drama between other people, I didn’t miss it but I know that’s an important element in these sorts of games for some people. Regardless, if you’ve been looking for the next sim RPG that’s absolutely worth your time, I’d say Discounty is not to be missed!