Grey Haven Gameplay Impressions | B2P Anime Dungeon Crawler and Life Sim

Welcome to our new video for a game called Grey Haven, which isn’t the usual type that we cover here, but we were asked about it and couldn’t say no to such an exquisite genre mix. It’s not easy to put it into words, but I’ll try anyway – imagine Animal Crossing with hack and slash sections, think of it as a mix of life sim, or farming sim, and a dungeon crawler, sprinkled with a sizable dose of anime waifus to collect. It’s a premium game too, but it got me hooked for quite a few hours, so if you want to check the game page, you can find the link in the video description.

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And now let’s get into Grey Haven, a game about collecting souls and rescuing girls, providing them with shelter so that we can then pick our favorite and eliminate the nightmares ahead. Think of these as bosses you must slay so that the girls can recover their memories and get ready to be selected for your next run, each one with a different perk for you to consider, such as additional health or more attack speed.

Obviously, it’s hard to factor this without looking at the artwork, which isn’t holding back on fanservice and exaggerated assets. The actual in-game characters are designed in a traditional chibi style, still cute but not as detailed as the artwork, and you can zoom in and out to check the details whenever you want to.

This is likely to be one of the main draws of the game, understandably so, but it doesn’t mean that the gameplay loop isn’t capable of holding its own. The balance between resource gathering, house decoration, farming, and action stages is nice, you’re not stuck to one for too long until it gets tiring, and the story moves along at an enjoyable pace as you enter new realms and unlock new characters.

The haven is the place where you can have a relaxed time gathering items such as wood and stone, which are just a few of the bunch that can be used to craft furniture for your home. Don’t you go expecting a nice axe or something of the sort, your sword or other type of weapon is just perfect to cut down trees and mine rocks.

You start with a small tent, which feels somewhat unfair as each rescued girl gets their own cozy home, but soon you’ll get your own beautiful house with plenty of space to place all the items you want to and rearrange them at will. There is also a host of items to place outside of the house, so you’re not just limited to the interior design, have a go at it out of the property as well.

This is one small part of the game, but I’d have to say that the dungeon crawling is the main course for the duration. The gameplay is far from complicated, it’s pretty much an arcade take on hack and slash, but it still requires some skill and attention, as the runs aren’t extremely short – die and you either spend some souls to revive, or you have to start all over again.

You’ll soon collect various types of weapons and trinkets that give you different character stats, things such as additional attack damage, attack speed or extra stamina, and your weapons also handle very differently, from the heavy but slow attacks of the axe to the fast and extremely useful spin attack of a particular blade.

Combat is speedy and unfolds in enclosed areas, with a magical barrier preventing you from moving to the next spot until you have eliminated all enemies. There are various types, from the basic mobs to the explosive ones, creatures that summon rocks from above, fireball launchers, and the like, requiring you to always keep on the move. Apart from the fighting, there are some platforming moments where you must be careful with your timing. Finally, a big boss should be waiting at the end, and while these aren’t usually too strong, they have shown enough diversity to provide a fun fight.

I liked the somewhat weightless feel for character control, it allowed for some swift moves and dodges, without feeling like we are limited in our choices. Switching directions in mid-air is something else that I enjoyed, as it comes in handy for the platforming sections.

But it’s the sum of its parts that make Grey Haven a little fun game with a relaxed feel but also a challenging side regarding the dungeon crawling and friend collecting. It can be fun, it can be quite difficult at times, and the gameplay loop keeps you engaged and willing to see more. If you like what you’ve seen in this video, check the link in the description for more information, and have fun!

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