HELLDIVERS™ 2
HELLDIVERS™ 2
Game
Game2022
Potion Permit
Developer MassHive Media
Potion Permit is a 2022 video game developed by MassHive Media and published by PQube. From Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)
362 reactions from 4 sources (Steam reviews, Bluesky, Mastodon, Lemmy) · newest Nov 5, 2026 · last updated Nov 5, 2026 · How this works
Audience score
68
Fresh
157 positive · 73 negative
95% range 62–74%
| Source | + | − | = |
|---|---|---|---|
| Steam reviews | 157 | 73 | 0 |
| Bluesky * | 39 | 3 | 69 |
| Mastodon * | 5 | 1 | 8 |
| Lemmy * | 1 | 0 | 6 |
* shown, not counted in the score (label accuracy below our 85% bar or not yet audited).
Steam's own rating
Mostly Positive
2,422 of 3,083 reviews positive (all languages, per Valve)
What people are saying
Mixed reception: praised for aesthetics and coziness, but criticized for repetitiveness and lack of depth.
Many players enjoy the game's beautiful pixel art and relaxing atmosphere, calling it a cozy experience. The potion-making and town-rebuilding loop is appreciated by some as a unique twist on the farming sim genre. [2][8][11][16][20]
However, a significant number of players find the gameplay repetitive and grindy, with fixed resource spawns and unchallenging minigames. [3][5][9][25][26][27][28][31][33][36]
Praised Graphics and art style · Cozy atmosphere · Potion-making mechanics · NPC interactions and town life
Criticised Repetitive gameplay loop · Lack of difficulty and challenge · Unfinished content and abandoned development · Grindy resource gathering · Shallow relationships and endgame
Summary drafted by an AI model from the 36 reactions it cites ([n] links open each post), then checked by code: every paragraph cites real posts and every quote is verbatim. Written Oct 8, 2026. Method
RottenBot@rottenbot · automated account
Potion Permit sits at 68% positive across 230 opinionated reactions from 4 sources. Fresh or rotten — where do you land?
Critics, per Wikipedia
Potion Permit received "mixed or average" reviews, according to review aggregator Metacritic. GameSpot praised the aesthetics and narrative of the game, though it also noted issues with the depiction of some character traits. Nintendo Life similarly praised the aesthetics of the game in their review, additionally making a positive note of the mini-games, while critiquing the low difficulty of the game. GameSpot, Destructoid and Push Square both noted the presence of a large number of bugs as a detracting point. TouchArcade noted that the performance issues on Switch hardware could lead to issues in timing critical minigames. At the 2025 Pégases Awards, Potion Permit was nominated for Best…
From the “Reception” section of Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. Critic context only — not part of the audience score.
Reactions
60 of 362 · most liked firstThis game could've been so cool. There's so many things that are working here-- the premise is interesting, the sprites and animations are adorable, the town feels alive. Yet, somehow, the game feels dull. The main gameplay loop itself is serviceable, but there's not enough variance to make it compelling. Additionally, the store page has some blatantly false information that makes the game seem more fleshed out than it is. The store page currently states that you'll "diagnose symptoms and…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Unfortunately, this game has been abandoned. Do not buy. I played the demo version with keyboard controls for 10 hours. No review possible, so I purchased, played for 5 min to post this review, then asked for a refund. It's amazing that there is 10 hours worth of gameplay in the demo alone. But the game is definitely still in Alpha (which you are told at the end of the demo) and this game was released in 2022. Plus, the discord page hasn't been active for 2-3 years. So this game is definitely…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Graphics are beautiful, concept is great, but gameplay really missed the mark IMO. First off, it is insanely grindy. The amount of wood and stone I need is huge. I didn't expect 80% of my playtime in a Potion game, with a main character who is a chemist and a doctor, to be spent chopping down trees. It's the same trees and rocks every day, too. There's no randomness or growth/change to add spice, the way there is in Stardew Valley. The character quests sometimes ask for crazy amounts…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Fun for the first few hours, but lacks depth for longer gameplay. A little too simple and grindy. Characters have no depth. There is no real challenge in the puzzles and they get repetitive and boring... there is a story but no real sense of progression or interesting goals.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I really enjoy the game for the most part but getting stuck on terrain sucks. It's bad enough outside but I had to reload the day when I got stuck inside. I really wish they'd fix it or at least allow teleporting from inside buildings because at least that would give me a workaround. That's enough for a negative rating for me, given how long the game has been out this absolutely should have been fixed long since. I'm seeing bug reports in a developer thread from 2022. That's four years ago. The…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I find this game enjoyable at first, but it becomes dull and tedious over time. The story isn't very captivating, the dialogues are meh and really repetitive, even when you reach a more advanced stage in your relationship with a character. The characters are flat and lack interesting personalities, falling into stereotypical archetypes that aren't very well written. It's disappointing because I think the game has great potential, but it still seems very underdeveloped and some of the mechanics…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Back on my Potion Permit bullshit. I love this cozy game.
