The journey and the journey’s end: the two things that many of us focus on whenever we look at an adventure game, and rightly so. It is always fun to think about the best and fastest way to slay a dragon or imagine the treasure that will await us at the end of a lair. Yet, we never really think about those who prepare our adventurers, but that’s about to change. Dungeons & Dragons: Long Rest Tavern focuses on the pre-adventuring part by providing an excellent management sim where your main job is running the realm’s best tavern and preparing the brave adventurers who will go on errands for you.
Before The Journey
I’ve always been a huge fan of management titles, spending hundreds of hours in the Two Point series and other similar games. However, I’ve always thought that the genre needed a more medieval-fantasy approach, which is why I got extremely excited when I saw Dungeons & Dragons: Long Rest Tavern.
I got to play a small portion of this upcoming management sim, which was more than enough to create a new addiction, oddly enough, also set in the Dungeons & Dragons universe.
The premise is basic: you’re the owner of a tavern whose job is to provide meals, drinks, and lodging to the brave adventurers that roam the land. At first, you’ll start with just a small room, a few dilapidated structures, and some NPCs that will guide you through your new venture.
What I liked most about Long Rest Tavern is how cohesive the systems felt, which created a pretty engaging loop. You start the day by acquiring ingredients, either by purchasing them or posting quests for adventurers to take. You then prepare the products you offer in the evenings, ranging from drinks to food. Then, you get to research more products by combining ingredients, adding a trial-and-error element as you craft new menu offerings. And, when all of that’s done, it is time to open your tavern’s doors.
Once your customers start flooding the tavern, all you need to do is make sure the tables are clean and that your barrels and kitchen are stocked. After unlocking a few more things, you can also build rooms for adventurers, and depending on what you offer, you might get a few high-ranking adventuring groups, which will be the ones who’ll have an easier time handling some of the most challenging quests you offer to them.
Of course, there’s also the decoration part, which, let me tell you, is as smooth as it can be. This is a huge deal for me, as I’m someone who likes to redecorate as much as possible, and I have my Animal Crossing: New Horizons island as evidence, so having such intuitive systems and UI to do all that is a plus.
Still, things don’t come cheap, and you’ll have to make sure your offerings are good enough to encourage your patrons to spend, and, in turn, allow you to invest in better products, tavern expansions, and more.
Lastly, I also loved how the game throws several milestones and objectives your way, many of them with an NPC or small narrative tied to them. While I enjoy the sandbox aspects of management sims, it is great to see a more guided experience, especially for players who strive to complete their own tasks or need a tutorial-like experience before letting them start their tavern enterprise.
A Cozy and Unique Experience
Out of all the management sims coming in the near future, Dungeons & Dragons: Long Rest Tavern is the one I’m most excited for. Besides bringing a gorgeous art style set in one of the most beloved universes for all roleplaying fans, it also has some solid ideas and systems that already make it a superb management sim. On top of that, it brings a fresh approach to the adventuring genre of video games, and one I’m eager to fully experience next year.
