Paralives is early access as hell, but its still a strong start to the Simslike

Early access can mean a lot of things. A game in early access can be basically complete and just waiting for a last application of polish, or it can be closer to a tech demo — a prototype that’s barely playable. Paralives, an indie life simulation game in development since 2019, has finally officially released in early access and fans have had their hands on the long awaited title for about a week now. It’s much closer to the latter state, and yet there’s so much charm and potential to this title that I’m locked in for the rest of the journey.

In Paralives, you play Parafolk — customizable characters with very basic stats: physique, mind, and creativity. My first character was Jordan Acosta, a junior programmer who just purchased a lovely little home in the humble town of Melino. I spent a massive chunk of time just playing with customization, first for Jordan, and then her home. Build mode in particular is a marvel. Every item can be recolored to whatever I like, resized, and even re-proportioned. I can upload images off my computer for wall art, allowing me to hang anything from a Van Gogh to a silly little meme. There aren’t as many options for couches or knick knacks as I would like, but the core systems are super fun to play with.

Here’s where I must again stress that Paralives is pretty simple, and the entire game is covered with reminders that this is a work in progress. I can look at stools or game systems in the build menu, but there’s a big warning that these are non-functional items for now. Things get even messier once I leave the build menu and start actually playing the life simulator aspect of the game. My first property was a bust; for some reason, the position of the stairs made the entire kitchen inoperable. I feel blessed: scrolling fan communities, other players are dealing with bugs like giving birth to a grown ass man instead of a baby, or watching their husbands turn into a countertop.