positive · AI labelView post →When I got this game I wanted to give it a genuine try. I had no clue what it was about but I love potion making games. This however was boring as hell. The game looks stunning I love the art so much, but that does not make me enjoy the game. I will say it was fun for a bit, but after that it was just doing the same thing over and over. I will say if you enjoy just turning your brain off when gaming then this is for you. The first issue I have is the difficulty curve. It starts easy as every…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →tl;dr it's bait Mechanics and stylistic choices that feel like they're thrown in because other games in the genre had them without any thought given to what made them good in those other games, or the purpose they fulfilled. It's cute but annoying af. Packaged as a cozy potion making game and is anything but. Concepts and mechanics aren't properly executed nor innovated on, and do little besides add annoyance and slog to the gameplay. It's way too hand-holdy for inherently understandable…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →1- there's so many things missing from this game despite the fact that its 4 years old, last update was in 2024 2-the game has a lot of "buffers" where you just have to wait a few seconds until you can do anything, this is most obvious in fishing; buffer before reeling after the fish bites where you have to wait anywhere from a few milliseconds to 5 seconds/after fish is caught buffer to show maxed out level/fish gets stuck far left or far right and does not reel 3-dating doesn't go anywhere…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Stardew Valley style game but with much less content and playability. Pros: -Good pixel arts. -Fast travel. -Playable after the main story ends. Cons: -Repetitive mini games. -Bad achievement design, they could have at least add some story related achievements but I see none here, most achievement requires excess amount of grinding and you're not even halfway there when you finish the main story.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Like literally any game there is good and bad so lemme break it down after a good bit of playtime. The Good: - It's VERY cute and the graphics feel really nice to look at, it's simple but has enough movement to feel smooth and nostalgic. - The music is very simple and nice, the sound design is crisp and it definitely delivers on being a nice and calm experience to play. It's a great wind down game in that regard. - The world itself is fun to explore if you're into the Stardew style of map.…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Great game! I almost didn't buy it because of all the negative reviews, but after playing it, most of those reviews seem like they're just coming from people who don't like the genre 😅. It took me 35 hours to officially "finish"/have the credits roll, and then another 10 to finish the last of the side quests and max out all the relationships. Dating is an end game thing, in the last few hours, and when you are dating someone they say different things and you can go on dates which are just a…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →my chemist from potion permit !! i love this game :) errand boy simulator LMAO #potionpermit #oc #unjortsart #artph
positive · AI labelView post →Maybe I'm going fucking crazy but I'm curently playing Fields of Mistria, Zelda Minish Cap, Potion Permit, the watermelon game and want to play to FFXIV lol. It just felt so cozy to play to lots of games?
neutral · AI labelView post →I enjoyed the first 5-6 hours, and you probably will too. But, if you commit to finishing it, you'll notice that there's literally nothing under the cute stylistic surface. Some things that I'll never forgive: 1. The diagnosis minigame is often, time-gated, boring and wastes 5 seconds with forced idling without interactions. 2. You are limited by resource availability. You obviously need to harvest things to make potions, but there is no ingredient that can be harvested more than 4…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I recently made an update to the website and features game such as Larut by @senjagames.bsky.social (ID) , Potion Permit by MassHive Media (ID), and MASS Builder by Vermillion Digital (TH) southeast-asia-game.fandom.com/wiki/Southea...
