| CGMagazine |
Alex Avard |
7.5 / 10 |
06-06-2017 |
Ironically, the only thing holding this game back is a lack of evolution. |
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| Chalgyr’s Game Room |
Nick Herber |
7 / 10 |
05-23-2017 |
Birthdays the Beginning is a really challenging game to describe in just a few sentences. It blends some genres and will undoubtedly be a divisive title as it is a slow burn that often provides more of a passive experience than an active one. The thing is |
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| Cubed3 |
Thom Compton |
7 / 10 |
05-05-2017 |
Birthdays the Beginning is highly recommendable as both edutainment and a god game. There are little issues that crop up that are annoying, but all in all, it’s a great experience. There’s a breadth of life to be created here, as long as you’re going for what the game wants. |
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| Destructoid |
Jordan Devore |
8 / 10 |
05-05-2017 |
Even though certain design elements aren’t as streamlined, fleshed-out, or user-friendly as they could have been, part of me is just thankful Birthdays even got greenlit. Niche as it might be, I’ve wanted something like this for years, and despite my admittedly high expectations, I still came away impressed. I hope the game is able to find an audience, because it so clearly deserves one. |
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| Digitally Downloaded |
Matt Sainsbury |
5 / 5 stars |
05-05-2017 |
Properly articulating what Birthdays means to me is difficult. It is the embodiment of the pure joy of gaming, where I can sit down and simply immerse myself within this space without feeling pressure or tension. There’s nothing to “win,” but everything to enjoy while, at the same time, the game is pointing out, in its very innocent and heartfelt way, a very simple but so important environmental message. |
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| DualShockers |
Azario Lopez |
7.5 / 10 |
05-05-2017 |
Birthdays the Beginning begs to be enjoyed by a particular gamer, which could hold it back from non-simulation fans to give it a try. I would have enjoyed more interaction between me and my organisms, but the game draws the line of interaction with the world to merely altering the land. With that said, the systems introduced in the game work well for a game that is supposed to the “beginning” of a much larger idea. I’m excited to see where the series goes moving forward as well as the incredible environments that are sure to come from the community. |
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| Eurogamer |
Simon Parkin |
Not Recommended |
05-05-2017 |
The designer behind Harvest Moon returns with a game that frustrates as much as it fascinates. |
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| Game Informer |
Jeff Cork |
5 / 10 |
05-05-2017 |
Birthdays the Beginning is about as exciting as watching paint dry – even if you get to pick the colors |
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| GameSpew |
David Brooks |
7 / 10 |
05-05-2017 |
I’m tempted to describe the entirety of Birthdays the Beginning as ‘bittersweet’… it’s equal parts massively addictive yet horrendously frustrating, but it somehow manages to always provide an enjoyable challenge. |
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| GameSpot |
Heidi Kemps |
5 / 10 |
05-19-2017 |
The ambitious-but-flawed Birthdays the Beginning is packed with charm, but suffers from a clunky interface and confusing systems. |
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| GBAtemp |
Tom Bond |
7 / 10 |
05-05-2017 |
Overall, Birthday the Beginnings is ok. The number of species you can create and manage promises a lot of gameplay, if you can get passed the poor pacing and intermittent gameplay. The cute animals (like that fish <3) makes the game pretty worthwhile, too. |
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| God is a Geek |
Gary Bailey |
5 / 10 |
05-05-2017 |
If it was structured more like Universe Sandbox, or if the world behaved more consistently, Birthdays: The Beginning would have been a far more fun and educational experience, instead of a dull and frustrating one. |
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| Hardcore Gamer |
James Cunningham |
4 / 5 stars |
05-06-2017 |
Birthdays: The Beginning is a cute and clever world-builder where simple actions can have deep, complicated results. |
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| Hey Poor Player |
Kenny McKee |
3.5 / 5 stars |
05-11-2017 |
While Birthdays the Beginning isn’t the most hardcore god game out there, it’s still got plenty of merits. It’s a good game to chill out to, it makes you think, and its visual charms are undeniable. |
