Volcano Princess
Volcano Princess (Chinese: 火山的女儿; pinyin: huǒshān de nǚ'ér; lit. 'Daughter of Volcano') is a social simulation game, developed by the Chinese studio Egg Catcher and published by the Chinese publisher Gamera Games, where players play the role of the single father to a young girl. It was released for Microsoft Windows on April 21, 2023. By July 2023, it had sold over 600,000 copies.
| Volcano Princess | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Developer | Egg Hatcher |
| Publisher | Gamera Games |
| Engine | Unity |
| Platforms | |
| Release | Microsoft Windows
|
| Genres | Raising Simulation, Role-playing |
| Mode | Single-player |
Volcano Princess (Chinese: 火山的女儿; pinyin: huǒshān de nǚ'ér; lit. 'Daughter of Volcano') is a social simulation game, developed by the Chinese studio Egg Catcher and published by the Chinese publisher Gamera Games, where players play the role of the single father to a young girl.[1] It was released for Microsoft Windows on April 21, 2023. By July 2023, it had sold over 600,000 copies.
Story
[edit]The story of the game takes place in the Volcano Kingdom where chivalry, magic and alchemy are prevalent. The player takes on the role of father who takes care of his daughter alone after his wife died.[2]
Gameplay
[edit]In Volcano Princess, players spend time with the daughter and manage what daily activities she participates in. The daughter has several stats, such as strength, intelligence, emotion and imagination, which can be increased by enrolling her in classes and managing her schedule.[1] The daughters are able to learn more than a dozen skills from courses such as music, painting and fighting. They can also participate in other activities such as work, adventures, gardening, dances, dice games, horse catching, horse racing and others.[3] As time passes, the character will grow older and go through different stages in her life, reflected by her appearance and additional gameplay options. The player and the daughter will also interact with many different NPCs. Based on player decisions, NPCs can form friendships and romantic relationships with the daughter. These interactions can affect the ending of the game.[4]
The game features 330 illustrations and more than 50 endings.[5]
Development and release
[edit]The game was developed by the team Egg Hatcher, which consists of two students[6] who graduated from the Communication University of China in 2019. This work was adapted from their previous graduation project, which took 4 years of development to complete.[7]
On July 9, 2021, the game released the Steam store page, and announced that the game trial would be available at Shanghai CCG EXPO from July 15 to 18.[8] On 15 September 2022, the game published its first trailer, and announced that a trial version will be launched on Steam in October.[9]
On 3 October 2022, the game launched a trial version on Steam,[10] and simultaneously launched crowdfunding on Modian.[11] The crowdfunding ended on November 13, and a total of ¥320,000 was raised.[12] On November 22, the developers announced that it would be officially released on Steam on 2 February 2023.[13] However, on December 30, the game announced that due to the need for additional quality improvements and the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, the release date had been postponed to April 2023.[14] On 20 March 2023, Gamera Games announced that the game will be released on 21 April 2023.[15][16]
On 21 June 2023, Egg Hatcher released a new version of the game, which added support of the Japanese language, introducing 3 new endings and modifying some plots.[17][18][19] The character "daughter" is voiced by Mai Nakahara.[6][20]
A Nintendo Switch version was announced on September 21, 2023.[21] The publisher Gamera Games announced the suspension of development of this version on Sina Weibo the following year.[22]
On April 29 2024, Microsoft and Gamera Games announced Volcano Princess would be available on Xbox Game Pass.[23]
On June 17 of 2025, Microsoft published a new article on Xbox Wire announcing that an Xbox Series X/S version would be available on June 24 of the same year.[24]
Reception
[edit]Amanda Yeo of Mashable stated the game to be "as wholesome as parenting can get". She compared the game with Princess Maker 2, saying that since both of the games are "raising simulators", this game is "the experience nostalgic players remember Princess Maker 2 to be". However, she also mentioned that it "has a fairly robust social system", with multiple routes to be chosen from. Despite that, she pointed out that numerous errors exist in the English language localisation of the game, alongside a few bugs upon release. In all, she compared the game to "a handmade gift", since it "isn't perfect, but is beautiful and made with heart".[1]
Jenni Lada of Siliconera also compared the game with the Princess Maker series. In her view, the game "lets you be more involved in your child’s life", since the player character can take part in activities together, forming the scene of "a father-daughter outing". In general, she claimed the game to be "both more interactive and approachable".[25]
Mr. Katoh of Game*Spark gave a positive comment on the game, stating the game to be "easy to play, with a relatively orthodox upbringing system", and the atmosphere of the game that "focuses on the bond between parents and children" to be "attractive". He also pointed out that the text and graphics are "good overall".[26]
Kashiwamata of Dengeki Online said that the feature that the conditions for the ending are not determined by status alone left him with a good impression. He also described the story to be "very gentle" that "his heart was healed when he read the lines".[27]
United Daily News praised the great storytelling, beautiful art style and diverse gameplay, but it also criticized the design of playing repeatedly and the lack of the plot of father in the later stage. It also warned that the true ending has a great impact that may disgust some people.[28]
Sales
[edit]Volcano Princess sold 150,000 copies within 3 days of its release.[29][30] In July 2023, it was announced that the game had sold over 600,000 copies.[31][32]
See also
[edit]
References
[edit]- ^ a b c Yeo, Amanda (8 June 2023). "Raising sim 'Volcano Princess' lets you minmax a digital daughter". Mashable. Archived from the original on 28 July 2023. Retrieved 28 July 2023.
