Fantasy Life i Switch Review

Fantasy Life i Switch Review
Version Reviewed: Nintendo Switch

I played the original Fantasy Life on my 3DS and was hooked almost immediately. While it had some flaws, mainly a little repetition here and a bit of padding there, something about its loop of gathering, crafting, and questing made it hard to put down. So when Fantasy Life i: The Girl Who Steals Time was announced, I was so excited to hear about Level-5 returning to this world after so many years, as it felt like a chance to recapture something special. What’s it Like? Craft your sword, cook some supplies, and get a job as we review Fantasy Life i: The Girl Who Steals Time on Nintendo Switch.

Time Travel Meets Town-Building

At first glance, The Girl Who Steals Time leans on familiar RPG tropes, there’s an island in need of help, mysterious ruins to explore, and a personal mission that quickly expands into something much bigger. Beneath that surface is an intriguing time-travelling mystery that slowly unfolds as you rebuild the island across two very different eras. Time travel is the centrepiece of the entire experience as each time period you visit introduces new characters and unlocks unique gameplay systems that work to your overall progression. One era focuses on reconstruction, one offers the traditional Fantasy Life experience with crafting and jobs, while another emphasises combat or exploration. It’s a clever way to keep the gameplay varied while encouraging players to jump between story threads. The early hours are full of loose ends, with quests and characters pointing in multiple directions. It ties nicely into the tailor’s Life… stitching together a story that only really takes shape once you’ve committed several hours. That said, the narrative often feels more like a framework for introducing mechanics, slowly moving progression forward by introducing something new, pretty much through the majority of the game. While this may seem like a grind to some, there are genuine surprises and mechanics that completely turn things on their heads, giving you plenty of things to do throughout the story and beyond.

Pick a Life, Any Life

At its core, The Girl Who Steals Time thrives on repetition, but it’s the kind that draws you in rather than wears you down. Whether you’re chopping wood, mining ore, or crafting gear, the core loop leans into a kind of low-stakes, almost meditative rhythm. It’s the kind of game you can sink hours into without quite realising it. The various Life minigames go a long way in keeping that rhythm engaging. Each one asks for a bit of timing, precision, or quick thinking, and they can get better once you’ve unlocked certain skills. Hitting a higher quality score on a craft because you timed everything just right feels genuinely satisfying. It turns what could be a mindless task into something closer to a mini challenge run, one where your upgrades and understanding of the system really start to shine.

There’s no shortage of choice when it comes to Lives in The Girl Who Steals Time. True to the original, this game gives you a wide selection of roles to play, but they all fall neatly into three core archetypes: gathering, crafting, and combat. Rather than existing in isolation, these roles feed into each other in satisfying ways. The ore you mine can be forged into weapons, while the fish you catch will go into your cooking life… It’s a loop that makes every profession feel like a piece of something larger. One of the most welcome changes this time around is how easily you can switch between Lives. There’s no trip back to town or lengthy cutscene required. Interact with the right object and you’ll instantly shift into the correct Life, complete with the appropriate gear. Even crafting is more fluid, just walk up to a table and you’ll begin levelling the corresponding Life automatically. Each profession still has its own tutorial, but those can be skipped for returning players who already know the ropes, a welcome addition when you have all the basics sorted. Because of the shared structure across archetypes, there’s a nice sense of balance, and while some Lives may offer better monetary rewards or are faster to progress, none feel neglected.

The skill tree adds even more depth, letting you unlock passive boosts and active abilities that streamline your experience. When I unlocked the power-up that lets you smash ore more efficiently while mining, it changed everything. What was once a slow process suddenly became one of my favourite loops in the game. My personal go-to combination was mining and blacksmithing. There’s something about mining rare materials and turning them into weapons that never gets old, maybe it reminded me of my time in Skyrim? More than anything, this version of the Life system feels polished. The core idea hasn’t changed, but the experience is smoother, smarter, and more inviting. If the 3DS original was a cult hit, this one feels like it’s aiming for a broader audience without losing what made it special in the first place.

Look on the Bright Side

The art style in Fantasy Life i The Girl Who Steals Time stays true to the charm of the original. It leans into a bright, colourful aesthetic with that same cutesy, chibi look that defined the 3DS game. The characters are expressive, and the overall presentation suits the whimsical tone of the world. It’s not pushing technical boundaries, but it doesn’t need to as it fits Fantasy Life’s style perfectly. Environments are interesting and varied, especially on the main free-roam island of Ginormosia. Each area offers its own flavour, whether it’s harsh deserts that require a camel mount to cross or sunlit cliffs with ores aplenty, and the open exploration adds more life to the world than the original’s segmented zones. Some design choices borrow heavily from elsewhere, for instance, the pad you carry bears a striking resemblance to the Purah Pad from Breath of the Wild, and using it to activate towers and reveal areas feels unmistakably familiar. That part of the game doesn’t try to hide its inspiration, but it works well enough within the Fantasy Life framework. On the performance side, the game runs smoothly for the most part. There’s the occasional subtle hitch here and there, usually when moving between zones or interacting with larger objects, but it’s rare enough that most players probably won’t notice. The game also looks polished, and Level-5 has confirmed a further update coming with the Switch 2 version, due out on June 5. With a higher-spec platform and a bit more optimisation, it’s likely to shine even brighter.

The soundtrack in Fantasy Life i The Girl Who Steals Time is a little more reserved than the vibrant visuals; it does a great job of setting the tone, but doesn’t blow you out of the water. Most tracks are short, looping melodies that lean into the same charm the visuals deliver. They’re upbeat and never feel out of place, even after hours of play. While the music doesn’t often surprise you, it rarely grates or wears thin. Voice acting is minimal. Most dialogue plays out through text, with characters occasionally chiming in with short voiced phrases or catchphrases. It’s a light touch, but it fits the overall feel. Nothing about the sound design overreaches, but it all works in tandem to support the game’s easygoing pace. For my time travellers looking into accessibility options, you can remap all buttons, adjust different volume tracks, remove party effect in multiplayer to reduce clutter, and have a fixed or rotating mini map for orientation. The game also supports cross-play, which I was unfortunately unable to test for the purposes of this review.

Worth your time, or steals it?

Going into The Girl Who Steals Time, I’ll admit I was hesitant. At $90 AUD and with a digital-only release just ahead of the Switch 2, it felt like a risky purchase, but those concerns faded quickly. What I found was a game that not only recaptures the magic of the original but builds meaningfully on its foundations. The new mechanics are incredible, the quality-of-life changes are smart, and the whole experience feels like a natural evolution of the series. It’s a game that slowly unravels, offering a world that’s rewarding in its routine and compelling in its mystery. For returning fans, it’s familiar while adding something new. For newcomers, it’s a chance to fall in love with a genre-blending adventure that invites you to live at your own pace. Either way, my time with this game hasn’t been stolen, but well spent.

So, What’s it Like? Fantasy Life i: The Girl Who Steals Time is like Dragon Quest Builders 2, crossed with Echoes of Wisdom.

Fantasy Life is a What’s it Like Certified exceptional game.

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