Tom Marks
There are a lot of fine details that go into making a life simulator fun but also reflective of the real world. You have to balance customizability and creative freedom with just enough rules to make choices feel realistic and challenging, and then invisibly weave those decisions together in a satisfying way. (It turns out recreating life is hard – sorry for all the flak, Dr. Frankenstein.) Yet, despite the difficulties, it’s a task developer Krafton has taken a respectable stab at with inZOI based on what I’ve played of its Early Access launch version so far. Its beautiful, realistic aesthetic makes a striking first impression, and the ambitious simulator systems underneath initially result in some impressive harmony. However, as I continue to spend more time within this simulation, the seams of inZOI’s universe are starting to show, leaving the world more empty than you might expect.
Addressing the elephant in the room first, it’s impossible not to immediately compare inZOI to The Sims, a series it’s very clearly both taking inspiration from and attempting to compete with. You play as an omnipotent figure who can create and control little citizens as they live their best, or more often worse, lives. You can build up a house from scratch, manipulate the features of each person (who are called Zoi), and embroil them in all the local drama you can find. They can have jobs, go to school, and explore the local area with as much or as little free will as you allow. These surface-level similarities quickly run thin, though, once you start digging into Krafton’s unique take on this genre.
When you start a new game in inZOI, you must first build a household using the detailed Character Creator Studio. Alongside choosing their name, gender, and age, you can select a Trait that defines your avatar’s personality. There are 18 to choose from, ranging from Authoritarian to Individualist, with each option providing a handy Characteristics sidebar describing how this choice will affect how they operate in-game. As a hardworking freelancer, I opted for the Go-Getter trait, which values professional activities and, in an endearing twist, also holds onto nervousness for longer than other Zois. As you press on into the ebb and flow of virtual life, your Zoi will develop their ego further as they encounter likes and dislikes, such as fast food and fitness, that meddle with their mood. inZOI neatly wraps up personality archetypes into simple grab-and-go options, which, while convenient, can feel a bit limiting.
Where looks are concerned, you can pick from a sizeable list of presets or take a more fine-tooth comb approach, tugging at the specific anchor points on your Zoi’s body and face – I opted for a combination of both, finding my closest match and generously moulding them in my image. There’s a selection of preset colours alongside a granular colour picker for many options too, allowing more nuance in your choices. Courtesy of inZOI’s realistic visual style, my Zoi quickly resembled a real person, and I enjoyed the process of coordinating their make-up and hair with my own.
The system for adjusting facial features is a thoroughly engrossing time-sink, but it’s inZOI’s fashion sensibilities that really make it stand out. During the creation process, you need to curate nine different outfits, including formalwear, sleepwear, and weather-appropriate attire for summer and winter. There’s a decent mix of modern trends, like cargo-style parachute pants, alongside tailored classics like military and leather jackets. Basics like t-shirts also come in multiple lengths, and you can mix and match and layer to your heart’s content. Safe to say, I spent even longer here, curating a Y2K-inspired outfit complete with leg warmers, Doc Marten dupes, and an adorable oversized baseball jersey. It’s not a totally flawless system, with the baggier silhouetted clothing options clipping against the Zois in strange ways. Still, this felt like one of the more polished aspects of inZOI, and I thoroughly enjoyed playing dress-up with my creations.
Once your family is organised, the next step is finding them a home. Currently, inZOI boasts two locations: the Korean-inspired city of Dowon, and the Californian Bliss Bay. You can build your own house or move into a predesigned lot, with each township featuring a small selection of public plots like shops, cafes, and open spaces like parks or shrines. Unfortunately, it’s here that I first noticed the seams of Krafton’s ambitious project starting to show. Illuminated neon signs coat the streets of Dowon with a dreamy multicolour glow, while in Bliss Bay, the setting sun imbues the beach with a soothing coastal atmosphere. Sit too long, though, and it all starts to feel a bit hollow. Those neon signs sit atop empty buildings, and the gentle sunlight reflects off static bits of set dressing. It’s clear a lot of care has been taken to give the impression of a bustling environment, and I admired those details – particularly the faux McDonalds, which garnered a giggle from me – but I couldn’t shake the feeling that much of the world is mostly a facade.
That nagging sensation continued into my Zoi’s daily life, where I could manage their needs like hunger and hygiene but not really make headway on how they fit into the digital culture. Despite choosing the Go-Getter trait, I didn’t get the impression it was making too much of a tangible difference in my day-to-day activities, especially when my other Zoi was acting essentially the same despite the fact I’d given them an oppositional personality style. I ran into the same blockades when I started a family in a separate household, with many conversations repeating on a loop no matter who I was controlling. Topics like Cryptocurrency and the power of humility kept showing up in my dialogue tree. It was admittedly funny the first few times, but gradually, that repetition made progressing relationships a tad monotonous.
It’s delightful that the things like your Zoi’s treadmill display seems functional, or that the detail of their food is so convincing that my stomach often rumbled in unison with my avatar’s as they tucked into their lunch. However, these pockets of well-designed actions can make the simplistic or repetitive alternatives feel cold by comparison. Over time, it was as if my Zoi was less of an individual and more of a semi-controllable drone, performing tasks without rhyme or reason. Perhaps the options will diversify once they fill out their likes and dislikes and make more friends, though I certainly didn’t notice any differences across the roughly 15 hours I’ve played so far.
Thankfully, a salve to this weirdness is inZOI’s Karma system, which punishes or rewards citizens based on their actions. When interacting with other Zois or objects, you’re occasionally presented with a choice accompanied by a yin and yang symbol, letting you know that performing that action will affect their Karmic score. Stealing coins from a parking meter is considered bad, whereas giving directions to a random person is considered good. While I was initially sceptical, I soon came to feel the system’s wrath. I sent my Zoi on an unwarranted tirade, hulking out at the local park and kicking a vending machine before attempting to win a stuffed turkey toy at a claw machine. After a shocking number of attempts, the toy remained trapped in its plexiglass prison. From here, I directed my Zoi to become a model citizen, complimenting strangers and telling gregarious jokes before returning to the same machine. Wouldn’t you believe it, they won a prize on their first attempt this time. Karma is a simple concept that works well in practice and offers a pleasant invisible boundary to rub against – I only wish more actions would impact the score.
There is still much more to do and see before I reach a final verdict, like diving into its careers, cars, and the nitty-gritty of the build mode, and that’s just to start. inZOI is an Early Access game, and as of right now, it certainly feels like one. The lifelike visuals and smattering of highly detailed interactions feel at odds with its rougher, less immersive edges, giving the world a sometimes strange and sterile atmosphere. Even so, there’s a surprising amount of depth hidden amongst these blind spots, and I’m keen to see if inZOI can deliver on its monumental promises – both in the long-term, and as I work toward my final review of what’s here at launch in the coming weeks.
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