The Farmer’s Story of Slow Life is a game that honestly is going to appeal to a very specific sort of person. The problem is, that person probably has already bought Stardew Valley or a game in the Harvest Moon series, both of which are better games.
I don’t want to sound too negative here. The game itself is perfectly fine. In fact, I think it looks better than Stardew Valley. I feel like that retro pixel art style is overdone, and adds nothing to a game in most cases. Farmer’s Story absolutely obliterates Stardew graphically, with a ton of very attractive sprites. The music is another case where it’s blowing pretty much any other game completely out of the water. The soundtrack is delightful and adds to the charm of the game. The game also tells you the title and composer of each track, which is another nice touch.
Otherwise, though, it’s just the same thing that you’ve done a million times. Collect raw materials to make tools, food, etc. Use those tools to make more complex items. Put various raw materials and items into a box that auto-sells your products for you. You’ve done everything here that you’ve done before in other titles. Unless this is your first time taking the plunge on this style of game, you’re not going to see anything new. If you don’t like this style of game, there’s nothing here that’s going to convert you into a fan.
There’s also the matter of translations – while the English translation is generally competent, the words aren’t formatted properly in the text box. It’s a minor pet peeve in the grand scheme of things, but it absolutely drives me nuts to re-read things because a word cut off awkwardly on a line break. You also have to manage both fatigue AND hunger also feels needlessly punitive and designed to draw things out, rather than to serve any other purpose. It’s frustrating, annoying, and honestly, I hated this mechanic to an extreme level.
I want to be clear: this game is NOT BAD. It’s entirely competent. It’s just that this subgenre has been done SO much better that Farmer’s Story feels rather pointless. It adds nothing to the genre. It does nothing you haven’t seen a dozen times before. Honestly, asking $25 USD is a lot for this. I’m giving it a recommendation, but it comes with the huge caveat of “only buy this if you’re aching for a new IP”. If you haven’t burned yourself out on the amazing Stardew Valley, just keep playing that.
If you’d like to give this one a shot, however, CLICK HERE to buy it on Steam.
The Chuck is a lifelong gamer who was born in Ohio, but now lives in much closer proximity to Mickey Mouse.
The Chuck has found his life to be a series of improbable and almost unbelievable events, starting when he was twenty and caught the bubonic plague from a prairie dog. He was as surprised as anyone when he found out that's something that can happen.
When he isn't gaming, The Chuck can be found enjoying baseball, (American) football, pro wrestling, and horror movies. He is most commonly seen in the company of one or more cats.
Reclusive by nature, The Chuck is (like most semi-feral creatures) reward-driven. Approach with caution and some form of treat.
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