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Stardew Valley is, on the surface, a simple farming simulator. However, upon starting your new life as a farmer, you realize there are a variety of tasks and challenges worth seeking and overcoming (this will be expanded upon later). Despite this being the case, Stardew Valley maintains a stance of being a game where the player may play at their leisure. The atmosphere that this game provides is one of relaxation, and acts as a very nice break to whatever other games you may be playing.


Gameplay:

The gameplay of Stardew Valley is the essential bread and butter of this game. Though it is rather casual in nature, the game provides such a unique variety of activities that it's hard to not do something at least somewhat productive. The core of the game can be surmised into six categories, five of which are skills you can enhance and level up by performing the activity.

The first and most obvious one being farming. Once you start the game, your first instinct is to go to the store to purchase seeds for you to grow as crops for your farm. And not without good reason, among the five activities, farming is the one most people will rely on to obtain a steady flow of funds so that they can move on to bigger and greater things (upgrading buildings, buying animals, etc.). Tending to your crops is essential as you're only equipped with a watering can and hoe. However, it all begins worth it once it becomes time to harvest, plucking each fruit and vegetable has its own charm and can cause you to buy even more seeds so that you may harvest even more crops.

The second is foraging, this can be accomplished through picking up wild berries, breaking and collecting rocks, or chopping up trees for wood. This is the other field you will likely be focused on early in the game as your farm land will initially have have many weeds to cut, and trees to chop so that you can make space for your crops to go in. However, even after cleaning it once doesn't mean that it's over as these things respawn on the farm at the start of every season, keeping you on your toes if your especially tidy about how you want your farm to look. Gathering materials like wood and stone is essential as they are required for many upgrades you will be seeking in the future.

The third skill is fishing, soon after starting you will be given a fishing rod. The addition of this item is what will initially start to bring more variety to your everyday in-game life. There are a fair amount of bodies of water for you to select from, and naturally fishing in different areas can cause you to capture different kinds of fish. Fish can also contribute to your income, but what truly shines about fishing is that it introduces some of the more difficult challenges the game has to offer. In the realm of fishing there are a special breed of fish known as the legendary fish, which needless to say are a cut above all the other fish you will catch. Though not a requirement, challenges such as this are what keep games entertaining to me.

Fourth we have my personal favorite, combat. That's right, you're a monster fighting farmer. Though the combat system isn't particularly complex, the simplicity of just being able to fight against monsters really adds to Stardew Valley's unique flavor. This can actually be coupled with the fifth and final skill, mining. Similar to the receiving of the fishing rod, access to the mines will later become available, as well as a much more challenging location that can be unlocked later on in the game. These mines are where you will primarily obtain your assortment of artifacts and minerals (stone, copper, iron, etc.). These minerals are essential to upgrading your gear so that your everyday life as a farmer can be made easier. However, the mines are also home to the many creatures of Stardew Valley, so you won't be bored just hacking away mindlessly at deposits of ore.

That does it for all the skills you can hone and polish throughout the game, but like the legendary fish, there are many other things to focus on in the game if you seek completion. Making friends, and even romancing characters lets the game sort of act like a dating sim, although most friendship marks will increase based on an item you give them as a gift. However, characters you can marry will provide special cut scenes as well dialogue options at certain milestones. So a quest of love also exists. The final major factor of this game is the community center where bundles can be contributed to. These bundles will consist of the fruits of your hard labor, literally. These bundles will require you to procure the highest quality of crops, a variety of monster drops, different species of fish, and more. By completing this sort of checklist, you can gain access to whole new areas filled with adventure (there are also many things to unlock and see even without the community center). There is another way to obtain access to these areas that require a large amount of funds... but most (in my experience) will avoid doing so.

Overall, there is just so much to do in this game, it's quite hard to ever become bored. In fact, depending on the person, this game can become incredibly addicting and as a result become an incredible time sink.

I will mention now, that there are still several factors in the game I haven't brought up which add to the game, but I felt that the points I brought up were considered the most important.

Sound:
A lot of the magic of this game comes from how soothing and well suited the music is to it. You understand this from the moment you load the game and go to the main menu. The music may not be on a grand scale, but it's certainly memorable. Sound effects from doing simple things like chopping wood or picking up a fruit are very simple. However, I see this as a part of the games charm with it's pixel graphics.

Graphics:
What you see is what you get. From the screenshots of the store alone you can see that this is a game that uses pixel graphics. There may be those that are a bit tired of seeing so many games adopt this style in today's day and age, but with Stardew Valley I truly feel that it is fitting for the game in how simplistic the mechanics are, yet how deep the game can get in terms of what to do and how to do it.

Performance:
The game doesn't require much to run as it is, and so performed with absolutely no issues for me. However, there was noticeable issues of lag in regards to the beta for multiplayer out right now.

Feature Wishlist:
The one thing this game needed is already being worked on, and that's a way to play with friends. The multiplayer is currently in beta however the issues aren't severe. Quite frankly, buying the game for multiplayer alone right now would be well worth it.

