{"id":168753,"date":"2019-10-19T02:00:20","date_gmt":"2019-10-18T18:00:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.geek.com\/featured\/-1807824\/"},"modified":"2019-10-19T02:00:20","modified_gmt":"2019-10-18T18:00:20","slug":"review-stranded-sails-takes-farm-sims-to-the-high-seas","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/itteacheritfreelance.hk\/test\/wordpress\/2019\/10\/19\/review-stranded-sails-takes-farm-sims-to-the-high-seas\/","title":{"rendered":"Review: \u2018Stranded Sails\u2019 Takes Farm Sims to the High Seas"},"content":{"rendered":"
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One of the coolest things about being a games reviewer is playing titles outside of my comfort zone. One genre I\u2019ve never even looked at before was farming sims. I didn\u2019t see the point of planting crops or feeding animals in a game. I\u2019d rather go around shooting or hacking stuff up. But playing titles like Dragon Quest Builders 2<\/em><\/a> and this article\u2019s featured title, Stranded Sails<\/em>, has at least given me an understanding of why farming sims have a following. While not perfect, Stranded Sails<\/em> delivers a pleasant, relaxing experience.<\/p>\n

Stranded Sails<\/em> starts with the player character stranded on an undiscovered island along with their shipmates. Their goal is to establish a community for the stranded crew by gathering and building items needed for survival. Players accomplish this by exploring the various small islands surrounding their home base. The ultimate goal is building a ship large enough to get everyone home. Stranded Sails<\/em>\u2019 core objective is straightforward and helps keeps players focused.<\/p>\n

Every task in Stranded Sails<\/em> relates to getting off the island in some way. Even seemingly innocuous quests like finding treasure chests or cooking specific foods help drive the main plot forward. I had no problem with this since I knew I wasn\u2019t wasting my time performing useless tasks. However, I can see how this lack of quest variety could turn off some players. For example, you can\u2019t build relationships with your crew as they exist purely to dole out tasks and give you rewards. Again, I don\u2019t have an issue with this, but some players certainly will.<\/p>\n

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Farming is at the heart of Stranded Sails<\/em>. In the beginning, you\u2019ll get a small plot of land where you\u2019ll learn to grow tomatoes, onions, and potatoes. As you continue exploring, you\u2019ll find different fruits and vegetables to grow. Farming is especially crucial since you constantly have to feed yourself in order to maintain your stamina. Every activity: from walking, chopping wood, rowing boats, and fishing drains stamina. If your stamina depletes, you\u2019re sent back to the main camp. While this isn\u2019t a huge penalty, it\u2019s annoying having to revisit a far off island because you passed out. Having a supply of food is essential for long-term exploration.<\/p>\n

The act of cooking is easy. You select the food items you want to use from a menu and drop them into the cooking station. You\u2019re free to mix and match a variety of different foods (some more appetizing than others). The only issue is that you need to select and place foods in a precise order. This leads to a great amount of trial and error as you try to figure out the order to put items in. While this encourages players to try different combinations, the whole process becomes tedious. This is especially bothersome considering how important cooking is gameplay-wise. In order to progress, you\u2019ll just have to deal with the quirks of the cooking system.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m not the biggest fan of crafting in most games but I like its implementation in Stranded Sails<\/em> since it\u2019s so easy. As long as you have the required items to build objects like boats, homes, and bridges, you\u2019re set. The crafting bench always tells you exactly how much of an item you need. All you have to do is go out and find them. Unlike cooking, there is no trial and error in crafting, which is a blessing. I wish cooking was as easy as crafting.<\/p>\n

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The last major component of Stranded Sails<\/em> is exploration. You\u2019ll find all manner of different foods, crafting items, fish, and treasure boxes as you navigate through the world. Exploring is as simple as hopping on a boat and going to the next island. But as I\u2019ve said, you\u2019ll want to have plenty of food in stock to keep your stamina up. I enjoyed the simplicity of exploration. Like farming, it\u2019s a nice, chill experience.<\/p>\n

For a game that\u2019s all about farming, crafting, and exploring, it\u2019s interesting that Stranded Sails<\/em> contains combat. It\u2019s not an involved process. All players have to do is hack at enemies with a sword until they perish. The caveat is that they must watch their stamina during battle. Attacking drains stamina, as does taking damage. I personally could have done without combat. I understand this is a swashbuckling adventure and fighting comes with the territory. However, considering how laid back most of the game is, combat feels incongruous. That said, the reason for the existence of enemies connects with the main story. So in that sense, combat serves a function.<\/p>\n