There is never a shortage of diorama-building games to be found, and I WILL play as many of them as I can. There is something comforting about creating spaces from your imagination, everything exactly where you want it to be. My messy reality could never.
The newest entry to this genre is the debut game from the 2 person Barcelona based developer, Paidotibo, Mini Worlds Dioramas. Published by Indie.io, you build, you guessed it, mini worlds in cozy diorama form. It is a relaxing, creativity first sandbox game where making something small and personal is the only goal. No timers, no checklist, just you and your imagination. Place buildings, scenery, characters, animals and decorations that gradually bring each space to life.
What sets Mini Worlds Diorama apart for me is the variety of settings, each with its own items to choose from. Sci-Fi, City and Mediterranean are all options, and I was pleasantly surprised to find a Western scene. Now I could create my own Red Dead Redemption inspired world of my own. Each theme gives you a starting point, but you are always free to mix and match ideas to create something of your very own.
As you add more elements and the world comes to life in front of you, you can add weather elements like rain. snow or fog. You can change the lighting, and the animated people and animals add delightful touches of personality, too. The small sounds brought a nice touch of life to the scenes. Of course, this wouldn’t be a building game without the ability to take photographs of your creations. Use the ‘Flight Mode’ to fly around your diorama, admiring your work, shoot your photo from any angle and admire your work.
The controls are intuitive, and placing items was easy. The graphic style is colourful and charming, and the scenes feel vibrant while never feeling cluttered.
Mini Worlds Dioramas is a fun little debut game to pick up whenever you feel like creating or need something to focus on to relax. For under $5, it’s a heck of a deal, too.
Until next time…be good to yourself and be good to each other.
**Thank you to Indie.io, Paidotribo, and Press Engine for supplying the review code**
Ophelia Payne 
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