DONT SKIP THIS GAME

I walked into it blind after stumbling upon it in the App Store. Usually hard to find games aren’t worth anything, ranging from cheap cash grabs to soulless nonsense. But Afterplace…is such a different game entirely. The Legend of Zelda/UnderTale influence is the first thing that caught my attention while playing. I fell in love the moment a squirrel I attacked ran offscreen and led me to a big surprise (emphasis on big). After that, I really couldn’t put the game down. The details I found in the world were so well fleshed out, and it feels lived in. Everything I interacted with/talked to gave me a reason to care and pursue crazy side quests. I loved the quirkiness, it’s got such a distinct, well crafted charm you truly can’t find with many games. I got so invested in the stories and the complete mystery of the events unfolding before me. I love getting to unravel the story myself and catching the details of the world that each tell a story. Each big story piece gave context in a way that had me in awe, especially the big main ending…(jaw was on the ground). Gameplay was simple, fluid but gave enough to do so that it never grew stale to play. This game has so much care and love put into it, for just one guy…Evan really gave us a piece of art worth talking about. From the serious moments to the all around goofiness of this game, it was such a delight to experience. I’m looking forward to anything this guy has next. Worth more than 8$ in my opinion

Fantastic game - Would love to see more!

Just beat this game after buying it last week, and was so pleasantly surprised. The visuals are incredible, the controls are easy enough, and the story and dialogue was next level. I’d even say exceptional. This game was made by one individual, so, understandably, there were a few things that left me with an itch that had not been scratched, but was teased at. For instance, the combat & weapon system. In an ideal world you would have been able to buy a variety of weapons from the weapon store that eventually appears, with different specs (dagger= speed but lacks damage, great sword=damage, lacks speed, etc). And having the option for ranged weapons would have added a fun element as well, I believe. I think any critiques I could have really are a compliment: this game is so good that it leaves you wanting MORE. I wish the mushroom forest was a whole world, I wish treasure chests gave more than just coins, I wish you gained exp from fights to level up and adjust stats. But none of these things were the point of Afterlife. In the end, the point was to be engrossed in a beautiful world, and to traverse a rich story about loss and how to move forward in it. For that reason this game deserves a solid 5/5. Great work.

An Emotional Masterpiece

I recently bought a controller for my phone and was looking for a little time waster RPG to play while I waited to get my steam link and GeForce connected to my phone. I picked this game up as something I thought I’d play for an hour and be done. Not only did this game get me in the first 5 minutes but it kept me utterly enamored til the very 3nd. The controls feel very simple but the combat mechanics make it very layered and complex. The RPG progression isn’t standard which is absolutely more than ok and gave me a breath of fresh air. With amazing world building, heartbreaking lore and lovable and actually funny characters, alongside a slew of twists and turns. It put me in such a good place with myself after playing and genuinely almost had me in tears at some point. I’m a cynic and I have nothing negative whatsoever to say about this experience. I’ll probably buy it on steam for myself and a few others as well. I love this game and I can safely say this game is one of my favorites of the decade. I hope to see more from Evan Kice in the near future.

Love Letter to Yu

Wow. I rarely play, let alone purchase, phone games because they rarely are able to hold my attention. But I managed to grab Afterplace when it was 50% off. I had no idea what i was getting in to, but as I was on break from school and work i figured what the heck? let’s try this cute little game and see how it goes. i can tell you that it was NOT what i was expecting. this game never failed to take my breath away. the levels of detail, attention, and heart that went into its creation made it worthy of every single second i spent playing it, and thinking about it when i wasn’t. The dialogue, comedic elements, storytelling, all of it felt so much larger and more intimate than most games i’ve ever played. I fell in love with this game in such a short time, and i grieved deeply for myself upon my completion of it as I will never again have the pleasure of playing it with no knowledge of what i was getting myself in to. Apparently there are different endings, and i will be happy to play this game many more times. As mentioned before, i was lucky enough to purchase this game at a 50% discount. But, upon completing it, my experience playing this game has actually made me want to pay *more*. So, i bought it as a gift for my friend to enjoy. i can’t wait to hear what they have to say about it! From the bottom of my heart, Evan Kice (and emotional support human) thank you for creating this amazing game!

So fun!

