As the title suggests, Farlands is effectively Stardew Valley in space. Is that a good thing? Absolutely. I’m still trying to dedicate some time to the classic farming game, having owned it for years (on two platforms as well – backlog, anyone?), but the time I’ve spent with it has been good. As this is a review game, I have to play it, so no excuse, besides being a little late with this one.
Unlike most lifestyle games where you take over a dilapidated hut, in JanduSoft’s latest, you take over a whole planet. That’s right, customise your little chap and then place your thumbprint on the tablet and boom! It’s all yours. The thing is, the place is a mess and could do with your TLC. Fortunately, that’s what kind of wholesome game this is. Get out your pickaxe.
The setup for Farlands will be very familiar. You will have a little home to collapse in with inventory management, and an overgrown land that’s full of rocks, rubbish and robots. Sure, you’re up to speed with the hoes and axes, but what the flip is a robot doing here? As this is the future, you’re a dab hand at fixing robots, Mr House, so after some brief scavenging, you have a little helper and someone to talk to. But first: humble beginnings
As you might expect, you have a lot of clearing up to do. With all the manual tools you need, you can scroll through all available gear with the shoulder buttons, sifting through the right tool to remove each resource. No doubt I will repeat myself about Stardew Valley, but I haven’t got far in that at all, so can’t comment on how it progresses. What I do like about Farlands, which can be a little fiddly at times, is being able to purposefully direct your little avatar with diagonal tasks such as chopping at wood in the corner, without having to switch repeatedly between tools to clear everything.
I don’t know about you, but coming from a large collection of first-person simulators of clearing stuff up or giving it a good scrub, I am more than content in cleaning for the majority, and the only caveat here is the energy bar and keeping an eye on it else you’ll pass out and waste your time on medical bills, missed telly, and eventual beard growth (male or female). Consequently, if you’re up for steaming through, you might be frustrated at the very slow pace, but hey – farming life.
By the time you clear enough space and expend the available crops, you have the opportunity to explore other areas. This is where the sci-fi element shines in Farlands as you aren’t popping over the bridge to the next county, but heading to another planet to gain resources. This will lead to better produce as well as better tools that can do more than water one plant at a time and target larger areas, thus making your job a bit better.
These planets are also populated with alien characters you can mingle with, so it doesn’t feel like an isolated affair. Besides that, if befriending your plants and cattle isn’t enough, there’s an underlying story about a space ‘entrepreneur’ going around swallowing up planets and letting them rot. You can follow that path, of course. Still, as I had predicted, I spent far more time cleaning everything up, adding a bit of symmetry, nurturing my plants and wildlife with respect, all the while ignoring my very real plant and dog (sorry, Matilda and Zelda – daddy will feed you in a minute). If that’s the kind of thing you want, then Farlands might be a good choice – especially if you’re tired of haystacks and dungerees. For me, I’m thinking I will dive back into Stardew Valley on the PC, and keep Farlands ticking along on the Switch 2. It’s pretty darn good.
