Game Reviews

World Cruise Story

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World Cruise Story
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It seems like only yesterday that Game Dev Story was getting smartphone users all excited at the prospect of a management game that was both accessible and deep.

Now it's getting hard to count how many of Kairosoft's Japanese management sims have been translated to English. Six? Eight? It's a wonder anybody has any spare time left.

Whenever a new Kairosoft game pops up, we can always be sure of one thing - it'll be incredibly familiar, and by extension incredibly good.

World Cruise Story doesn't stray from this formula, offering essentially the same game you've played many times over, but on a boat.

Smooth sailing

You're the owner of a cruise ship, ready to accept passengers at the port and take them on a seafaring voyage full of relaxation, sunshine, and entertainment.

You're presented with a floor plan on which you can place down cabins, attractions, restaurants, shops, and other such money-makers. You've also got multiple decks on which you can place deckchairs and the like for those passengers who want to soak up the sun.

Your boat will routinely dock at ports, letting people off and allowing more to jump on. You can even arrange coach trips for passengers to explore the country in between ship journeys.

It's another great spin on the Kairosoft management style, and works well with the standard menu system, levelling up functionality, and classic visuals.

I'm on a boat

As with every other Kairosoft title, it expands far beyond this, with new items and opportunities popping up constantly.

You can invest in businesses to get a more diverse group of people joining your cruises a la Mega Mall Story, and even invest in whole countries so that people joining from those regions have more money to spend with you.

You can use items to upgrade facilities, while the usual compatibility guide, a key part of every Kairosoft game, is also present to help you get the most out of your layout.

As you impress your passengers they'll become fans of your cruise service, increasing the likelihood of them coming back. It's cute, it's easy to get into, and it'll leave you playing at ridiculous times in the morning because you simply can't put it down.

Cabin fever

World Cruise Story is another great Story game. However, it feels like the series is finally hitting breaking point. If this is your first Kairosoft game, we recommend it wholeheartedly. If you've played them all before, we recommend it with the rather predictable caveat that it's nothing new. It would have been nice to see some innovation.

Either way, Kairosoft continues to dominate the management genre on smartphones, and World Cruise Story is yet again another title that you cannot afford to miss.

World Cruise Story

World Cruise Story continues the Story legacy, with all the same great gameplay and depth that we've come to know and love
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Mike Rose
Mike Rose
An expert in the indie games scene, Mike comes to Pocket Gamer as our handheld gaming correspondent. He is the author of 250 Indie Games You Must Play.