Fae Farm is a beautiful farming sim where you cultivate crops, craft items to decorate your home with or sell, and care for adorable farm animals. Befriend a varying cast of townspeople, and even romance some of them. Plus, you even get to venture into the faerie realm, where you’ll see faeries and fantastical creatures not seen in the human realm. Even delve deep into the mines to collect resources, fight enemies, and uncover mysteries!
The art in Fae Farm is absolutely gorgeous. It’s easy to fall in love with the game based on that alone. The scenery is varied. The NPCs all look different. Even your clothing options are lovely. Then, the furniture and decorating choices are great. You’re sure to find something that suits your style, whatever it may be. Adventuring into the fae realm is probably my favorite part. It’s so whimsical and magical. Even the dungeon is dreamy, though chock full of enemies. The art is absolutely what drew me to the game to begin with!
What I also really like about Fae Farm is that tools switch automatically for you. Walk up to a tree to chop, and you’ll immediately have your axe in hand. Then, go to a rock and poof! There’s your pickaxe! It’s a super handy mechanic that I would love to see in all farming sims. It saves time and lets me switch between activities much faster. Besides that, fast travel unlocks early game. There are several points across the map called Wayshrines that act as fast travel spots. You need to craft a seal from cave resources in order to activate the Wayshrine, but you can accomplish that easily early on. Having fast travel early in the game makes it genuinely useful and not just an afterthought. Plus, the mines have waypoints where you can place seals you’ve crafted in order to get to different levels without going through the whole mine. Think Stardew Valley’s mine elevator, but with more magic and teleporting!
Unfortunately, Fae Farm has more aspects that I dislike than I like. In order to play multiplayer, or even just name your character, you need to create a Phoenix Labs account. Otherwise, your character’s name defaults to the account name that’s on the system you’re playing on. So, my character’s name is a string of random letters I used for my Steam name. It kind of ruins any romance when my husband calls me by name.
I once wasted a precious Fae Farm day sitting in the crafting menu or almanac menu thinking the game was paused. It certainly was not. The nice thing is that you aren’t negatively affected for passing out after bedtime, so all I truly lost was a day of play time. It didn’t decay friendship points with my critters, and it didn’t ruin any quests. Then there’s the sales tables. The limited sales table spots really get in the way of me mass selling a hoard of items I’ve held onto for too long. It doesn’t inhibit money-making, just clearing out that stack of 600 fibers I probably don’t need so many of.
The exuberant laughing at everything is obnoxious, though. When I accomplish something, I laugh. When talking to an NPC, they laugh instead of speak. None of it is funny! I’d prefer if they muttered some nonsense like Sims do. Unfortunately, the laughing just lends itself to the overall soul-less feel the game has. The NPCs have no deep backgrounds, and their dialogue is repetitive and shallow. There’s not even a point to befriending anyone unless you’re trying to marry them. And there’s only a handful of marriage candidates. Even the festivals feel lifeless. They’re not exciting and engaging. Everything feels very surface level.
Don’t get me wrong, Fae Farm is somewhat fun. I’ve put some hours into it, but I’d hoped for a lot more polish for that AAA price tag. A better story with more meaningful characters would have made this game an absolute gem. I’d also like for everyone to have a nose, please! Everything feels so shallow and surface level. I don’t need some deep, dark secrets to go into it, just a little more substance that makes me want to talk to people or do things. And when you add up several minor gripes, things feel lackluster, and that’s what we have here.
Overall, I’d give it:
You can find Fae Farm on Steam and Switch now!
Check out another of my reviews on a magical game: Witchy Life Story!
What happens when you take the classic farming sim, throw in some microbe research, and a dash of romance? You get Little-Known Galaxy! This adorable pixel graphics game has you playing the main character, a new captain-in-training. You work with your crew to solve the mysteries of an ancient relic found on the Grey Planet, and live a life full of exploration, crafting, and of course farming!
Your crew initially starts small, with just 20 people, but will slowly grow as you meet new friends. Little-Known Galaxy has all kinds of different NPCs like full families and single people. You get to build relationships with them though chatting, gifting, and more. There are also 10 single people ready for you to woo them! Win their affection and you can eventually marry one, too. Not everyone is human, though. An alien, an android, and a genetic clone are all possible romance characters!
When not romancing and befriending your crew, Little-Known Galaxy lets you engage in quite a few different activities. Take off to new worlds to explore to gather resources for crafting. Collect alien artifacts and gems while out exploring to fill in your museum. Raise cute little pet creatures called Xeno. You’ll need to give them love, attention, and plenty of food to see them thrive. Complete microbe research, or use the microbes you find for crafting or selling. Even rise through the ranks to become a full-fledged captain by completing missions and keeping crew morale up. And when you want to kick back and relax, spend time decorating your living space!
Little-Known Galaxy is coming soon to Steam. There is currently no release date listed.
One Lonely Outpost is another space-based farming sim.
Square Farm is a cute puzzle game about the charming little plot of land you’ve just bought. On that plot is a fertile square field. You’ve now set out to master the skills of square farming in order to earn a bountiful harvest. Even raise animals to help earn more money and make your farm a success!
Square farming is easy to understand. Square Farm provides the seeds that come in different odd shapes. Each crop comes in its own set of shapes. You’ll have to fit the different shapes together to fill in a line, column, or 3×3 square. When you fulfill one of those requirements, the crops will be harvested! If you fulfill multiple requirements in one go, you’ll harvest higher quality crops.
Progress through the different seasons and raise seasonal crops for better profits. With the money you earn from your harvests, you’ll be able to upgrade your home, buy farm animals, and helpful tools to help you profit more. Square Farm even has a small town for you to visit. There, you’ll find a handful of characters to interact with. Bring them flowers you’ve grown to increase your friendship levels and learn their stories.
