Little Big Workshop Review – A SatisFactory sim

All good ideas have to start somewhere. Maybe it’s in a small shed, your dad’s garage or at your work desk. The origin point for business is usually one of humble beginnings, a trusted staff of few and a dream to create something of quality and value that the masses will want to purchase. That’s the core idea of Little Big Workshop, a game that tasks you with setting up your own factory and cranking out the product that will set the business world on fire.

It’s done so with an adorable aesthetic mind you, a tabletop industry where cute little workers buzz about and assemble anything from chairs to spades to more complex goods as they expand and build their business. Here’s the rub though: For all of its whimsical design and cute as a button workers, Little Big Workshop is a sim game with some pure cutthroat potential.

Every product requires equipment, logistics and talented hands to put it together, starting with a blueprint that you build out from and use for projects. It’s there where you make decisions on which material to use, which processes to focus on and if certain corners need to be cut. That complexity extends beyond the planning phase, as market values fluctuate, equipment breaks down and worker morale needs to be monitored.

That’s just one aspect where Little Big Workshop truly shines, as its up to you to decide just how much value each of your workers have to you. Sure, you could train them and nurture them, keep their spirits in tiptop condition by creating a workspace that keeps them healthy in more ways than one. Or, and hear me out here as I flex my American capitalism muscles here, you could work the little fellas to the bone and create a sweatshop with a revolving door policy that will see you burn through employees quicker than a crunch period at Rockstar Games.

It’s up to you to find the balance between valued employee and indentured serf, as bottom lines need to be met if you want to stay in business and certain sacrifices need to be made as you expand. At the same time, who says expansion is even necessary? Little Big Workshop may give you the tools to grow your company, but there’s no rush to the market unless you want that pressure.

There’s a certain charm in sticking to a mom ‘n pop industry that is content to remain small as you churn out simple items, although building a relationship with up and coming businesses will push you to invest in new skills, technologies and growing beyond your starting point. That makes for a game that’s as complex as you want it to be, as escalation comes at your own pace.

Last Updated: October 16, 2019