neutral · AI labelView post →Shameless selfie for Saturdays stream. Potion Permit because I am just having a gay old time with that game. Twitch.tv/iame10
positive · AI labelView post →I feel like the creators do not have love for this game. It has a great potential and looks amazing, but it lacks the polish, the detail, the heart and soul.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →The game isn’t bad, but as an early access player I’m a little disappointed. The start of the game is REALLY slow and makes the game's lack of replayability even worse than it already is. It gets repetitive quickly due to fixed item spawns/placement, dull combat mechanics, and lack of challenge/scaling difficulty with minigames. The main mechanic of the game, being potion making and treating patients, is more so a side thing and you spend more time grinding for materials and running around…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I deleted my steam gift thank you post for the Potion Permit game I got because people were reposting it. Like, why? That's my own personal post. I don't know why you are reposting it 🙄 I don't want you to
neutral · AI labelView post →So Potion Permit is really cute/cozy and fun so far!! I’ve spent most of the afternoon playing it and I can’t wait to see how the story progresses. If you play on PlayStation and haven’t grabbed this, I’d definitely pick it up while it’s on sale for $7.99!!
positive · AI labelView post →Yippee!! Grateful for the gifts I'm given and sent 🥰 If any fellow nerds (or sweethearts) feel inspired, check out marigoldgift.com/mayamonet/videogames for game ideas. My current top picks are Octopath, DQ Builders, Potion Permit, and Pokémon Mystery Dungeon 🥺 #datenortheast #gfe #kinkygfe
neutral · AI labelView post →Fun for a little bit but it feels like its incomplete and abandoned.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →The only thing that I wish this game had was a difficulty setting. Everyone has their own definition of cozy, and I enjoy boring tasks, but by the time the diagnosing minigames became even a little bit more difficult I had already unlocked most of the game and assumed it just never gets more difficult. It felt at odds with my skill as a player, and I would have liked the option to keep the gameplay at an engaging level for my ability from the get-go. Make me sweat about people getting sick.…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Good morning moonbeans! We’re starting a new game that I haven’t played in YEARS today! Join me at 10am est as we jump into the world of Potion Permit! Lets have some cozy and relaxing vibes today 💜
neutral · AI labelView post →This game isn't horrible and it's definitely not great. I had some fun with it but, as many other reviewers have said, there's a lot of grinding and pacing issues on top of glitches. Mostly what upsets me is that absurdity of the DLC and that's why I don't believe they deserve your money. Over a dollar for a single purely cosmetic item? Who even charges for that?! Y'all got greedy and didn't even put out a polished game.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →At first I thought this was a cute game, but a few hours in the tedious, unpolished gameplay loop and unoptimized design really begins to grind you down. It's easy to be charmed by the cute art style but at some point you notice the paint peeling off and once you see the mold growing underneath it's all over. I'll still finish it, because I'm nothing if not a completionist, but I kind of wish I didn't have to.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →If you have my specs or similar I can't recommend this game as it crashes fairly frequently (at least once every two play sessions). Given how saving works in the game each crash means that I'd end up redoing sometimes an entire day. Not a bad game, the art is cute, the NPCs are interesting, the potion mechanic is also interesting, but not really enjoyable to play on my setup.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Maybe try actually explaining things in your game? Like....You can make potions, but I was stuck googling to find out about selling them. The explanation for how to fish is SO WILDLY UNHELPFUL. It's actually crazy.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →While this game is cute and cozy it is lacking in depth and variety. The story is bland, the mini games are terribly easy and repetitive, the potion crafting is simple. Most of your time is spent gathering wood and stone to upgrade things. This game might be fun with some mods but it looks like the workshop isnt even set up. Only spend your money if this is one sale
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →tl;dr Not the promised depth upon closer inspection of the store page, but still worth $6 in my book. Sooooo....I'm nearing the end of my stay in Moonbury and my recommendation comes with a huge caveat: it was $6 because I got it on sale. Was it worth that? 100%. This game is if Wandering Willows and Kiki's Delivery Service had a baby in a pharmacy and I'm sure I'll clock over 20 hours by the end. There's a lot of life here, but I have to agree with other reviews I've seen once I took a closer…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →It's not what I was hoping for the whole loop of treating patients is incredibly shallow. Instead of the game actually having you learn what potions to use on what ailments, it instead has you playing a mini game and then tells you what potion to use. The game does not respect your time or intelligence, the walking speed is incredibly slow and the characters so far have been nothing to write home about.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →A lot of other people have said the same thing so I'll be brief: Wonderful aesthetics, a lot of the core mechanics are really nice, and I actually quite like the lore/overall story too. Unfortunately, it all ends up becoming really boring for two main reasons: every part of the game that's supposed to be a challenge (brewing, combat, diagnoses, etc.) is *way* too easy, and the characters/dialogue are predictable and flat.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I really enjoy the concept, art work, and overall mechanics of this game, however, from the beginning of the game there is a lack of things to actually do other than cutting trees and collecting rocks to pay for what feels like impossibly expensive upgrades that really only make collecting said wood and rocks easier. There are some really fun mini-games, curing patients is cool, and there are interesting enough characters, but the amount of time spent "grinding" for materials gets boring…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Been in the mood for a cozy game. Going to give Potion Permit a go!
