Stardew Valley (2016)
Written by Di
OK, so I am newish to this whole Stardew Valley thing.
I wasn’t a naysayer, but I wasn’t that interested in it until speaking with a co-worker about it.
I didn’t know the level of complexity this game had. From the outside it looked like a simple farming game, but boy howdy I was wrong! The reason you go to the farm is because you inherit it from your dead grandfather who was loved in the town.
There is so much lore in the game that keeps me interested in it. When I think there is nothing else to do, I start to form another friendship with the townspeople and the game keeps going or I go cave diving to fight things from slimes to Magma Sparker. Don’t get me started on the mummies that don’t die!!!
Something that I do love from Stardew Valley is seeing all the cutscenes from the townspeople. Finding out their backstories interests me. There are so many people to get to know in town and just outside of it. If you connect with people in the game they will send you free items sporadically.
Game of Love
Relationships are an important part of the game. You can build friendships and romantic relationships with certain people. Alex and Harvey were the two I focused on getting to know first. Ultimately, I ended up marrying Alex because he will occasionally help out on the farm. Different townspeople will do different things on your farm after you get married. I was honestly going for Harvey the hardest until I found out that he still charges you full price if you’re found wounded. That’s BS! Apparently the most helpful person in the game is Abigail. She helps the most out on the farm.
After getting married you have the option to start a family. It takes some time before you get asked, but you can only have two kids. I have one right now with Alex. Be warned! You can get divorced in the game. I didn’t know that it was a possibility until doing some research about the game. I will link an extremely helpful website at the bottom of the article.
Life in the Valley
Let’s talk about the mining in the game. You can collect so many different items while mining. There are metals, gems, and artifacts to collect. In town there is a museum and library where you can turn the gems and artifacts into Gunter. To me it is fun to collect all of the things and turn it into him to see the information that he shares with you.
While you are mining you run into monsters you have to fight to stay alive. There are so many different monsters in the game. The slimes are cute little things that attack. Most of the monsters are in the caves, but they can attack you in most areas. The most annoying creatures to me are the serpents. They can attack you in groups and they take a ton of hp when they do hit you. Annoying. Just annoying.
Now fishing… that is a whole beast I haven’t really touched on yet. It’s a good mechanic, but it is time consuming. I promise I will be better at it and report back to you. There are other aspects of the game that interest me more at the moment.
Finally the area that most people think of when it comes to Stardew Valley. Farming. Farming is a huge part of the game. It is your source of money! You can grow crops and raise animals to make you money to upgrade your farm and fund your expeditions in the game. Food is a way to heal and regain energy during your travels in the game.
Stardew Valley is a game that has a ton of personality. There are many things you can do in the game that makes the small price tag for the game even easier to swallow. If you’re looking for a game that is worth every penny and you like survival type games, this is your game. You can spend months playing it and not get bored. Well I can anyway.
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