Between raising livestock, managing an ever-growing farm, and helping needy neighbors, players will always have something to do in Big Farm Story. Early on in their experience with the game, players will get a feel for exactly what type of title this is as it expertly guides them through its tutorial stages and teaches the ins and outs of the gameplay loop. That said, there’s a lot to experience that players will need to invest quite a bit of time into in order to see properly, and understanding these nuances can help when making a decision about the game.
Big Farm Story is developed by Goodgame Studios, a German developer best known for some of its many successful mobile games. This marks the studio’s first foray into the world of PC gaming, but its mobile roots definitely shine through. Despite this, Big Farm Story manages to provide a unique and charming experience that can be both quite fun and calming even for those that don’t typically play farming simulator games or the like. It certainly isn’t perfect, but Big Farm Story is just a few minor adjustments away from being a great experience.
The first thing players will notice when booting up the game is its art style, which tends towards the charming side. The character models, area design, and general aesthetic are all very pleasing, and its use of lighting adds to the beauty of the player’s rustic farm. Within the game itself, there is also a lot of potential for customization, as the interior of the player’s house can be customized with furniture in an intuitive and enjoyable way. Even the character’s pig companion has different outfits that players can dress them up in, including one that turns them into a unicorn with a rainbow trail.
The music does an excellent job of complementing these visuals as well, providing a warm tone that seems to fit perfectly. There isn’t anything that particularly stands out about the soundtrack, but that feels by design. Players may find themselves getting lost in the atmosphere of Big Farm Story thanks to the effective combo of endearing visuals and relaxing music to the point where they may not realize the overall monotony of what they are actually doing. This is where the biggest failure of Big Farm Story comes into play.
With the word “Farm” in the title, one might think that the farming mechanics would be the most refined system of all, but this simply isn’t the case. In order to plant any crop, players must approach one of their open fields and perform a series of actions. For each individual crop, players will find themselves tilling the ground, planting a seed, and watering it over the course of three animations that aren’t long by themselves but start to feel dull and repetitive after a while. Each crop also has a specific amount of real life time to grow, so quite a bit of waiting is involved with stocking up on a particular crop.
Generally, Big Farm Story gives players plenty of other things to do while waiting for crops, so that isn’t a big deal, but certain early crops such as the carrots and wildflower grow so quickly that some will find themselves constantly running back to the farm in order to keep crops growing. This sort of behavior is typical of gamers that prefer to play as efficiently as possible, but Big Farm Story should be taken for what it is – a casual and lighthearted experience. Viewing it in any other way paints it in a less than satisfactory light.
When they aren’t tending their farm or decorating their home, players will find themselves enveloped in Big Farm Story‘s storyline. The basic premise sees the player’s character given ownership of their Grandfather’s farm after receiving a mysterious letter. Upon arriving at the farm, Grandpa is inexplicably missing, so the character takes it upon themselves to fix up the farm and look for their Grandpa. Unfortunately, the people of the neighboring farms, homesteads, and cities aren’t that helpful in this endeavor.
Rather than helping the player find their missing Grandfather, these people send them on various tasks such as cleaning up the market or nurturing livestock. For the most part, these early quests are meant to give players a rundown of how to play the game, but they do clash narratively at times with the gameplay. If players can look past this oddity or even enjoy it for how wacky it can be at times, there is quite a bit of depth to explore within Big Farm Story that will entice players the further into the game they get.
The dialog is wholesome, though players have the option to act less enthusiastic should they choose, and while raising livestock and helping out around the town can be a lot of fun, it doesn’t take long for some flaws to appear. About an hour and a half into the game, players will hit a quest that requires them to obtain four eggs. Though this sounds easy enough, the process can take a lot of time and ends up being the first instance of the gameplay feeling interrupted. Players will need to attain a baby chick, nurture and care for it until it grows up, feed it, and then wait for it to lay four eggs, a process which takes at least an hour on its own if the player is being efficient.
For this reason, Big Farm Story isn’t a game that gamers should expect to sit down and play for an evening exclusively, but rather something that is good to either have in the background or come back to every now and then. If this is sounding more like a mobile game on PC, that’s because it does eventually begin to feel like that. Unfortunately with the systems currently in place, it simply can’t be anything more than that.
With all of that said, fans should keep in mind that numerous features and updates are going to be added to the game over time. Already the idea of seasons and new areas have been teased in game, and there are other great mechanics that could push this out of the realm of a mobile game. Taking inspiration from other farming games such as Harvest Moon or Stardew Valley would be a great place to start, as certain mechanics such as a way to speed time up by sleeping or introducing some quality of life changes allowing certain actions to be completed with fewer clicks.
Ultimately, Big Farm Story has a lot of promise but misses the mark by a hair due to its overtly mobile nature. Some minor adjustments would kick it forward and put it on the same level as other popular PC farming games, but it remains to be seen whether those changes are made. For the $20.00 price tag currently attached to this title, players should only consider purchasing it if they are looking for a casual and relaxing experience they can enjoy at a leisurely pace.
Big Farm Story is available on Steam. Game Rant was provided a PC code for this review.
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