Confetti’s Cozy Corner: Discounty, The Cozy Game of the Summer
Discounty dropped our jaws on our keyboards with their Summer 2024 trailer during Wholesome Direct 2024. The infomercial type trailer showcased the joys of owning a grocery store but how the crushing weight of capitalism may ruin that joy.
Back in June, I reviewed the Discounty demo that was released during Steam Nextfest, calling it one of the most anticipated cozy games of the year’. Well, I’m happy to confirm that Discounty in full release does not disappoint!
For those who enjoy comparisons, imagine Stardew Valley from the perspective of Joja Mart with giant twists and turns that will keep you on the edge of your seat.
You arrive in the quaint yet quirky town of Bloomkest, to reconnect with your very ambitious Aunt Teller. As the new shopkeep, you will be taking over the only grocery store in the entire town, Discounty! As you walk through Bloomkest to get acquainted with your new surroundings, the dilapidated state of the buildings compared to upscale areas becomes very obvious. You begin learning the basics of running a grocery store from a long time Discounty employee, Grace!
Still one of the best features is the ability to run the register with your NUM pad. While customer traffic is slow, it is a smooth process, but you slowly feel the stress taking over as the line gets longer, customers get upset and stock runs low. As the only one who runs the store and its day to day operations, you are also responsible for fostering trade deals that will aid in the expansion of Discounty.
You will need Discounty to expand so you can sell more products because more products means more profit and when you have more profit you can afford upgrades like the scanner, which will make checking out customers easier. There are other upgrades you can get for Discounty but the goal is to keep spoilers to a minimum.
The game mechanics are easy to get used to as your time in Bloomkest will feel repetitive, but with intention. Discounty is open from 9am to 5pm and you MUST be present for each of your shifts. You will restock, ring up, and reset Discounty each day, so having an optimal store layout, on the main floor and stockroom, will help you perform each day with slightly more ease. Aunt Teller will arrive at Discounty some days to not only make sure you are working but to give you extra tasks on top of your already encumbered responsibilities.
Are you feeling the pressure yet? No need to worry, because as the story progresses you will make important business deals with other citizens of Bloomkest. Those business deals have skill trees that can be upgraded by completing minor tasks, such as selling a certain amount of their stock in your store, making purchasing items easier as your profits soar.
Capitalism is a beast, and in Discounty sometimes it’s hard to know if you are doing good for the town or making things complicated as your business prospers. But rest assured nothing is as it seems. The more you play, the more you will be entangled in a town mystery that will keep you guessing what happens next. I won’t share any spoilers for the story, but it’s good!
There is no romance in Discounty, which may be disappointing to folks who are used to a romance feature in this type of game. Personally, I do not mind that there is no romance, because there’s so much to focus on story and getting tasks done in the game, I’m not sure where romance would even fit into the shopkeep’s story. A feature that is included is the ability to change your appearance at any point during your game. You can change hair styles and outfits at any time and be as whimsical or plain as you want to be.
There are some glitches I ran into while playing Discounty. There were some places on the map, usually near stairs where I would get stuck. Unfortunately there is no ‘Help I’m Stuck’ button so I would have to restart my entire day. This happened about three times during my current playthrough, and I hope this is something a launch day patch could amend.
I do wish there were more accessibility options as far as the ability to auto-click through long phases of dialogue. As a carpal tunnel gurlie, the option would have just been nice, especially during the beginning of the game when tasks heavily rely on typing and fast clicking.
Also, while a feeling of pressure and suspense is an aspect of the game because of capitalism, I do feel that, because this is a video game and not everyone responds well to that game element, the ability to control the time should be an accessible option for players to have. Sometimes I just wanted to take time and organize my store without time pressure. There are plenty of things to feel rushed to do, but having the option to slow down was an option I wish I could have used during my playthrough.
Discounty is funny, thoughtful and fun and to me, lives up to what I said before as it being one of the most anticipated cozy games of the summer. For $19.99, the game feels like a complete experience, and it is obvious a lot of hard work and consideration for gamers went into it’s creation.
The level of transparency and funny quips Crinkle Cut Games put into this title’s marketing should be studied and an industry standard. The trust that has been built up over the past year promoting Discounty is immeasurable and the execution of the game shows how much the developers value that trust and their community. Numbers come and go, but the trust of community means everything, especially in the ‘cozy’ games space.
Discounty releases August 21 for Steam, Switch, PlayStation, Xbox and is Steamdeck verified.
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