Infinity Nikki feels like a game that wants to be everything to everyone, and after roughly 30 minutes hands-on with it, I'm finally convinced that it might have what it takes to pull it off.
Developed by Papergames, Infinity Nikki is promising a lot to the cozy gamers of the world. The open-world dress-up adventure has you step into the shoes of pink-haired protagonist Nikki and embark on a journey through the stunning world of Miraland, where you can collect outfits, engage in relaxing life-sim style activities like fishing and bug catching, find collectables, fight enemies, and more. Oh, and did I mention the game's sub-director is The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild designer Kentaro Tominaga?
Needless to say, there's a lot going on here, and going into my hands-on session at Gamescom 2024, I wasn't quite sure what to expect, but one thing is immediately obvious – this game is gorgeous. From the lush, idyllic environments to the painstakingly detailed clothing (which all seems to move and flow beautifully), the vibrant visuals are so inviting, and make wandering around and taking in the sights a joy.
Going through Nikki's wardrobe is also a delight, as not only are the options available genuinely fashionable to the point that I want to wear many of these things in real life, but it's easy to see how various different tops, dresses, accessories, and hairstyles can all be combined to create unique looks. There's no doubt that this'll be great fun for people eager to dive into the game's photo mode (it's me, I'm people). While the concept of a dress-up game might not appeal to everyone, you can tell that the devs haven't held back at all when it comes to making you care as much as possible about your appearance – I could have spent forever finding tasteful new combinations of clothing for Nikki to wear.
Piecing together outfits also has a purpose, as I quickly discovered while exploring one of Infinity Nikki's towns that many NPCs will challenge you to put together an ensemble matching a specific style – Elegant, Fresh, Sweet, Sexy, or Handsome. From fluffy cardigans to dungarees and elaborate dresses, every piece has a rating assigned to these styles – you might have a dress that's got an S rank in 'Elegant' but only C in 'Sweet', for example – so choosing the best-rated components for these moments is key. From what I played, this process seems very easy, although I did have a large selection of clothes available to pick from, so perhaps unlocking the ones you need in the first place will be part of the fun.
Walk, walk, fashion baby
Aside from the get-ups you put together yourself, when exploring the world, Nikki can freely swap between certain outfits that give her special powers, or allow her to carry out specific activities. For example, if you want to try your hand at fishing, you'll need to switch over to the fishing outfit (which boasts a cute yellow hat), while gliding around in the air automatically switches you to a blue, flowy dress. Then there's the 'electric repair' outfit to, uh, become an electrician. I'm not quite sure how that one is introduced, but I quickly found it to be useful when exploring a dungeon full of frogs who were living in the dark due to their power being off. You can't not help the frogs, folks.
Speaking of dungeons, yes, you can fight things in this game, including bosses. During the demo, I found that Nikki could use some sort of wind-based projectile attack (which also has its own specific outfit, and is switched to automatically when you launch the move). While I didn't have enough time to dig too deep into this, on first impressions, the combat system seemed rather simplistic thanks to a lack of moves to use, although perhaps that won't be the case the further you progress into the game.
From what I've played so far, Infinity Nikki really does seem promising adventure, particularly for those who just want a pleasant, chilled time whiling away the hours with some lighthearted activities. I still have some questions about how fleshed out certain elements – namely combat – will be, but even so, I'm very excited for when I'm eventually able to dive back in and start copying everything from Nikki's expansive wardrobe.
12DOVE was in Cologne playing the most anticipated new games of 2024, and speaking to the developers bringing them to life. For more of our hands-on previews and exclusive interviews, visit the Gamescom 2024 coverage hub.