neutral · AI labelView post →Potion Permit is cozy, beautiful and relaxing. HOWEVER Its also weirdly unfinished in many aspects, but not like buggy unfinished, more "eh, this´ll be enough. Ship it." type unfinished. For example: -There is levels to be gained in Fishing! HOWEVER fishing never changes in difficulty, even though you get upgraded fishing rods and level up. just why even have levels for fishing in the first place then? At least make it easier when you get a better rod. In general fishing seems to be the most…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →After romancing a character it becomes pointless to do anything with them anymore as there is no marriage or child-having parts to this game. The dating scene is cute, I'll give them that, but I wanted the full monty and only got a taste. The game is incessantly grindy. It almost feels unfinished as well. Like it's the ghost of a game that should've been great. I'm actually bored with it now, and this is only at almost 21 hours; not even a full days worth of play. Character creating is meh, not…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Y'all. If you haven't played "Potion Permit", I HIGHLY recommend you check it out! It's such a cute, cozy game. 🌱🌳 Living the dream of mixing potions with natural ingredients and providing free healthcare to a small cozy town! IT HAS GOOD D.I.D. REPRESENTATION!! I love Dan & Dev so much. 😭
positive · AI labelView post →Not sure why there are so many negative reviews, as I don't see most of their points as negative. This game is made to be a relaxing, cozy game to play from time to time. If you aim to rush through it in one go, this won't be fun. If you want a sweet story game with some grinding and minigames within, this game is perfect. To me this game has a sweet story, enough variation for a casual game, and charming characters, each with a different story and personality. One of my favorites to play from…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →20. Potion Permit I love the art style of this game and really was interested in the potions making aspect! I just don't know when I'll be able to dive into it now (maybe next October when I'm back in my witches and potions mindset)
positive · AI labelView post →This game, like many others, had a ton of "potential" that hasn't been realized. After playing the demo i didn't realize that it had left early access because that is exactly what the game felt like. But I enjoyed the character models and the idea of what could be coming in the future surrounding it. So, I purchased the game only to later realize it was actually released into 1.0 3 years ago... You won't find a finished product here. That's just how it is, and the devs aren't looking to…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →January 6th - 12th 🎀 I'll be working on Live2D rigging this week alongside some chat redeems. 🎀 We will also begin Potion Permit! This is a game I've wanted to play for so long! #vtuberen Let's have fun as we settle into our normal routine. 🎨 DuskArchivist
neutral · AI labelView post →As others have mentioned, this game is indeed a little grindy, repetitive, and undeniably a large fetch quest. If you are an achievement hunter, this game will be grindy; if you just like to get the main game finished and done with, this game may bore you. However, if you are the completionist type who likes to go through the entire story, then this game is quite enjoyable because the storylines for each character (and there are many) are each unique and heart-warming. The cutscenes and…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →You have a dog that follows you wherever you go. 10/10 You can also name it. I named mine Benjamin. 10/10. I love Benjamin. Benjamin is a good boy.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Potion Permit (X1/X) $11.99 via Xbox (Game Pass Core). ow.ly/2xjw50Uyaus
neutral · AI labelView post →[ Stream announcement ] It's time to mix potions and chat with you tonight in "Potion Permit" a comfy game about collecting ingredients and helping the townsfolk! Time: 11pm BST 6pm EDT Please form an orderly queue and I'll see you all very soon~ [ #Vtuber ] ▪️ [ #vtuberEN ] ▪️ [ #VTuberUprising ]
neutral · AI labelView post →I‘ve been playing it for like 12 hours so far, runs smooth on Deck, I’ve encountered no bugs so far, and I‘m not even in my first fall. If it didn‘t say early access, I wouldn‘t have been able to tell yet. I haven‘t regreted my purchase and it‘s honestly cheap even without a discount. The camera scrolls so stupidly smooth it‘s a joy, played a bunch of pixel games lately and it‘s sadly not a given (Potion Permit and its random stutters and sudden CPU load increases).