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| IGN Italy |
Luca Rosa |
6.5 / 10 |
05-17-2017 |
Birthdays: The Beginning is a nice simulation game with a really cute art direction, which fans of the genre and people who seek a relaxing gaming experience will probably enjoy. Unfortunately it has its flaws, like poorly detailed graphics, slight frame rate drops and clunky controls, that we hope will disappear in the next titles of the series. |
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| IGN Spain |
Jose A. Rodríguez |
6 / 10 |
05-08-2017 |
Birthday the Beginnings may be fun but it also has a very plane gameplay. A game that may be fun for the usual management players, but with a very modest visual look. |
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| Metro GameCentral |
GameCentral |
6 / 10 |
05-10-2017 |
Despite the many obvious flaws there’s a mesmerising quality to the game’s artificial worlds, as the gameplay itself creates a surprisingly palatable form of edutainment. |
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| PlayStation LifeStyle |
Blake Grundman |
7.5 / 10 |
05-05-2017 |
The main issue is that the campaign is so focused on introducing new mechanics that it seems to lose sight of this unspoken thesis. In turn, this leads the player on a mission to track down answers that should instead be provided to them at a glance. Due to this, it’s hard to shake the feeling of being thrown into the deep end of an algae coated swamp, without a life raft. |
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| Polygon |
Whitney Reynolds |
6 / 10 |
05-10-2017 |
Birthdays the Beginning is cute and nostalgic but there’s not much depth |
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| PS4Blog.net |
EdEN |
8 / 10 |
01-18-2018 |
If you’re a fan of sandbox games, then you should definitely check out Birthdays the Beginning. It’s a quirky, colorful and fun sandbox release with a ton of lifeforms to create and capture, giving you dozens of hours of gameplay for your purchase. There have been a couple of patches to the game to rebalance things, and the Platinum will take you “forever” since you’ll need to basically keep your PS4 running for months, but don’t let that get in your way since the overall experience is great. |
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| Push Square |
Stephen Tailby |
5 / 10 |
05-05-2017 |
Birthdays the Beginning is an oddity: it’s a relaxed, cutesy god game, but it also requires you to follow strict rules and pay attention to a vast array of stats, which can kill the fun factor to a degree. The free play mode makes for a more chilled out time, however, while the challenges offer more objective-based gameplay for those that want it. The creature capturing is initially compelling, but once you’ve seen everything, the game doesn’t really have anything to draw you back in. |
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| Rice Digital |
Kitsumeda |
2.5 / 5 stars |
05-07-2017 |
For every novel aspect the game brings to the table it fumbles in delivering a meaningful and engaging experience. It is interesting to experiment around with the massive number of species and create a beautiful world but it all becomes repetitive rather quickly. Considering that the developers already planned out a sequel we can only hope they will be able iron out its issues and add everything they initially wanted. |
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| Rock, Paper, Shotgun |
Philippa Warr |
Not Recommended |
05-04-2017 |
It comes so close to being something I love and then it has a hollow core. |
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| Sirus Gaming |
Rachelle Marie Tan |
6.5 / 10 |
05-13-2017 |
Birthdays the Beginning looks promising but most of the expectations did not meet when you start playing. Being their God was not easy and for me that was the only thing keeping me alive in the game, I could have died from boredom later. |
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| The Games Machine |
Daniele Dolce |
7 / 10 |
05-21-2017 |
Birthdays the Beginning could be the love child of Minecraft and Spore, evolution merged with sandbox in its purest form. It’s an interesting idea, at least in theory, but you’re gonna need a lot of patience and dedication to fully appreciate it. |
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| Twinfinite |
Chaz Miller |
4.5 / 5 stars |
05-05-2017 |
Despite the sometimes clumsy controls, though, Birthdays is still an incredibly easy-to-play game that serves as a great go-to for a quick bit of gaming. My entire family was intensely interested, and it became something that we got to explore together. |
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