Cozy Grove: Camp Spirit from The Quantum Astrophysicists Guild and Spry Fox brings us a chill life-sim sequel on PlayStation 5. Learn more in our Cozy Grove: Camp Spirit review!
Cozy Grove: Camp Spirit from The Quantum Astrophysicists Guild and Spry Fox brings us a chill life-sim sequel on PlayStation 5. You’ll once again be jumping into the shoes of a Spirit Scout, and will be going on a magical bus ride to the titular Camp Spirit… which has a rough start! You fall asleep after riding the bus for a bit and wake up to find the bus has crashed and is seemingly beyond repair. You must get to know a variety of ghostly bears who will need your help in order to remember their past and find a path toward peace. You will need to aid them while you craft many items and decorate the area to make it feel more welcoming.
I had a chance to work on a Cozy Grove review on PlayStation 4 back when the game released in 2021, and I definitely enjoyed my time with the colorful and otherworldly cast of bears that I worked on helping find what they needed in the afterlife in order to ascend, so I was definitely up for checking out what the sequel had to offer on PlayStation 5
Before assembling for the group’s photo, you’ll need to customize your character’s look by choosing from the available options for what the game calls “Aspect Alchemy.” You will first need to pick your skin color so that you can then pick from the different eye options, which have names such as Clouded Silver, Dusky Fawn, Haunting Brown, Shadow Black, Will-O-Wisp Purple, Wraith Green, and Spectral Red. You can then choose your hairstyle, and you’ll be ready to go… once you repeat the Spirit Scouts code:
We solemnly pledge to look unflinchingly beyond.
To thread into the dark places and fill them with warmth and light.
And to never forget these words:
All who are lost deserve kindness.
After waking up, you’ll be taking control of your character by using the left analog stick or the D-Pad. Zoom in and out by pressing in on the right analog stick. Interact with objects, points of interest, and other characters by walking near them and pressing the X button. This is how you’ll meet Flamey, the fiery entity that will once again serve as your loyal companion for this new adventure. It’s thanks to Flamey’s light that new bear spirits will manifest before you.
The first one will be Orsina, who, upon meeting you, believes you to be a hairless bear. Once she realizes you’re not one of her delusions, she is more than happy to make your acquaintance. She’s also a scout and seems to have been separated from her troop. She’s stuck at the old camp until she either finds a way to make it through the woods or her troop returns.
To progress further in the game, you’ll need to locate enough spirit logs for Flamey so that you can feed them to him in order to boost the range of his powerful fire. Quests will be displayed on the right side of the screen, and you’ll be able to review them by pressing the Triangle button so that you can remember what needs to be done.
Remember how I said the bus was seemingly beyond repair? Even though the game refers ot it as a “totally wrecked bus,” the truth is, it lets you know that you should search for 3 bus parts and one bus gear and bring them back to the bus. You know, so that you can hopefully repair it. The items that you collect are sent to your backpack so that you can then bring them up and use them as needed. In order for you not to run out of space in your backpack, you should craft something where you can store some extra items.
As was the case for Cozy Grove, Cozy Grove: Camp Spirit features a full trophy list with a Platinum trophy for you to add to your collection. And since it’s a Cross-Buy title, you’ll be able to get the PS4 and PS5 versions of the game, and each one will have a full trophy list for you to work on. Each list is a long one, and it will be split into 62 Bronze trophies, a single Silver trophy, and one Gold trophy. What will you need to do for each of these shiny Platinums?
You’re a member of the Spirits Scouts, and that means you’ll have to collect as many badges as possible with your actions. Badges are tied to the trophies that you can collect. Badges are split into the following categories: Achievement, Entrepreneurship, Animal Care, Cooking, Crafting, Endurance, Companions, Decoration, Gathering, and Exploration.
Because of this, some of the objectives that you’ll be completing – along with finishing the tutorial, include meeting 5 bears, reaching tent level 10, playing on multiple days to reach 90 total, selling 1,000 items, crafting 300 items, recycling 200 items, breaking a tool, repairing your tools, feeding a bunch of animals, helping several bears move on, cooking many dishes, placing a ton of decorations, collecting unique fish, adding fruit trees here and there, finding a bunch of clothing items, getting yourself some unique flowers, completing 100 quests, harvesting 100 leaf piles, hitting many targets with skipping stones, repairing the bus, and cleaning 30 objects with the powerwasher, to name some examples. Yes, you’ll be able to powerwash objects in this new adventure!
Cozy Grove: Camp Spirit brings us a chill life-sim sequel on PlayStation 5. You’ll once again be jumping into the shoes of a Spirit Scout, and will be going on a magical bus ride to the titular Camp Spirit… which has a rough start! You fall asleep after riding the bus for a bit and wake up to find the bus has crashed and is seemingly beyond repair. You must get to know a variety of ghostly bears who will need your help in order to remember their past and find a path toward peace. You will need to aid them while you craft many items and decorate the area to make it feel more welcoming.
You’ll be exploring a new area, making it a great starting point if you’re new to the series. There are several interconnected islands for you to make your way to, which offer a good amount of content to keep you busy day after day. As you complete the objectives for the different badges, be sure to claim your rewards! Just press the Touchpad on the DualSense controller and interact with the completed badge to receive your reward. And if you’re ever in need of a bit of extra help, you can use the hint dispenser to locate missing things.
As was the case for its predecessor, it’s a great game to play either in short daily bursts or by jumping in and playing for as long as you want to, slowly but surely making some progress as you collect resources, complete quests, and help all of the bears finally ascend. This one expands and improves on its predecessor, offering some quality-of-life improvements and a tighter progression system, with a more generous backpack and a quicker way of increasing its storage size and that of your tent. There are new bears to meet and help, as well as some returning characters that will certainly bring a smile to those of you who have played the previous game. Cozy Grove: Camp Spirit launches today as a Cross-Buy title, so you’ll be able to download the PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5 versions of the game to your PS5 console at no extra cost.
Disclaimer
This Cozy Grove: Camp Spirit review is based on a PlayStation 5 copy provided by The Quantum Astrophysicists Guild.
