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Farming meets fighting and a great story in this Square Enix RPG - Harvestella Quick Review

1K View2022-11-08

Harvestella has become one of my favorite games of the year. Given its name, I initially expected the title to be purely focused on farming and harvesting produce, but I was surprised to find a much deeper experience. Harvestella features immersive storytelling, delightful dialogue, dynamic and intuitive combat, balanced gameplay, expansive exploration, and exceptional and captivating visuals.

THE STORY

Harvestella begins with the player-created character passing out in the middle of a town during a calamity known as Quietus. This character eventually awakes after being nursed by the town’s doctor. Though they cannot remember their past or what brought them there in the first place, the protagonist is welcomed by the mayor and townsfolk. From here, this character starts living their newfound life as an adventurer and farmer, unraveling the mystery of Quietus and the world’s origin, regaining their memories, and making friends along the way.

TIME PLAYED

I played Harvestella for seven and a half hours. It took roughly two hours to finish the game’s extensive tutorials. Once I passed this point, I was able to completely explore different areas, acquire quests, and truly enjoy Harvestella to its fullest.

PLATFORMS

Harvestella was recently released on PC and Nintendo Switch. I played on PC and found that the game ran smoothly.

WHAT’S AWESOME

• Storytelling. The journey I’ve been on in Harvestella has been filled with delightful tales and intriguing dialogue between mysterious and sometimes rather bizarre-looking characters. The game lacks voice acting throughout its storytelling. However, in a way I felt like this silence complemented the immersion, allowing me to form my own unique thoughts and sentiments about the adventure.

• Farming. Harvestella embraces a traditional farming game loop, where I had to collect, plant, and tend to the needs of various crops, then harvest them and sell them, then spend money purchasing even more seeds or equipment and upgrades to make my farming more efficient. Tending to my farmstead was calming, wholesome, and exactly what I needed after a day’s worth of perilous adventures.

• Combat. Harvestella’s combat system is extensive, enthralling, intuitive, and dynamic in a way few action-RPGs pull off. The game allows you to swap seamlessly between different classes during battle. Each class has its own weapon and a skill tree that can be fully unlocked using ability points, which are earned by using that specialization to eliminate monsters. Add in a lot of variety to the monsters that show up in dungeons, and Harvestella’s combat makes for a thrilling experience.

• Aesthetic. Harvestella’s visuals, background music, and ambiance play a massive part in its gameplay experience. There were many times during cutscenes and dialogue when I found myself completely dumbfounded and entranced by the beauty of Harvestella’s aesthetic. Exploration was rewarded with breathtaking views of towns, dungeons, and even my own flourishing garden.

• Difficulty. I wasn’t always able to finish exploring an area in Harvestella without dying, buy I came to admire that challenge. The game isn’t overly difficult, but it definitely didn’t hold my hand either. It strikes a delicate balance that gave weight to the choices I made in character progression and during tough combat scenarios. If I wasn’t careful when exploring areas with high-level monsters, I could quickly be overwhelmed and die. If I didn’t return home after midnight, I could pass out from exhaustion, which has its own repercussions. The difficulty in Harvestella was enough to keep me pushing forward and feeling rewarded when I succeeded.

WHAT SUCKS

• Character creation. Harvestella only has two character models and four skin tone pallets—very limited options for building an adventurer. Add in a couple of color choices to style my character’s hair and eyes, and every possible design looked pretty much the same. That said, I could also choose to make my character non-binary if I wasn’t comfortable using a female or male adventurer. Still, I wished there was a much more extensive variety of customization options to create my character because I feel like it would’ve deepened my connection with it during my adventures in Harvestella.

SHOULD YOU PLAY IT?

Yes! Harvestella is a brilliant and absolutely stunning life-simulation RPG. The game features farming elements, but it’s so much more than turnips and carrots. Harvestella’s combat system is a blast, while its aesthetically pleasing and entrancing visuals and music provide a magnificent experience.

💬 If you suddenly woke up in a different world and couldn’t remember anything, what’s the first thing you’d do, and why? Tell us in the comments below!

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