The world’s your canvas in this gorgeously charming pretend play title!

You may already be like “why should I play this game? It’s for children!” But, why not? I oftentimes find that games like this are capable of entertaining me more than your regular M- or T-rated game. There’s just something about these games that truly make my afternoon, and I find no shame in saying this.

This game also has its fair share of challenges: Doing the laundry, ironing mantles, making lemonade or carrot cakes, or simply finding objects around the house (and, trust me, there are lots of objects to interact with here!)

You’d also have various events to attend and hobbies that you can indulge in, such as bird watching or playing the piano (these are just a few examples, of course.) In addition, you can interact with a plethora of lovable characters, or create others as you see fit!

I should also praise the artistic direction. It’s not a graphical powerhouse, but every single aspect of Lila’s World clicked with me. The Peanuts-styled drawings, coupled with Lila’s amiable personality and cute sound design make for an incredibly heartwarming experience.

The music alone deserves a million praises. It feels handcrafted for this game specifically and complements it so well that I believe the game would have been a thousand times worse without it. It’s jolly but not sugary or exceedingly over the top. It’s lighthearted and even melancholic without being sappy. It’s just… what’s the word? Perfect! 

Now, the game itself is, unfortunately, not perfect. Lag issues are very common. Glitches also occasionally happen when trying to open certain cabinets and other doors. They can sometimes get a bit annoying and many people have even complained that they had to reinstall the game to fix them.

I also have to address the similarities with Toca Boca because - let’s be honest - both games look a lot alike! I personally don’t mind as long as the game has something to offer, just as I didn’t mind the obvious rip-offs in many of Gameloft’s freemium offerings (not accusing Gameloft of plagiarism or anything, just to clarify!)

In the case of Lila’s World, the connection with Toca is, sadly, a bit more blatant, even going so far as to imitate the character models. Again, no big deal on my end, but worth mentioning. 

With that said, I perceive that, as a whole, Lila’s World still manages to retain some personality. Toca’s Life World feels very different in terms of overall atmosphere and ethos but, in many respects, it’s the more polished game out of the two, at least gameplay-wise. Now, If you want my personal opinion, I prefer the aura that this game irradiates, but that’s just my subjective appreciation.

However, I do take issue with its monetization. I’m sorry, but I don’t think this game warrants a yearly 50-bucks subscription, no matter how pretty it all looks! To put things into perspective, you’ll be obliged to pay the equivalent of a AAA console game yearly! Let that sink in for a second!

“Luckily”, you also have the option to make individual one-time purchases for each building, with varying rates. The prices are a bit more reasonable in comparison to what we’re accustomed to seeing in Toca’s Life World, but I insist that they can still be a bit lower. Heck, why not let me pay for the whole game once, like in the good ol’ days? *sigh*

Of course, you always have the option of not paying, but, trust me, you’ll be terribly limited. To illustrate, you can watch an ad which will grant you access to some of the buildings, but only for 10 minutes, which I guess it’s ok? I’ll let you decide that.

So far, this is the only major complaint I have with the game which, in truth, is the same I have with most of the other games in the “pretend play” genre. I noticed this trend on the part of developers charging high amounts of money for children’s games, which I’m not sure it’s entirely warranted. Perhaps there’s some grand macroeconomic factor that I’m totally oblivious to but, regardless, it’s still a sad reality that we’re forced to endure.

Lila’s World is an amazing game with incredible potential and an enjoyable premise that both adults and little kids can enjoy. I relished the time I had with it, even with all the faults mentioned previously. However, I’d only advise that you’d have your pockets ready if you feel tempted to experience it without restraints. 

Come over to the comments section and give your impressions about this review or the game itself!