Love this game! I’m a very casual gamer, mostly just iOS games. I like Terraria, Starbound, and Junk Jack. Afterplace is simpler in that you don’t have to collect and craft things like the other listed games, but the worlds have various hidden things to find. The navigation is straight, too, in terms of pressing and holding to get around. Fighting is simply tapping to use your sword and swiping to dodge. It is very intuitive and easy for casual gamers to pick up and play. The invisibility mode is a great feature for casual gamers who like to play games but are not super skilled at fighting things. I did have to Google things when I got stuck, but I am a very basic/casual gamer. The exploration of different worlds is delightfully fun, and the character interactions are crucial to the game storyline. ***SPOILER: Depending on how you interact with the characters, you will get different endings. As a mental health professional, I truly enjoyed the story arc for the “best” ending. This game has more depth than you might expect for a phone game. What is really impressive is that this was all created by one guy who quit his engineering job to create the game. I counsel young high school and college students, and a good handful want to be video game designers. This game is an inspirational example for budding gamer developers. I really enjoyed this game and would highly recommend it! It was worth the one-time cost.

One guy from Texas?

That’s incredible! This is such a great game. I don’t want it to be over. This is the best mobile game I’ve ever played and it was so easy to move at any pace- i could spend hours in one sitting or just a few minutes exploring the world around me… the goal is imminent but you aren’t pushed through just trying to “win”. The experience is more important than the result (as games are, but you feel glad for it) I can’t recommend enough. Best game in the App Store. Please make a sequel! Or a prequel! I want to see more of Clover’s story or Minno or the weird mean girls yelling at me from the balcony…. I want to know more about that giant wheat field and the guy trying to sell me drugs under that tree… and that dapper heavily accented catfoxgod… and the giant eye in the library… I need to know more!!! Thanks for such a great experience! I’ll be watching for more from you, Evan. You deserve so many sugared bagels for this!

Instant classic. Must play!

The most fun, interesting, and artful mobile game I’ve ever played. Most everyone can agree that botched ports, Gatcha, idle, and auto battlers all but dominate mobile gaming (though some of those can be fun). Afterplace is different. A true breath of fresh air. Secondly, as someone only enough to have gotten the original Zelda the Christmas it came out (I’ve played every one since). Everyplace gives me that same feeling. It doesn’t hold your hand. The extremely simplified controls are everything because it leaves you free to explore this strange and beautiful world and learn about it as you explore. That said the controls simple, the battles can be complex. The enemy AI/patterns is so well thought out but also a little random sometimes. Easily stands on top of all mobile games today. As well, as holds its place firmly in all games

Absolutely genius

What can I say that hasn’t already been said by so many others. This game is an absolute masterpiece, from the gameplay, the combat, the dialogue and story of characters, and even the music is perfect. Every single part of the game feels so smooth and well put together, and there’s so much to discover. On my second playthrough now and I’m still discovering different hidden details. The work put into this is amazing, and honestly, this would easily be a $20 game on more platforms if you wanted to branch out onto different platforms, and with landscape mode added in, that would be even easier to integrate. To anyone reading this, this is an amazing game and you should absolutely get it, it’s a beautiful experience. And to the dev, holy crap, you’ve got an amazing talent.

The Apple Design Awards for 2023 include games like Marvel Snap, Resident Evil Village, Diablo Immortal, Knotwords, Hindsight, and more.

GamesHub Sun Jan 28 2024

Popular Zelda-like mobile game Afterplace is set to make the jump from mobile to Steam, as the game releases sometime later this year.

Pocket Gamer Sat Dec 28 2024

Two weeks before WWDC 2023, Apple has announced the finalists for its annual Design Awards spanning six categories.

AppleInsider Thu Dec 28 2023

Apple has announced the winners of the 2023 Apple Design Awards at WWDC23. This year the winners include Marvel Snap, Resident Evil Village...

Explosion Network Sun Jan 28 2024

The Apple Design Awards recognize 12 best-in-class apps and games from 36 finalists, all of which demonstrate outstanding technical achievement.

Apple Sun Jan 28 2024

Apple unveiled the winners of its 2023 Design Awards, which recognised several mobile games. Each prize was awarded to one app and one game, across six...

GamesIndustry.biz Sun Jan 28 2024

Afterplace is a Zelda-inspired open-world adventure game. It sports a retro aesthetic and promises plenty of secrets to discover and characters to encounter.

Pocket Gamer Fri Jul 28 2023

The universe hides more secrets than we could even fathom and more space than we could ever hope to explore. Evan Kice decided to share...

Pocket Gamer Fri Jul 28 2023

Solo indie developer Evan Kice has just dropped a new trailer for Afterplace, a charming retro title that aims to take players back to the...

Pocket Gamer Fri Oct 28 2022

Afterplace is an upcoming action-adventure game for iOS and Android from one-man developer Evan Kice. It's still in the early stages of...

Pocket Gamer Tue Jul 28 2020