Some video games merely ‘wow’ you from the instant you’re authorised to go into their worlds, and in that regard, Mission Bloomwalker is a blessing certainly. Published for the primary time within the Xbox @ gamescom 2025 Broadcast, Mission Bloomwalker is a gorgeous survival crafting affair set in a phenomenal, anime-infused land that has been corrupted – its plant lifestyles shrivelled, and its flooring grew to become an ashy white. As a ‘Bloom Walker’, you be able to remedy the arena of this blight, the usage of your travelling caravan, a deceptively spacious area escorted through massive robot legs, housing an similarly massive speaking cat. It’s quirky, inviting, and incessantly magical.
Throughout a hands-on demo at gamescom, we have been invited to discover Bloomwalker’s international, and the way you’ll search to purify it. This actually is the crux of the sport. You’re now not crafting to dominate the wildlife – you’re there to heal it, and it feels actually other because of this.
The demo starts along with your personality in moderation escorting their area via some tainted spaces, the usage of its energy to slowly repair the arena round it. It’s straight away inviting; the bottom round it’s restored as it really works – the terrain explodes into colourful inexperienced, foliage and large mushrooms change into from nasty, sludgy mounds to vivid, rainbow hues – the whole thing right here feels deliberately positioned and ripe for exploration, which is precisely what you’ll wish to do.
Whilst nearly all of the arena we noticed within the demo used to be slightly protected (sans one assault from a large pelican), the contaminated spaces require some concept to discover, including layers of mystery to the combo. You’ll wish to be ready to come upon enemies just like the aforementioned pelican, and challenge into bad, blighted portions (taking injury as you do) till you’ll transparent it. Thankfully, there are sources just like the Breathblossom that assist you to briefly breathe in the ones spots, however you’ll wish to paintings speedy. For all of its attractiveness, Mission Bloomwalker’s international may also be treacherous, and it sort of feels you’ll wish to brace your self for it so as to continue to exist and stay your home transferring.
The home’s purification energy (or ‘purrification’, consistent with our cat, Kuroru), received’t final eternally; after a brief amble to the designated spot, we’re invited to settle the home down and get started crafting extra purification crystals. That is the useful resource that permits you to stay purifying, and it may be created from a lot of pieces scattered across the map – berries, apples, honey, and a couple of different particular fabrics like luminite.
That is the place Kettlekid is available in, a creature I will be able to handiest describe because the sentient, very hungry contents of a cauldron. Throwing your amassed sources into Kettlekid will create purification crystals, used to fill purification gauge so the home can stay on transferring. Those crystals are ferried over to your home through absolutely the spotlight of the demo – Oddlings. Those tiny, squeaky balls of natural pleasure are right here that can assist you, however they’ll want a bit of of care to serve as successfully.
Thankfully, you may have a wood crafting desk (additionally provided with legs, naturally) at your disposal, which lets you craft little leafy beds and tents on your Oddlings to leisure in. In a pinch, you’ll additionally means Oddlings which might be exhausted and provides them a hug, which is not going to handiest repair 50% in their power, but in addition remedy a tiny a part of your individual soul, too. It’s actually cute.
Rogue Oddlings may also be came upon within the wild, both stressing out within the open or hid through a small puzzle. While you discovered them, they may be able to be followed and recruited into your individual Oddling military. Whilst they’re a pleasure to have round anyway, development a bigger workforce additionally expedites some computerized crafting actions (like getting crystals from Kettlekid over to the home). There’s a touch of manufacturing unit sim beneath all of the loveliness.
Your personal ambling home is actually spectacular; the old fashioned little cottage, whilst small at the out of doors, properties a pocket size of types – a fantastic, celestial-themed bed room filled with glowing trinkets and lovely decorations. It’s actually superb the primary time you know that it’s larger at the within than the out of doors, with out a loading display or transition. The eye to design is actually felt right here – I spent a excellent short while peering into spherical terrariums and zooming into the partitions to soak up each and every magical element. It’s additionally the place you’ll come to speak to Kuroru about what’s happening, orienting you to your subsequent function.
Even with simply a short while in Mission Bloomwalker, I’m completely entranced through its whimsical panorama and characters, and its poignant premise.
