It’s been a while since I wrote about a video game so I thought today would be a good day to talk about the one I’ve been obsessed with. And I do mean, obsessed. Stardew Valley is the majority of the reason I have been so terrible at blogging lately. (That and we’re starting to look into remodeling our house… more on that later!)
If you’ve never heard of this game, don’t feel bad. The husband started playing it a few months ago and on a day where I was at a loss of something to do (gee, Anna… you could of WRITTEN!), I decided to give it a shot. This game is pretty awesome in it’s simplicity. If you’ve ever played Harvest Moon, its VERY similar to that.
“You’ve inherited your grandfather’s old farm plot in Stardew Valley. Armed with hand-me-down tools and a few coins, you set out to begin your new life. Can you learn to live off the land and turn these overgrown fields into a thriving home?”
In this game I’m a purple haired girl who just wants to make melon jelly all day. When I’m not farming or mining, I’m trying to get in the good graces of the local geeks (Sebastian and Abigail) and am currently courting them both.
I got into this game at first because I really enjoyed Harvest Moon when I was younger. Stardew has far exceeded my expectations. The game is so well and classically built I honestly can’t wait to get home and play. Though I got into this game because of the similarities to Harvest Moon, this game stands on it’s own.
In the first few seasons you run around your farm discovering what you want to do. Unlike Harvest Moon the only structure you start out with is your house. I’m in the middle of Fall and I still don’t have a coop, or barn yet… but I can make some kick ass jelly! Any other structure you want, you have to commission yourself to have built.
FAVORITES
The mining is my favorite part of the game. You’re not just hitting stones and hoping for ore or something greater. There are fiends you also have to fight as you’re gathering your provisions. This features adds elements similar to Minecraft that I surprisingly enjoyed as much as I do.
In the town, you have a lot of people you can interact with. I was immediately drawn to Sebastian, the basement dwelling boy who works as a programmer and feels like his job never taken seriously. I have a type. But then, out of curiosity, I thought I’d see if I could court the only nerdy girl in the town, Abigail. According to the game, there is nothing stating that you can’t marry either gender. This small inclusion is actually pretty awesome to me.
Lastly, the soundtrack for this game is incredibly calming and relaxing. I could sit on the home screen and just listen to the music all day.
The community for this game is awesome! Their wiki is one of the most thorough gaming wikis I’ve ever come across. I use it for everything from seeing what plants will yield the most money, to subtly stalking Abigail and Sebastian to see where I can give them presents.
The game is available on Steam for PC, Mac and Linux.
What games have you been playing?
