Fae Farm, developed and published by Phoenix Labs, redefines the farming life-sim genre, blurring the lines between farming and dungeon-crawling. It prompts us to ponder whether a new genre name is needed. In the early days of farming sims, games like the original Harvest Moon were straightforward and didn't require a new label. However, as the genre has evolved, titles like Stardew Valley introduced dungeons, and while they were well-designed, they weren't the central focus. Fae Farm takes this evolution a step further, placing a greater emphasis on dungeon exploration than even the renowned Rune Factory series.
Fae Farm's title screen welcomes you with adorable artwork that encapsulates the game's overall charm. I was taken aback by the requirement to create a Phoenix Labs account, presumably for cross-platform multiplayer purposes, although the process is quick and easy. It's important to note that your account name doubles as your character's name and is immutable, even if you create characters of varying genders later on. Strangely, my name "Sam" was considered profane, while "Sam-James" passed without issue.
The character creation options in Fae Farm, while not as intricate as some modern games, include much-appreciated features such as diverse body types (a rarity in most gaming genres) and a wide range of choices for skin tones, hair colors, voices, and pronouns. Having the ability to create characters that resemble oneself enhances the immersion in games like this, so credit to the developers for making it inclusive for individuals with unique appearances. With our fully customized and endearing alter-egos, we embark on our adventure to the island of Azoria.
The opening segment of Fae Farm serves as a tutorial, offering essential story context without patronizing players with excessive hand-holding. While many of the features may appear similar to those in other games of the genre, it would be a mistake to assume there aren't any unique elements. In fact, discovering that you can freely leap off cliffs, swim in any body of water, replenish your watering can while swimming (and even in the rain!), and uncover various other intricate details will pleasantly surprise farming sim veterans. Although the controls may feel slightly floaty, this sensation becomes appropriate as you eventually gain access to wings that enable double-jumping for increased height and mobility. Fortunately, this floaty movement doesn't compromise precision, allowing you to execute jumps with minimal frustration.
It doesn't take long before you gain access to all the features of your first farm in Fae Farm. As you progress through the game and unlock additional territories, you'll expand your farm space and gain access to a broader range of animals and crops. With the exception of permanent structures like your house and barn, everything you place on your farm is crafted from an ever-expanding catalog of items. If you want to plant crops, you can arrange plots in any shape or pattern you desire. Short on materials? Just go out, smash some rocks, and dig up some dirt. The sense of accomplishment that comes with acquiring a new item is rewarding, as it unlocks every recipe in your almanac that uses that item as a material. This not only allows you to view your current crafting options but also inspires you to explore the world to uncover new items and their associated crafting recipes. You'll stumble upon recipes scattered throughout the island, motivating you to jump and swim around to discover every hidden nook and cranny.
Farm work in Fae Farm is surprisingly straightforward, yet it becomes clear how essential it is to nearly every aspect of the game. Synergy appears to be a fundamental design principle in Fae Farm, evident in the inclusion of ten different skills to utilize and advance. These skills, including Farming, Logging, Foraging, Potion Brewing, and Critter Catching, accumulate experience with every corresponding action you perform. Advancing through the 20 levels of each skill leads to various rewards, such as tool upgrades, proficiency bonuses, and increased gathering yields.
Returning to farming, the seeds available comprise a static list featuring Turnips, Cauliflower, and Beans. As you level up your Farming skill, you'll unlock Potato, Corn, and Pepper seeds. Fae Farm adds an interesting twist by allowing you to purchase fertilizers that can transform crops into either alternative seasonal variants (e.g., multi-harvestable Beans becoming Pumpkins in the Fall) or Fae variants, which can be refined into ingredients for Potion Brewing. This system is quite enjoyable as it eliminates the need to worry about crop availability in different seasons. Experimenting with various fertilizers to discover the transformations they offer was a delightful experience. Crop quality doesn't progress through levels, so the yield you plant is what you'll receive, and this holds true for all gatherable items, regardless of their source.
