On-Together is a virtual co-working game enjoyed with friends or strangers all over the world. Digital pals hang out at the bottom of the screen while you work, study, and get stuff done. Includes productivity tools, hangout spots, breaktime games, and more!
Developed by: GigaPuff
Played on: Steam
A review key was provided by Future Friends.
On-Together is the latest viral sensation to join the productivity genre, and as a self-admitted workaholic and avid consumer of idle games, I knew I had to give it a try. For the past few days, I immersed myself in the chill vibes and cute visuals of GigaPuff’s debut game while coworking with a couple of friends. In fact, my in-game avatar is sitting in the corner of my screen right now, and it already feels like it’s here to stay for the long run.
Each session of On-Together begins with the option to create your own public or private server. Each server can accommodate up to 16 players at once, but you can adjust that number to whatever you like, and even add social tags like “Focus Together” or “Playtime” to set the tone. You can also join a friend’s server using their server code, or browse a list of public servers hosted by strangers around the world. While there isn’t an option to save your server settings yet, it’s also not too difficult to set up each time.
Once you select your server, the game spawns you into a surprisingly large map filled with all kinds of locations to spend time in; from a meditation chamber in the clouds, to a quiet library in the forest, and even a floating platform in the middle of the ocean. Although there aren’t any options to customise the island itself, the game presents enough variety to ensure you won’t bore of your surroundings that easily.
The real experience begins once you settle down and take your pick from a list of focus activities. From gaming to creating art, each activity comes with a cute animation and slight variations depending on your location and surroundings. For instance, certain activities are only available when you’re sitting at a table, while others are only available while standing. There’s even a wide range of furniture across the island with different interactability, including your own desk which you can customise.
The more time you spend focused, the more tickets (the in-game currency) you earn, which you can exchange for items in the shop. There are cosmetics for your avatar, decorations for your desk, and even temporary power-ups that can change your appearance or give you the zoomies (literally, try the cherry soda). There’s a truly long list of items you can spend your tickets on, which only adds to the incentive to stay productive and check more items off your in-game to-do list.
If that wasn’t enough, On-Together also has a creature collector element where you can collect pets by fulfilling certain criteria. Some of these were a little confusing at first, but it boils down to wearing the right cosmetics and focusing with the right activity in the right location. Certain cosmetics can only be unlocked at a certain level, which also ensures you take your time and treat each new pet like a milestone celebration.
Whenever you’re ready to take a break, there’s even mini games like fishing, basketball, and music jams to help you unwind. These mini games are mostly simple, especially the basketball and music jamming which aren’t going to grab your attention for long. But the fishing game is surprisingly fleshed out, with equipment upgrades and even a catalogue to track your rare catches. It brings back fond memories of collecting fish for my Animal Crossing aquarium, except in this game, we release our fish after we catch them.
But as expected, On-Together truly shines when you add other people to the mix. Most productivity games are solo experiences, and the ones with multiplayer options aren’t built with shared spaces in mind, but On-Together nails the feeling of body doubling even if you aren’t in the same physical space. Turns out being able to sit together, even virtually, is surprisingly effective for productivity.
On-Together also features every display mode imaginable, allowing you to stay motivated by your virtual coworking table at all times. There’s standard full screen mode, but you can also display it windowed on the top, bottom, left, or right of your screen with the option to adjust width or height. My personal favourite is the transparent sticker mode which is especially friendly to single-screen users.
There’s also global and local text chat within the server. Not only does it appear as cute text bubbles above your avatar’s head, it also comes with some pretty comprehensive mod controls. Every player has the option to ban, ignore, mute, and even report other players; or conversely, add a player on Steam if you vibe with each other. These features are great especially for a game that encourages public server sharing with strangers.
Compared to other games in the genre, On-Together doesn’t quite hit the mark with its productivity tools. There’s the standard Pomodoro timer, to-do list, journal, and daily task planner, but it could still use some quality of life polish. I would like to have more than one kind of timer in case I’m not feeling like Pomodoro that day, and I would love to have the option to drag and drop to reorder the tasks on my to-do list.
Even so, I enjoy how easy it is to access my productivity tools no matter the display mode. Each item can be dragged and dropped freely, and you can click one button to hide them away when you want to focus on the rest of your screen. While we experienced a few minor bugs especially with the transparent sticker mode, the developer team has been active on their Discord with community updates and bug fixes.
For the most part, it’s hard to find fault with an experience that delivers on what it promises and more, especially at an exceedingly reasonable price tag of RM26.75. Having already fallen in love with the game over the last few days, I’m looking forward to what it has in store for us months down the line. There’s a lot of potential for content updates to extend its longevity, from new pets and cosmetics, to seasonal items and map refreshes. Here’s to a cozy and productive future.
Verdict: Productivity Has Never Been This Cute
On-Together is a delightful addition to the productivity genre that proves that body doubling can be gamified. Designed with a virtual coworking experience in mind, the game features comprehensive multiplayer support and a variety of in-game locations for groups of players to work and study together. Though its productivity tools could use some polish, the detail and care from the development team shines through in this debut title.