- ^ "美少女養成遊戲《火山的女兒》今日上市 培養女兒、守護她的成長！". 巴哈姆特電玩資訊站 (in Traditional Chinese). 21 April 2023. Archived from the original on 31 July 2023. Retrieved 31 July 2023.
- ^ "逾50種結局！Steam子女養成《火山的女兒》4/21推出 中世紀老爸培養愛女十八般武藝". United Daily News (in Chinese). 30 March 2023. Archived from the original on 31 July 2023. Retrieved 31 July 2023.
- ^ "《火山的女兒》再度掀起養女兒熱潮，爸爸們紛紛給出壓倒性好評，百元神作登上Steam". 遊戲基地 Gamebase (in Traditional Chinese). 24 April 2023. Archived from the original on 31 July 2023. Retrieved 31 July 2023.
- ^ "养成游戏《火山的女儿》Steam正式发售 多结局可探索_3DM单机". 3DM (in Simplified Chinese). 21 April 2023. Archived from the original on 27 July 2023. Retrieved 30 July 2023.
- ^ a b "【火山の娘】ファンタジー世界で娘を立派に育て上げるおすすめ育成シミュレーションゲームが好評配信中". www.gaming-city.com (in Japanese). 23 June 2023. Archived from the original on 29 July 2023. Retrieved 29 July 2023.
- ^ 灰信鸽 (25 June 2023). "Steam 96%好评，国内2人工作室做了一款3天卖15万份的黑马". zaker (in Simplified Chinese). Archived from the original on 28 July 2023. Retrieved 30 July 2023.
- ^ "退伍士兵孤身抚养弃婴 国产温馨养成游戏《火山的女儿》上线Steam _ 游民星空 GamerSky.com". GamerSky (in Simplified Chinese). 9 July 2021. Archived from the original on 27 July 2023. Retrieved 30 July 2023.
- ^ "TGS 2022：吾家有女初长成 模拟养成游戏《火山的女儿》试玩版10月上线 _ 游民星空 GamerSky.com". GamerSky (in Simplified Chinese). 15 September 2022. Archived from the original on 27 July 2023. Retrieved 30 July 2023.
- ^ 簗島 (3 October 2022). "「火山の娘」の体験版がSteamで配信中。火山の女神を信仰する国で，娘の世話しながら成長を見守っていくマルチエンディング型"娘育成ゲーム"". 4Gamer.net (in Japanese). Archived from the original on 29 July 2023. Retrieved 29 July 2023.
- ^ "养成《火山的女儿》试玩版上线Steam 参与众筹拿奖励 _ 游民星空 GamerSky.com". GamerSky (in Simplified Chinese). 3 October 2022. Archived from the original on 27 July 2023. Retrieved 30 July 2023.
- ^ "火山的女儿众筹到什么时候 火山的女儿众筹时间内容介绍". www.18183.com (in Simplified Chinese). 17 April 2023. Archived from the original on 27 July 2023. Retrieved 30 July 2023.
- ^ "美少女养成游戏《火山的女儿》公布新预告 发售日期正式确定 _ 游民星空 GamerSky.com". GamerSky (in Simplified Chinese). 22 November 2022. Archived from the original on 27 July 2023. Retrieved 30 July 2023.
- ^ "《火山的女儿》延期发售 4月正式上线_3DM单机". www.3dmgame.com (in Simplified Chinese). 30 December 2022. Archived from the original on 27 July 2023. Retrieved 30 July 2023.
- ^ "美少女养成游戏《火山的女儿》发售日预告 4月21日发售_3DM单机". 3DM (in Simplified Chinese). 20 March 2023. Archived from the original on 27 July 2023. Retrieved 30 July 2023.
