Sky End Market is the sequel to World End Diner, probably my favourite indie game ever (665 hours played, according to Steam). Honestly, I was heartbroken when World End Diner stopped getting updates because I felt there was so much story left to be uncovered. I had no idea Sky End Market was in development, ready to continue the mystery.

For those that don't know, both Sky End Market and World End Diner are post-apocalyptic cozy games. In both, you play a mute robot who sets up a business for the survivors. In World End Diner, your customers are only animals and robots, but in Sky End Market, you happen to live on the island where the only human survivors reside. The story unravels outside of the main gameplay mechanics, when exploring the island. Time stops in the morning before you open your supermarket, so there is more incentive to explore compared to the predecessor which had gathering mechanics.

Gameplay is repetitive which makes this a great game to multitask with. I like to play games while listening to music or watching YouTube, so this is pretty much ideal for me. There is an overwhelming amount of content, however. The research tree is much fuller than in World End Diner, and you can also expand your shop much further. This is far more than a simple supermarket game - there is a story being told, if you read between the lines, and I applaud the dev for keeping it subtle.

Speaking of the dev - he produces music, has written novels and also makes art. It seems in the last few years he has shifted towards game development, but it seems like he's juggling multiple projects at once. I was pretty disappointed that World End Diner didn't get a big farewell update, because he had already moved on. I really hope Sky End Diner gets the time it needs to thrive and conclude properly.

cute. fun. relaxing. i love it.