Stardew Valley

Stardew Valley was something of a conundrum for me at first: it's simplistic, it's repetitive, it's got possibly the worst combat system I've ever encountered, yet it has literally enraptured me for hundreds of hours. Why did this game capture my attention for so long when there appears to be so little to offer? Because it delivers exactly what it promises in an almost perfectly crafted experience.

On first inspection Stardew could be mistaken for a Facebook Farmville clone, you tend land, plant crops, look after them, harvest, rinse repeat. Sure, there is some exploration goals which help you flesh things out, along with a social simulator, and a nice little fishing game, but everything is repeated ad nauseum. Create your farm, build it out and start making cash, become friends with everyone in town, get married and start a family, there's even co-op play if that's your thing, none of this this explains why I loved the game so dearly, then it struck me what made it work, the time constraint.

The clock in Stardew Valley is always running, and quickly. There is only so much time to get everything done in a day and, even if there was more time, there is your energy level to contend with. Everything of consequence that you will do requires exerting energy and while it is true you can replenish it, this requires using resources that you may need to sell for cash to make your next goal, those goals being the bundles.

The first time I played the game I played it for several years, acquiring more cash, making more friends, and getting achievements, but the meat and potatoes of this game is in the first year and the Community Hall bundles. Very early in the game you are given a mystery to solve, which quickly manifests itself in a series of goals that need to be fulfilled, ranging from harvesting certain crops to foraging certain items and on to catching certain fish. Each and every one of these, except for one glaring exception, are attainable within the first year of gameplay, if done right, and that little puzzle consumed me for hours and hours. What I have in the next few pages is not the only way to play the game, perhaps not the best way to play the game, but it is my way to play the game, one that I have honed and had great success with.