Bee Simulator in the short test

Sum, sum, sum, little bee buzz around! But not to forest and Heath, but rather on our screens and TV devices. With the Bee Simulator, we slip into the Chitin shell of a honey bee and explore with the eyes of an insect in the game world. Sounds like a lot of work and little fun? No, and Yes.

The “Simulation” in the title is something of a misnomer, because Bee Simulator does not even attempt a real-life situation as authentically as possible to implement – quite the contrary. In the approximately three-hour Story campaign you will experience a very emotional story from the perspective of a small honey collector, whose goal is to find a new home for his flock. The hive is located in a rotten tree to be cut down by the people. The game world to explore, against the enemies and fire a variety of tasks for the Queen bee, and any amount of Pollen are on the agenda. The technical staging, but especially the history that remains, unfortunately, largely behind the expectations. It comes in the whole Story-over the course of hardly any voltage and none of the protagonists manages to generate more emotions in players. That would much better go, has proven to be more than a hundred years of Waldemar Bonsel with his novels “Maya the bee” and “sky people”. For this, you will be rewarded with lots of interesting information about the hard-working insects. Did you know that a bee can accommodate up to 4 million pollen grains per collective flight. I now and your now hopefully. Despite this expansion of knowledge is the Bee Simuator not a learning game, these are the facts presented much too little with the Gameplay and are only in charge of breaks displayed on the screen or in the library, as illustrated texts. What creates it but with flying colours: to recall The theme and the acute risk of the bees dying in the consciousness of the player. Each of the plays this Simulator, will consider in the next summer, the honey collectors for sure, with very different eyes.

Bee-particularly monotonous

The bee-to-day life generally consists of three different tasks. First of all, of course, the Pollen must be collected. This is relatively easy, by flies displayed through the rings on to the different flowers just by. It has taken up enough of them, bring them back in the Hive. With other conspecifics to communicate, by the way, as well as in the real world, by means of dancing. Here, the predetermined movements must be by means of Pressing the corresponding Buttons, imitated. You’ll encounter enemies, then changes the game in combat mode, and also this runs in the Form of Quicktime Events. Is broken up the game with additional tasks, such as racing against other insects, or collecting competitions. But even that’s misleading, unfortunately, is not the fact that the Bee Simulator hardly offers variety. After a little more than an hour if you have done everything at least three Times through and because of the difficulty level was not set very high, and then especially in older players quickly bored.

Why but also the younger target audience not depends on its cost, is a little habituation needy control. I was able to draw after about half an hour induction period, the bee halfway passable, my small auxiliary tester had to this time, the Controller already frustrated to the side. Since it also has not helped that the Bee Simulator via a Split-Screen mode for up to four players, by but only together the game world to explore, and in various Mini-Games against each other antreteten can.

CONCLUSION

I love unusual but unusual game ideas and therefore state-of-the Bee Simulator since the gamescom 2018 on my Watchlist. But despite the interesting basic concept, the laudable approach enthusiasm for the subject, as well as the many love, who are obviously invested in the project, has disappointed me with the Game a bit. Of course, I’m certainly not the target audience, because playful is the Bee Simulator clearly at a much younger audience, but with a slightly more exciting story and a bit more variety here would be clearly more inside been. Also, the Edutainment-share, you would have to expand certainly, or better in the Gameplay can integrate. Summsa all in all, (warning, pun alert!) the Bee Simulator , while some of the playful weaknesses, but Publisher Bigben with the NABU (nature conservation Federal Germany e. V.) cooperates and a portion of the proceeds of a insect protection Fund is dedicated to, should, especially younger insects-Fans of the game however, a closer look at.

What Bee Simulator? A bee Simulator with Story campaign and Split-Screen mode.
Platforms: PC, PS4, XBox One, Nintendo Switch
Tested on: PS4
Developer / Publisher: Varsav Game Studios / Bigben Interactive
Release: 15. November 2019
Link: Official Website