First Impressions: Doloc Town

What if the farm you inherited had acid rain and drones?

Steam Page

Basic info:

Genre: Farming Sim, Casual, Adventure

Release date: Early Access May 2025, 1.0 6th August 2026

Price: £15.29

Platforms: Steam

Developer: RedSaw Games

What else have they made?

This is their first game

My playthrough:

Playtime: 3 hours (first week in game)

What it reminded me of: My Time at..., Stardew Valley, Potion Maker

Rating: 21/25

In a pixelated urban landscape, a small farmer tends to a multi-tiered vertical garden flourishing with greenery and makeshift structures with animals around.

What is it about?

You grew up in a lovely small town, then you moved away, but your heart always stayed there and then one day, you receive a letter.... Oh sorry, that is a different game.

And then one day you fall off a cliff after being attacked by a drone and tadaaa you conveniently fall right back into your childhood town! And it has a farm no one is using. Oh, I wish obtaining land was this easy.

There is mystery, resource gathering, farming, fishing, getting to know the other town people, fighting and crafting. I think it is pretty much the full package of a farming sim. But this time, you are in Doloc, a little town that no one goes to anymore, in a world where acid rain will kill your crops, and you have to be on the lookout for drone wasps.

The total game length is said to be around 30 hours. My first impressions are based on the first week in-game; while I had access to an end-game save to see the story conclusion, I decided to avoid spoilers. Therefore, this review is also spoiler-free.

You can watch the full first week on my YouTube!

A pixel art scene: a character relaxes on a bench on a grassy platform beside a vending machine, encircled by lush, vibrant plants and enigmatic robotic creatures.

First First Impressions

🌱🌱🌱 out of 5

The prologue did not take too long and before you knew it, you were farming in a post-apocalyptic world. While everything felt familiar enough that I could find my way around menus quickly, I feel like I was struggling a little bit in the first two days to actually know what to do next.

Characters would tell me about specific places in town (such as a crafting table) but these things did not show on my map, so I feel like I missed some stuff early on and had to stumble upon it later by accident.

However, Doloc quickly introduced some unique elements as well, such as platforms and building upwards. Unlike a lot of the games in this genre, Doloc is a side scroller, so your farm can't really expand in the usual manner; instead, you build up. It also did not take too long before I unlocked my own fight drone. That is definitely a first in a cozy farm sim.

I appreciate that there was no "Meet everyone" type quest. Still, the first two days in-game were a bit directionless for me, luckily not for long.

But did it pick up?

🌱🌱🌱🌱🌱out of 5

Do you know the feeling when you are playing a game and you are waiting for the actual game to start and sometimes that... doesn't happen? Luckily, Doloc isn't one of those games.

Once I harvested my first crops, things started to make more sense. I had a bit more quests that weren't just "wait for this to happen" and more features unlocked, which then gave me more things to do. This point came about at the one-hour mark; I will leave it up to you if that is too early or too late. It felt just right for me.

A pixel art scene of a figure fishing from a wooden dock, with a small red boat floating on a calm lake, set against a backdrop of towering city ruins

Were the vibes right?

🌱🌱🌱🌱 out of 5

I found the music and the audio effects satisfying, and they complemented the game well. The visual style is almost retro and fits the game well. However, I wish the characters stood out against the background a bit more, as things tended to blend together a bit too much for my liking.

I enjoy "menu-ing" and organising my bags, the skill trees (3 total) were also easy to navigate. I have three main things to add to the vibe.

1) The combat was ... good? and also wasn't there. You have a drone that auto-fires at enemies; you have to dodge them at times, but otherwise you can keep mining your copper while bullets are flying around your head.

2) I think some QoL updates are still needed such as: being able to use resources for crafting from bags that are close BUT a bit further away than the limit is currently set at, also being able to pin a certain blueprint so that you could see on screen how many more resources you need

3) NPCs are there. They are... distinct enough, but I also don't think Doloc was going for the whole dating sim side of farm sims, which is okay. At the end of my first week, my feelings towards most of them were very lukewarm.

Would I keep playing?

🌱🌱🌱🌱 out of 5

Yes, I will.

It took me the full week to progress in the main story to the point when I actually understand what is expected of me now, but so far the game is scratching the itch of cozy farm sim well.

But will it stay shallow and burn out quickly like Discounty, or will it manage to find the sweet spot of not dragging on forever (cough, cough, Little Witch in the Woods) while delivering a full satisfying experience?

A pixel art scene depicts a futuristic city hub at night. The "Red Saloon" sits elevated, with stairs leading up to it. Characters stand below, among glowing neon lights and industrial machinery.

Value for Money: 🌱🌱🌱🌱🌱 out of 5

It is cheaper than Discounty, the same price as Potion Permit and significantly cheaper than My time at... games (although probably also shorter than them). I think if it delivers on the 30 hours promise without it feeling like a drag, this could be a great value for money.

I am glad it is not priced above £25 as I am not sure if it has the potential for endless endgame.

What I liked:

• Visual style

• The cute main character

• Cozy and familiar

• Map was just the right size

• Great job at coming out of EA after only a year and a bit

  
  

What wasn't quite so good:

• I am worried about it lacking depth long-term

• Some of the things were clichés (I am the one saviour of the town, convenient empty farm, silent strong type smith and quirky guildy master...)

• Placing things could be a bit smoother and other QoL things

I was excited for Doloc's full launch and it did not disappoint me. If the overwhelmingly positive reviews during EA are anything to go by, then the rest of the game should be as fun as the first week.

What are your thoughts? Ready to put your acid-proof rain cloak on?