Square Farm is a laid back, relaxing experience with forgiving mechanics. There’s no penalty for not clearing every block on the screen. You’ll only earn money from the crops you’ve harvested, of course. That just gives you time to master the placement of your crops!
You can find Square Farm on Google Play as well as Steam!
Farm Keeper is another fun farming puzzler you should checkout!
Wish Upon a Llama is an immersive open-ended RPG where you take on the role of a rancher. You’ll raise a variety of adorable animals like llamas, geese, bunnies, sheep, fish and more. Plus, meet the unique townspeople like the determined engineer and the chill gamer. Each one has their own interesting story to tell. You can even challenge them to jump rope, cleaning the town, trivia, spelling bees and more!
Spend time discovering the over 50 different special breeds through caring for and breeding your livestock. Wish Upon a Llama features animals with a number of different traits to collect. There are different colors, patterns, personalities and more. Babies will inherit traits from both parents, so breed specific pairs together to receive animals that look and act how you want.
When you want a break from caring for your animals, go explore the town. As you contribute to the town’s fundraising efforts, you’ll gain access to new areas. Vacation islands, lush forests, bustling cities, and picturesque beaches will all be available for you to enjoy. You can even start a family and have an active hand in raising your children! Guide them as they grow, go to school, and make their own friends. Wish Upon a Llama even allows you to unleash your creativity by decorating your home and surrounding lands!
I’ve been following Wish Upon a Llama via their Instagram for a while now, impatiently waiting for more news on this adorable game. They just recently released their Steam page, and there is no release date available. However, you can add it to your Steam Wishlist to keep an eye on it!
For more cozy farming, check out Harvest Moon Winds of Anthos!
Farm Keeper is an adorable tile-based farming game with nostalgic pixel graphics. It’s your job to survive when rent comes due. You need to strategically build your farm to maximize profits. Learn how each tile type interacts with each other, then carefully plan your farm’s layout. Each new tile offers the chance to not only change your strategy, but to expand your farm. Just be careful as tile choices are random. You can complete challenges and unlock secret tiles as you play.
Plant and cultivate crops, care for livestock, and profit!
You can find Farm Keeper on Steam! Also checkout APICO, a sweet little beekeeping management sim.
Litchi Town Is a game made by people who live the cozy rural lifestyle and aims to capture the spirit of Harvest Moon. Build your own farm, grow a large garden with more than 100 different crops. Meet the many unique villagers, make friends, find love. Raise livestock and other animals like cats and dogs.
This game looks so cute and wholesome, I am excited to see it coming to Steam later this year. ☺️
The farming sim genre has exploded in the last few years, and it can get overwhelming with the number of choices that are out there. Not all games are alike, though in some cases they very much are. Some games do really well to set themselves apart with cool new features or gorgeous and unique art, though, and Moondrop is one of those.
Farming is tough all on its own, but in Moondrop, there’s an added element of difficulty. The mountain you’re building your farm on is ever-changing. And when the mists roll in, everything disappears! Otherwise, the mountainside has great soil for planting and is the perfect place to farm. Grow a variety of peculiar crops that need to match up with their neighbors to grow and flourish. Some plants will spread across the farm, clone themselves, or even eat the other plants. There are even crops that will help keep the mists at bay for a short time.
When you’re not busy tending to your crops, you can explore some of the winding trails the mountain has to offer. Discover new seeds, perks, and blueprints while adventuring. Each new discovery you come across in Moondrop unlocks new possibilities for your future farms. You’ll even solve puzzles to learn about the mysteries of the mountain. Or, just cast a line and relax with some fishing!
Unfortunately, the encroaching mists can’t be kept away forever. When they come, they wipe out everything. Return to the abandoned village of Oncewas to sell your peculiar crops, and help revive the once-thriving town. Rebuild run-down buildings to encourage villagers to return, and they can unlock new upgrades and skills for you to use on your future farms. Then, return to the mountainside and begin a new farm, embark on a new adventure, and see what you can discover!
You can find Moondrop on Steam and Itch.io. In fact, it’s currently 20% off on Steam until July 13th!
For more farming, check out Big Farm Story, Brookhaven Grimoire, and Coral Island.
Big Farm Story is a charming farming simulator where you can customize your character and escape the hustle and bustle of city life to Grandpa’s beautiful farm. However, when you arrive, you find that the buildings are crumbling, the fields are overgrown, and Grandpa is nowhere to be found. You take it upon yourself to search for him, but in the meantime, you can start building the farm of your dreams!
Work hard to rebuild the derelict farm and harvest a variety of crops. Restore the chicken coop and befriend some chickens. Renovate the barn to get cows, llamas, and goats. You’ll even get to have adorable little ducks! Play with your cute farm friends, as well as the fluffy little dog companion who will follow you everywhere you go.
Refurbish the farmhouse with fun decorations, paints, and different flooring options. Make it into your dream home. Take some time to get to know the friendly residents in the nearby village too. Complete tasks for them using items you’ve harvested from the farm, resources you’ve collected around the map, and items you’ve crafted from materials you have. Each NPC has a unique personality and exciting stories to share with you.
Don’t forget to go collect mushrooms, fish, or cook meals too. Big Farm Story offers quite a bit of fun options to fill your days! And if that’s not enough, you can meet up on your friend’s farm to help them out. Or, play local co-op with a friend where one of you controls the game’s character and one controls the little dog companion.
The adorable Big Farm Story is currently available on Steam. It’s also 30% off until May 29th. It also has 5 different DLC packs available, which are also on sale right now!
Want more cute farming sims? Checkout Roots of Pacha, Wylde Flowers, or Fields of Mistria!