Welcome to one of my most conflicted and confused gaming experiences I’ve had in quite some time. I enjoy the anime Laid-Back Camp. Nothing much ever happens, and that’s kind of the point. It’s a slice-of-life anime where cute girls do cute things to calm you down and relax you. There have been some very basic VR games based on the series that are light on content whilst looking great, and now, with this latest mobile to PC conversion, All-in-One!! Chill Time brings us… a productivity app with a lot of camping equipment to unlock?!
Deep breath.
This title is a productivity app. It contains a text diary, a to-do list with a task scheduler, a countdown clock, and a Pomodoro timer. These things all work well, with the to-do list allowing some colour theming and the timer allowing up to 99 minutes per session. Players can run the app on full screen or in the corner of a screen, but an internet connection must be stable and constant at all times… because this is a social productivity app that feels designed to distract you at all times.
Firstly, the characters of Laid-Back Camp run around the screen, shouting in text bubbles, interacting with any objects you’ve put down like they are on a wild sugar rush. They do not sit still, and if one of them goes to sleep, the other four are chasing a pet, talking, interacting with the campfire, or doing something. It’s screaming “look at me” at all times, which is not helpful for a productivity and focus app. You can mitigate the sound portion of this busy world by adjusting music and ambience sound sliders to suit your needs, but those girls will run around as if their lives depend on it all day long.
As you complete productivity tasks, you’ll earn tokens based on daily tasks, weekly goals, and all-time tasks. You’ll need all of them because there are over 1,000 items to buy with the in-game currency. Expect a horrible grind for anything beyond the basic tents, chairs, food items, and a stove. Character outfits cost 450 in-game currency, and you may get two or three costumes if you log in continuously for a week and complete seven daily tasks. These objects, and food seems to be half of them, can be placed and rotated into the positions you want them in your camp. There are several environments to choose from, each giving a cosy vibe. Placing objects is quite simple, although some objects have a large buffer ring around them to prevent them from being placed next to each other. You can also “snap” objects onto others. Using this placement mode, you can place cups, mugs, stoves, food, and small items onto tables. There are also bunting and banners to attach to tents and shade covers.
Building your camp is one way to spend time; visiting other players’ camps is another way to spend time. Players are given a random selection of player camps to visit. Selecting one drops you in as a pet fox to roam around it. You can’t interact with anything, aside from an occasional gift of tokens from a character. I found looking at what other players have bought and how they’ve arranged their camp good fun and interesting. There are plenty of creative players out there, and they often post their photos on a profile photo board, too. There is an option to add friends to group camp together, but you can’t really do much unless you plan to study or focus together. Even then, there are no in-game tools to coordinate that. I like this mode, but if you want a camp worth showing off, prepare to grind for it.
As a productivity app, Laid-Back Camp All-in-One!! Chill Time is completely confused. It has some useful tools, albeit nothing groundbreaking or advanced, but the game undermines them with a hyperactive cast of squealing and squeaking girls. The rewards for productivity are grindy and require dedication and creativity to feel rewarded. The constant online connection is a shame, and the immediate release of expensive DLC packs that match the full price of the game concerns me, too. My final rating is based on the productivity experience and its confused execution, but I do think some gamers will enjoy the cutesy grind.
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