- ^ ginger (30 March 2023). "娘育成シミュレーション「火山の娘」が4月21日にSteamで発売決定。無料体験版が配信中". 4Gamer.net (in Japanese). Archived from the original on 29 July 2023. Retrieved 29 July 2023.
- ^ Yokoyama, Keiichi (21 June 2023). "圧倒的高評価・娘育成SLG『火山の娘』ついに日本語に対応。マルチエンディングで変化する、娘と火山国の行末". AUTOMATON (in Japanese). Archived from the original on 29 July 2023. Retrieved 29 July 2023.
- ^ "娘育成シミュレーション『火山の娘』日本語版が本日（6/21）より配信開始。ついに日本語で娘の成長が見届けられるように！ | ゲーム・エンタメ最新情報のファミ通.com". Famitsu (in Japanese). 21 June 2023. Archived from the original on 29 July 2023. Retrieved 29 July 2023.
- ^ "《火山的女儿》将修改部分争议剧情 Switch版正在评估中_3DM单机". 3DM (in Simplified Chinese). 26 April 2023. Archived from the original on 30 July 2023. Retrieved 30 July 2023.
- ^ "模擬養成遊戲《火山的女兒》4 月上市 日語版女主角聲優由中原麻衣擔任". 巴哈姆特電玩資訊站 (in Traditional Chinese). 30 March 2023. Archived from the original on 31 July 2023. Retrieved 31 July 2023.
- ^ Brian (2023-09-21). "RPG-parenting sim Volcano Princess heading to Switch". Nintendo Everything. Retrieved 2024-04-30.
- ^ "Sina Visitor System". passport.weibo.com (in Simplified Chinese). Retrieved 2025-06-17.
- ^ Joe, Skrebels (2024-04-29). "IGN x ID@Xbox Digital Showcase – See Everything We Showed in Our Second Edition". Xbox Wire. Retrieved 2024-04-30.
- ^ Spurr, Megan (2025-06-17). "Coming to Game Pass: Rematch, Warcraft I & II: Remastered, Warcraft III: Reforged, Call of Duty: WWII, and More". Xbox Wire. Archived from the original on 2025-06-17. Retrieved 2025-06-17.
- ^ Lada, Jenni (18 June 2023). "Volcano Princess Is a Princess Maker-Like That Makes Us More Involved Parents". Siliconera. Archived from the original on 28 July 2023. Retrieved 28 July 2023.
- ^ Mr.Katoh (24 April 2023). "娘育成SLG『火山の娘』プレイレポート―丁寧に作られた自由で幅の広いゲームシステムは遊びやすさ抜群！うちの娘が世界で一番かわいい【特集】". Game*Spark - 国内・海外ゲーム情報サイト (in Japanese). Archived from the original on 27 July 2023. Retrieved 28 July 2023.
- ^ 柏又 (18 July 2023). "レビュー：『火山の娘』は冒険、勉学、社交を通した娘育成シム。『プリンセスメーカー』で感じた娘をいとおしい気持ちが甦る【電撃インディー＃470】". Dengeki Online (in Japanese). Archived from the original on 29 July 2023. Retrieved 29 July 2023.
- ^ "Steam壓倒性好評《火山的女兒》心得：美少女夢工廠最佳繼承 男森上門一律不在家！". United Daily News (in Chinese). 10 May 2023. Archived from the original on 31 July 2023. Retrieved 31 July 2023.
- ^ "国产游戏《火山的女儿》3天销量超15万 Steam好评如潮_3DM单机". 3DM (in Simplified Chinese). 25 April 2023. Archived from the original on 27 July 2023. Retrieved 30 July 2023.
- ^ 片岡龍一 (21 June 2023). "5歳の娘を立派な大人へと導く育成シミュレーション『火山の娘』日本語版がSteamで配信！「圧倒的に好評」を獲得した人気作". IGN Japan (in Japanese). Archived from the original on 29 July 2023. Retrieved 29 July 2023.
- ^ "国产养成游戏《火山的女儿》销量突破60万 Steam促销中_3DM单机". 3DM (in Simplified Chinese). 7 July 2023. Archived from the original on 27 July 2023. Retrieved 30 July 2023.
- ^ "2023年国游销量半年榜：《火山的女儿》销量破60万_深圳热线". 深圳热线 (in Simplified Chinese). 18 July 2023. Retrieved 28 July 2023.
External links
[edit]- Volcano Princess on X
- 养蛋人O on Weibo (in Chinese)
- Volcano Princess at The Visual Novel Database