Swery's village life sim murder mystery The Good Life delayed into next year Eurogamer.net If you click on a link and make a purchase we may receive a small commission. Read our editorial policy. Swery's village life sim murder mystery The Good Life delayed into next year But there's some shiny new footage to tide us over. News by Matt Wales Reporter Updated on 30 Jul 2019 6 comments Hidetaka "Swery" Suehiro's delightful looking The Good Life - a game of cats, dogs, journalism, and murder in a small English town - has been delayed into next year. But it's not all sad news; there's some fresh footage, highlighting the overhauled art-style, to watch in the meantime. The Good Life, you might recall, is "daily life RPG" following the adventures of Naomi, a New York photojournalist who moves to the English town of Rainy Woods in order to pay off a massive debt. There are plenty of options on the work front, with developer White Owls previously revealing that players can earn money through the likes of photography, gardening, sheep shearing, jam making, milk delivery, bartending, casino dealing, even cryptocurrency. All of which brings to mind a slightly more elaborate spin on the likes of Stardew Valley and Animal Crossing. Or at least it would if Swery, best known for his cult classic thriller Deadly Premonition and last year's well-received The Missing, hadn't also elected to toss in a grisly murder mystery and townsfolk that can magically transform into cats and dogs. Scones, probably. When The Good Life successfully reached its Kickstarter goal last May (securing £464,060), the expectation was that it would release in Q4 this year. However, in a new post to Kickstarter backers, Swery has announced that the team will be delaying launch into Spring 2020, as it wishes to "[prioritise] the quality of the game above all else." He added, "We sincerely hope you can understand our feelings on this issue, and will continue to support us". To tide backers over, Swery has shared a few more details regarding the improvements made to The Good Life since its Kickstarter success last year. Its map, for instance, is now larger and features increased visual detail - as can be witnessed in the new comparison footage in Swery's update - with the expanded village also accommodating a range of new shops. Rainy Woods, now with a bit of a visual overhaul. Elsewhere, crafting, gathering, and farming has been implemented, and there are now more parameters that players will need to keep an eye on throughout their day - such as hunger, tiredness, and beauty care. More images and details, including a few of Naomi's dog- and cat-transformation powers, can be found in the Kickstarter update. As a big fan of Swery's endearingly idiosyncratic output, and life sims in general, The Good Life has been on my radar for a while now. Hopefully those few extra months in development will help the team better fulfil its vision of jam making, transmogrification, and murder. Become a Eurogamer subscriber and get your first month for £1 Get your first month for £1 (normally £3.99) when you buy a Standard Eurogamer subscription. Enjoy ad-free browsing, merch discounts, our monthly letter from the editor, and show your support with a supporter-exclusive comment flair! Support us View supporter archive More News Splatoon 3 Amiibos will be out next month Ink-coming! 3 Fans think Phil Spencer's shelf is teasing the Xbox Game Pass streaming box UPDATE: Xbox confirms old Keystone prototype. 61 Modder dives into Demon's Souls files following PS5 jailbreak, discovers fabled Ring of the Chieftain Who knows what's nexus? 4 Google announces cloud gaming Chromebooks less than a fortnight after Stadia shutdown GeForce Now preinstalled. 11 Latest Articles Digital Foundry Sennheiser's legendary HD 599 open-back headphones are just £70 at Amazon in the Prime Early Access Sale Comfortable with neutral sound and a wide sound stage. Preview Football Manager's new Console edition is the best you'll get without a PC Getting Touch-right. 1 Splatoon 3 Amiibos will be out next month Ink-coming! 3 Fans think Phil Spencer's shelf is teasing the Xbox Game Pass streaming box UPDATE: Xbox confirms old Keystone prototype. 61 Supporters Only Premium only Off Topic: Take a minute to appreciate Cookin' with Coolio's incredible scallops recipe. What a great book. Premium only Off Topic: Reading City of Glass in comic form "Where exactly am I going?" Premium only Off Topic: Il Buco is a transporting film about a really big hole Underlands. Off-Topic Netflix handled Sandman brilliantly It was Dreamy. 9 Buy things with globes on them And other lovely Eurogamer merch in our official store! Explore our store