Cutout Village – Demo Review

Surprising no one, I’m here with another cozy game. I’m making it my mission to try to get these reviews out a little faster, but sometimes I get so caught up playing a game (and in this case, a demo) that I don’t want to stop playing long enough to write about it. This is especially the case with Cutout Village from DevilishGames. Not only had this demo captured my heart from the moment I first played, but speaking with the developer while encountering supposed errors (my own silliness of not seeing what was in front of me) has given me a connection to this game I didn’t expect.

Right off the bat, go Wishlist this, and play the demo for yourself. It’s not particularly long but you’ll get a good feel for the game that will be coming out. There have already been multiple updates since I first played, and each time I went in and saw the changes happening. They have been really responsive to feedback and made some changes based on concerns raised by players. The demo will be available until the end of Steam Next Fest, which will be running from June 15^th to 22^nd.

The demo includes a full level from the story mode and lets you get a feel of the game’s core mechanics. It’s a game based on creating papercraft buildings where you will cut, fold and glue pieces together to make each building or decorative component (benches, streetlamps, and trees) in the town.

Each building you complete increases the population in the town, either residents or visitors, and allows you to unlock additional services or items. Some of your buildings give you a choice of designs so you can create your own desired look, and the full game release will have 50 buildings/items to cut out. Alongside the story mode, there promises to be a sandbox mode as well.

From the little story I had so far, this is a story about reviving a town, starting with one couple choosing to build their home there. You have inherited an old family home, full of childhood memories and want to capture that feeling again. The game feels calm and reflective. The art design is well thought out, the characters and surroundings look like watercolour story books brought to life. The designs of the pieces you cut out leap off the page and could be taken from real craft books.

I played using an XBOX controller and keyboard & mouse to see the differences. Although always a personal choice, I found the controller easier to use. You will use only a few buttons to cut, fold and glue. I am NOT good at these crafts that take fine motor control and patience in reality, so it didn’t surprise me when I earned 1-star ratings numerous times. In fact, I laughed loudly at how the game represented my poor workmanship. Good thing you can make multiple attempts to improve your work.

One of the things I loved about this demo was that each building you can create in-game also had a PDF file you can download, allowing you to assemble your own tiny town in front of you. You can also buy a physical copy of the book.