It’s gotten a lot of praise from Playdate owners, and it’s easy to see why. The art is beautiful, the story feels personal and the soundtrack is the perfect thing to put you in a chilled-out mood. but Bloom also a strange, that it does not feel SOMEWHAT like a game with a heavy narrative presentation, but also not like a visual novel.

Bloom usually plays through text messages, and corresponds to real time. You play from the perspective of Midori, who decides not to go to college (unbeknownst to her parents) and opens a flower shop. While he chats with his family, his girlfriend, friends and other characters, you will read and choose his answers. There’s also a simple farming element – where you buy and plant seeds, water them and harvest them to earn money – and an arcade-style mini game.

Bloom is the kind of thing you check several times a day until you get to the end, which can take several weeks. There’s not much to it in terms of gameplay, but there’s something very satisfying about the way it uses the crank to switch floors, moving from the bedroom of Midori’s apartment to the roof where her garden is. It might not be for everyone, but it’s worth a try if you like social sims.