The aesthetic of the game gave it a pleasant, yet amusing experience. Seeing the Mushrooms and their faces was fun. Having two modes is a nice addition. The random expansion of tiles did give the sense that your growth is somewhat uncontrollable. The UI was great. It felt smooth when clicking on a mushroom, as well as highlighting which tiles your mouse is currently hovering over. It was satisfying to interact with the game.
I had to devote some time into learning how to play the game as it was not very clear how the mechanics worked. I used Zen mode as a tutorial while reading the text provided in the itch page to figure out how to play. Not ideal, but it was doable. Once I understood, off to combat I went!
The combat was confusing at first. It took me a while to realize that I could use the poison mushrooms to attack.
For some reason a badger was stuck in the far left corner. I could not grow my mushroom.
The main drawback seems to be the lack of clarity concerning the game-play mechanics.
Once you know how to play, you get in the groove with the help of the upbeat music. But after a while it ended up turning into a "click + next turn" over and over until you win.
Overall, I enjoyed playing it after learning the rules. The upbeat music and the 3D models + mushroom faces did give it this likable tone to the overall game.