Game Recommendation #3: Stardew Valley

Stardew Valley (published by Chuckle Fish and developed by Concerned Ape) is one of the most addictingly fun games out there. It uses the elements of Animal Crossing, Facebook games and phone games, adds depth and complex gameplay, and then creates something new.

Story

The main story of Stardew Valley is that you are an office worker for Jojo Market, but one day you get tired of that lifestyle and decide to go to the farm that you inherited from your late grandfather. 

After that, the story differs on the alternate paths that you make through the game. Every day you have a certain amount of energy. You can use that energy to do a variety of things, from growing plants on you farm, to fishing or even going through the depths of mines with monsters to find valuable resources. Your main goal is to make the money you need to survive, to accomplish missions that the NPC's (non-player characters) give you, and to learn more about the people and secrets of the town. You really have to create your own missions for yourself, because just like in real life, there's no real set path.

Gameplay

 

The easiest of the challenges is probably farming, as it doesn't require a ton of skill to accomplish. Fishing takes mental energy, and mining gets harder the farther you go. The hardest part is not running out of energy or money.

As you go on, you learn more about the other characters in the game, and they all have fun personalities. All of the characters have things you can learn about them, and the friendship and romantic story arcs add to the replay-ability of the game.

Customization

At the beginning of the game, you can make your character look like anything because of all the options offered. You get to pick the name of your farm, the color of your eyes, even if you want a cat or a dog. I shouldn't forget to mention that the graphics in this game are beautiful, the pixel style adds to the complexity instead of making it overly simplified.

Who would I recommend this game to?

I would recommend this game to a casual audience who has a lot of time on their hands. This game is insanely addicting, once you start, you don't want to stop for a week of game time. There are constant challenges that you set for yourself that you want to accomplish as soon as possible. So, if you have enough time to dwell into this game, you can check it out here on Steam for $14.99. It is a cheerful, beautiful game where you get to carve your own path in your own world.

So what are your thoughts on Stardew Valley? Do you think it's as addicting as I do? What games would you like me to recommend next?