Pros:
+Possesses great replay value
+Simple in design, complex in practice
+Variety of fun things to do whenever
+Many quests to complete
+Romance options aren't limited to the opposite gender
+Great aesthetic and music to back it up

Cons:
-Multiplayer has issues in its current state
-Pierre closes on Wednesdays

Rating:
9/10

[quote][url=https://steamproxy.net/steamstore/curator/7871885/]Follow our curator page,[b] OCG-Curations[/b] if you like and want to see more reviews like this one.[/url][/quote] [h1] Overview [/h1] Stardew Valley is, on the surface, a simple farming simulator. However, upon starting your new life as a farmer, you realize there are a variety of tasks and challenges worth seeking and overcoming (this will be expanded upon later). Despite this being the case, Stardew Valley maintains a stance of being a game where the player may play at their leisure. The atmosphere that this game provides is one of relaxation, and acts as a very nice break to whatever other games you may be playing. [h1] Game Breakdown [/h1] [u] Gameplay: [/u] The gameplay of Stardew Valley is the essential bread and butter of this game. Though it is rather casual in nature, the game provides such a unique variety of activities that it's hard to not do something at least somewhat productive. The core of the game can be surmised into six categories, five of which are skills you can enhance and level up by performing the activity. The first and most obvious one being farming. Once you start the game, your first instinct is to go to the store to purchase seeds for you to grow as crops for your farm. And not without good reason, among the five activities, farming is the one most people will rely on to obtain a steady flow of funds so that they can move on to bigger and greater things (upgrading buildings, buying animals, etc.). Tending to your crops is essential as you're only equipped with a watering can and hoe. However, it all begins worth it once it becomes time to harvest, plucking each fruit and vegetable has its own charm and can cause you to buy even more seeds so that you may harvest even more crops. The second is foraging, this can be accomplished through picking up wild berries, breaking and collecting rocks, or chopping up trees for wood. This is the other field you will likely be focused on early in the game as your farm land will initially have have many weeds to cut, and trees to chop so that you can make space for your crops to go in. However, even after cleaning it once doesn't mean that it's over as these things respawn on the farm at the start of every season, keeping you on your toes if your especially tidy about how you want your farm to look. Gathering materials like wood and stone is essential as they are required for many upgrades you will be seeking in the future. The third skill is fishing, soon after starting you will be given a fishing rod. The addition of this item is what will initially start to bring more variety to your everyday in-game life. There are a fair amount of bodies of water for you to select from, and naturally fishing in different areas can cause you to capture different kinds of fish. Fish can also contribute to your income, but what truly shines about fishing is that it introduces some of the more difficult challenges the game has to offer. In the realm of fishing there are a special breed of fish known as the legendary fish, which needless to say are a cut above all the other fish you will catch. Though not a requirement, challenges such as this are what keep games entertaining to me. Fourth we have my personal favorite, combat. That's right, you're a monster fighting farmer. Though the combat system isn't particularly complex, the simplicity of just being able to fight against monsters really adds to Stardew Valley's unique flavor. This can actually be coupled with the fifth and final skill, mining. Similar to the receiving of the fishing rod, access to the mines will later become available, as well as a much more challenging location that can be unlocked later on in the game. These mines are where you will primarily obtain your assortment of artifacts and minerals (stone, copper, iron, etc.). These minerals are essential to upgrading your gear so that your everyday life as a farmer can be made easier. However, the mines are also home to the many creatures of Stardew Valley, so you won't be bored just hacking away mindlessly at deposits of ore. That does it for all the skills you can hone and polish throughout the game, but like the legendary fish, there are many other things to focus on in the game if you seek completion. Making friends, and even romancing characters lets the game sort of act like a dating sim, although most friendship marks will increase based on an item you give them as a gift. However, characters you can marry will provide special cut scenes as well dialogue options at certain milestones. So a quest of love also exists. The final major factor of this game is the community center where bundles can be contributed to. These bundles will consist of the fruits of your hard labor, literally. These bundles will require you to procure the highest quality of crops, a variety of monster drops, different species of fish, and more. By completing this sort of checklist, you can gain access to whole new areas filled with adventure (there are also many things to unlock and see even without the community center). There is another way to obtain access to these areas that require a large amount of funds... but most (in my experience) will avoid doing so. Overall, there is just so much to do in this game, it's quite hard to ever become bored. In fact, depending on the person, this game can become incredibly addicting and as a result become an incredible time sink. I will mention now, that there are still several factors in the game I haven't brought up which add to the game, but I felt that the points I brought up were considered the most important. [u] Sound: [/u] A lot of the magic of this game comes from how soothing and well suited the music is to it. You understand this from the moment you load the game and go to the main menu. The music may not be on a grand scale, but it's certainly memorable. Sound effects from doing simple things like chopping wood or picking up a fruit are very simple. However, I see this as a part of the games charm with it's pixel graphics. [u] Graphics: [/u] What you see is what you get. From the screenshots of the store alone you can see that this is a game that uses pixel graphics. There may be those that are a bit tired of seeing so many games adopt this style in today's day and age, but with Stardew Valley I truly feel that it is fitting for the game in how simplistic the mechanics are, yet how deep the game can get in terms of what to do and how to do it. [u] Performance: [/u] The game doesn't require much to run as it is, and so performed with absolutely no issues for me. However, there was noticeable issues of lag in regards to the beta for multiplayer out right now. [u] Feature Wishlist: [/u] The one thing this game needed is already being worked on, and that's a way to play with friends. The multiplayer is currently in beta however the issues aren't severe. Quite frankly, buying the game for multiplayer alone right now would be well worth it. [h1] Conclusion [/h1] [u] Pros: [/u] +Possesses great replay value +Simple in design, complex in practice +Variety of fun things to do whenever +Many quests to complete +Romance options aren't limited to the opposite gender +Great aesthetic and music to back it up [u] Cons: [/u] -Multiplayer has issues in its current state -Pierre closes on Wednesdays [u] Rating: [/u] [b] 9/10 [/b]