positive · AI labelView post →I've played a lot of cozy games. It tends to be my favorite genre. On the surface, Potion Permit is yet another entry to sit alongside Stardew and Mistria. You're a new face in a small town looking to build a life amongst a cast of colorful characters, this time as a chemist/doctor-for-some-reason. Sure. Boxes checked. The concept and presentation are fine, so what's the issue? The issue is it's really boring. Like, painfully boring. I can get lost in Stardew Valley for hours at a time,…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Reminds me of a lot of the farming sims, but without any farming. Basic loop consists of gathering materials, killing monsters, curing patients, saving resources to unlock new areas and upgrades, and improving relationships through NPC quest completion. The game does a lot of things well. The graphics are really nice. The loop is fine. There is a lot to do and a lot of story to tell while completing quests for NPCs. There are just a lot of things that don't feel good. The assorted minigames…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I love the artstyle and the animation. The game has a lot of potential but still feels kind of small and unfinished. I wish there was more to do. The mechanics for gathering ingredients get tedious and boring pretty fast. The npc stories and dialogue are great and the romance storylines are very cute, but after you start dating a character nothing really changes, which is kind of disappointing. I wish there were more options to customize your character and decorate as well as expand the town or…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I played the demo a few years ago and i finally got around to playing it, I was really excited, but a lot of things seem just as unpolished as they did during the demo, and you can see that the devs started with some care but that disappeared: Good thing: - i love the designs and world - it has very nice ideas Neutral things: - some people might think its bad, but i like the grinding to get to new areas Bad things: - the characters feel very flat at times - most cutscenes can be skipped…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This is a cozy game - gathering resources, rebuilding a community - but it's also sufficiently different from classics like Stardew Valley, Coral Island, or Fields of Mistria to be a new experience.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →🎮 GAME MINI-REVIEW: "POTION PERMIT" For anyone looking for a short, sweet, cozy experience, this one hits the spot! You are the town "chemist", gathering ingredients and healing patients through puzzles & mini-games. I loved befriending locals, though wish the dialogue and romances were deeper.
positive · AI labelView post →I do love this game but it feels slightly unfinished with the relationships. And with the inactivity of the game creators, I doubt that would change. The relationships stop at dating, nothing more. Aside from that, I enjoy how you have to forage and sort items for making potions and the interactions with the people. I like the trust idea but I don't see a real way to track it. Sure, there is a relationship meter but there isn't something to measure trust that I can see, only a notification that…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →It's a very 🐕💩 game. It's just looks good.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →It is a very esthetic game. However, the core gameplay gets very boring and throughout the playthrough there is not even a whisper of a challenge. It is a great mindless game to unwind to, but if you're looking for even semi-interesting gameplay, this is not that game. The puzzles, combat, and potion making is extremely easy.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Very linear generic fetch quest that has no real re-playability.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Thank you everyone for coming to stream! I have a great time playing Potion Permit and we will be making this a regular weekly game going forward! ~ We raided into Melta (Twitch) who is playing Grounded with some friends! Go say hai!
neutral · AI labelView post →I'm still frequently thinking about Potion Permit, because it simply offers the best love interest I've ever seen in a cozy game. #sketch #wip #potionpermit #potionpermitmatheo #potionpermitfanart
positive · AI labelView post →
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