Growing Up is a life simulation game that blends elements of strategy, RPG, and adventure into a coming-of-age experience set in the 1990s. Players shape a character's development from toddler stage onward by selecting skills, managing daily routines, exploring locations, and building relationships that influence later life outcomes.
Gameplay
The core loop revolves around advancing through life stages while balancing learning, social interactions, and personal growth. Players handle a daily schedule that includes school, extracurricular activities, and free time spent in more than thirty city locations. Handcrafted mini-games help develop mental aptitude, while exams test progress toward better educational opportunities. Over two hundred skills across various categories allow deep customization of abilities, leading to one of forty-two distinct careers at the end of the main life cycle.
Customization extends to appearance through clothing and hairstyles, with the character's room changing based on acquired skills. These choices also unlock new locations, characters, and traits that carry over to the next generation. The 1990s backdrop includes period-specific details like visits to the cinema for films such as Dino Park or purchases from street vendors.
Game Modes
Growing Up operates as a single-player title with no separate competitive or cooperative modes. The primary experience centers on one continuous life journey that branches according to decisions made during childhood and adolescence. Multiple endings emerge for the player character and supporting figures based on relationship paths and skill development.
Repeated playthroughs form the main variation, as each new character encounters unique challenges, people, and opportunities. The generational cycle adds another layer, where reaching adulthood leads to parenthood and a shift to controlling the offspring's life with inherited influences from prior choices.
Narrative and Relationships
Branching dialogue exceeds one thousand lines per character across nineteen key figures whose personal stories develop alongside the main protagonist. Relationships can form in romantic or platonic directions, affecting available events and long-term outcomes. The narrative spans the full arc from early years through high school graduation and into family continuation, with decisions echoing across the entire timeline.
Exploration of the nostalgic city environment supports these stories by providing context for social encounters and leisure activities that tie into skill growth and mood management.
Is It Worth Playing?
Growing Up suits players who enjoy choice-driven life simulations with strong emphasis on skill progression and generational storytelling. The systems for scheduling, exams, and skill trees deliver tangible progression that rewards planning across multiple hours per playthrough. Reviews highlight the depth of customization and replay value from varied outcomes, though some note repetition in daily management elements.
The game appeals most to those interested in narrative-focused single-player experiences rather than action or multiplayer elements. Its indie production values and detailed character interactions provide a focused alternative to broader simulation titles. Availability on PC makes it accessible for fans of the genre seeking a complete life-cycle journey without ongoing seasonal content.
