![Stardew Valley - Nintendo Switch [Digital Code]](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/5169YeVCjKL._SY300_SX300_QL70_FMwebp_.jpg)
![Stardew Valley - Nintendo Switch [Digital Code]](https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/81LJeCDylML._AC_UL200_SR200,200_.jpg)
So if you're here, you've probably read the whole mythos about Stardew Valley. Originally based on Harvest Moon, it made entirely by a single person as a labor of love. The result is ostensibly a farming simulator mixed with an RPG mixed with an action/adventure with a ton of open-ended gameplay.
Gameplay:
Basically, the idea of the game is that you inherit a farm and are tasked with developing it. There are tons of things you can do towards that goal. Your basic function is to raise and sell crops to earn money and achieve certain goals. You can also perform additional tasks such as fishing, foraging, and mining to gain additional income/resources. The entire resource economy is fairly well done, and there's no single item that really breaks the game. You have to make the most of each day though, as your character is only awake from 6AM to 2AM and will faint if you aren't in bed by 2AM, resulting in a penalty.
There are vast caves to explore in the game, and within these caves you encounter monsters that you must combat. That's right - this farming simulator has tons of creative monsters, as well as a variety of weapons and ammunition. The caves are procedurally-generated, meaning that they aren't the same each time you go into them. The caves contain a variety of items to collect, including useable ores, valuable gemstones, and other items for combat or selling. You can unlock different caverns by advancing through the game.
Characters:
The townsfolk of Stardew Valley are one of the best aspects of the game. The characters you encounter have unique personalities, and more importantly, they are written like real people. Most RPGs handle their NPCs as one-dimensional characters who exist to advance a plot. Stardew Valley's characters are more like real people, and their dialogue/actions don't exist merely to service the plot or to define a single character trait they're assigned. Every character has flaws, concerns, and a believable backstory. One of the biggest delights of this game is experiencing all their stories. Hell, it's even beautiful sometimes.
Graphics:
The graphics absolutely capture the vibe of an early-90s adventure game, but much cleaner. It's meant to replicate the 16-bit graphics, and it delivers in beautiful form.
Music:
The music in this is actually damn good. Instead of matching the 16-bit vibe, the developer opted to go with a more modern backing soundtrack, which changes with the season. Video game music can often be grating or boring, but this is neither. It's very relaxing, and I listen to it a lot while working in the office.
Overall vibe:
Very relaxing. There is a time limit to each day, but the gameplay is open ended so you can do whatever you want within that time limit. This is the kind of game you turn to if you want to escape normal life and just go somewhere that only demands your time and imagination. There's clearly a lot of passion put into it, and nearly every aspect of the game feels inspired.
Port quality:
As you may know, Stardew Valley started its life as a PC game. Usually when games are ported to a console, major game aspects or functionality suffer. That is not the case here. Literally the only potential issue is the cursor, which is mainly used to access the notifications screen. It's a bit ungainly, but definitely worse with a joystick than a mouse. Luckily, you rarely use that. Luckily, the switch to Switch has made some controls better, such as using the joystick for combat instead of the keyboard. In generally, this is one of the best PC to Console ports I've come across.
Summary:
It's honestly astonishing that this game was made by a single person. Most major game companies never produce games of this quality. And it's not a small game! The base game can take dozens of hours to beat, and realistically you can easily put in hundreds of hours. I have more time with this than I do with Animal Crossing. This is far bigger than the average indie game. You absolutely should buy it!
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A Wonderful Game!
A very wonderful and calming game for anyone looking for something a bit more laid-back! The world and characters have a lot of depth that makes playing feel very personable. You can tell that there it is a lot of love that goes into making this game. If you are a fan of the Harvest Moon games from the Game Boy Advance or the Nintendo DS eras, this may be right up your alley. I have Stardew Valley on many different platforms and I couldn’t wait to have it for the switch. The digital code arrived instantly and it is very easy to redeem.
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