Regrettably, my farming experience was hindered by a number of bugs. During my review period, the area of effect watering can skill was completely dysfunctional and failed to water anything. Consequently, no matter the size of my farm or the number of crops I cultivated, I had to painstakingly water each plot individually. To compound the frustration, my livestock roamed around, and the keybindings for the watering can AoE skill were the same as those for petting, brushing, milking, shearing, and other actions with animals. Since the animals actively sought me out on the farm, I often found myself petting a Chickoo repeatedly instead of watering my precious Turnip. There was no way to manually relocate the animals by picking them up or pushing them, and although the affection boost from petting and brushing applied only once a day, the option remained active, making these daily tasks cumbersome and stress-inducing. There were other quirks associated with the animals, such as their ability to pass through each other and the inability to toggle which animal to target, resulting in potentially repeating the same action on the same animal. At times, the animals even seemed to merge together, which I lack the terminology to describe adequately. Fortunately, there didn't appear to be any adverse consequences to simply ignoring your animals apart from providing feed in their troughs. I'm hopeful that some of these issues will be addressed in future patches. It's worth noting that the watering can AoE skill was already fixed by the time I wrote this review, although I spent most of my time with the game using a malfunctioning watering can.
While farming may appear to be the most pivotal task in a farming game, I would argue that dungeoneering takes precedence overall in Fae Farm. The game's story progression, mining activities, and access to tool upgrades are all closely linked to the dungeons. There are a total of three dungeons, each featuring distinct themes, progression mechanics, enemies, and gatherable materials. Initially, I found the dungeon exploration enjoyable; the ability to teleport to any desired floor using crafted warp keys made it convenient to locate specific materials. However, my enthusiasm began to wane around the middle of the second dungeon, and the experience became increasingly arduous. I'm all for challenging gameplay, where items serve a genuine purpose and thoughtful planning pays off. Nevertheless, as previously mentioned, Fae Farm heavily emphasizes synergy to the extent that it can feel artificially imposed in order to elevate the value of items and gameplay systems.
The first dungeon was pleasantly straightforward, which I appreciated. It had its unique charm, reminiscent of the mines in Stardew Valley. The second dungeon, however, introduced a specific potion requirement for entry; failure to use it resulted in passing out and getting expelled from the dungeon. These potions lasted for several in-game hours, though not throughout the entire day. Consequently, you needed to carry at least two to endure a full day in the dungeon. It wasn't an overly burdensome task in the second dungeon, as the ingredients for the required potion could be found within it. However, and here comes the cringe-worthy part, the same ingredient was needed for both the third dungeon's entry potion and healing potions. Given the heightened enemy damage at this stage, players shouldn't be forced to choose between gaining entry or succumbing to defeat before making substantial progress. And what's the critical ingredient? Frog Sweat. I wish I were kidding. You have to roam around Azoria catching frogs to concoct these potions. While the concept may sound endearing, it can be a bit of a chore, especially considering frogs aren't that easy to come by and can quickly evade capture.
Some of you might think, 'Healing potions? Just tank the hits and go on!' or whatever the current expression for reckless behavior is these days. However, you have limited defensive options against the monsters you encounter. These creatures, known as Jumbles, are inanimate objects brought to life by magic and exiled for the safety of the island's residents. While the concept is charming and the design beautiful, the execution can sometimes be overly frustrating. Later in the game, it becomes all too easy to find yourself overwhelmed by Jumbles. With no evade ability or animation canceling, it became more than just a minor inconvenience to die while mining because I couldn't cancel out of a series of attacks or actively dodge an approaching horde. I mentioned earlier in the review that movement feels floaty, and unfortunately, this also applies to your melee attacks. It's fine to explore the island in a floaty manner, but getting stuck in a series of uncancelable attacks and then getting hit by an area-of-effect attack is not. Phoenix Labs' solution seems to be 'craft more potions!' as there is an impressive array of craftable concoctions, but this shouldn't come at the expense of basic combat mechanics.
One aspect of Fae Farm that falls short of my expectations is the depth of its character interactions. The residents of Azoria exhibit visual and personality diversity, but their development feels somewhat limited. In comparison to other games in the genre where you can learn more about characters by engaging in daily conversations, Fae Farm's characters don't offer much new dialogue beyond occasional commentary on story developments. While residents may express gratitude for your assistance with island-related matters and engage in casual conversation as you progress the story, these interactions lack depth. Characters are categorized into either Friendship or Romance options, and you can choose to pursue one or the other with the available choices. Although there are instances of character development, such as Galan's involvement with Jumbles, it isn't prominently featured. I appreciate the absence of pressure to constantly shower gifts on every island resident daily, as I believe this outdated mechanic doesn't encourage genuine friendships.
Fae Farm offers an enjoyable experience with its stunning graphics, cohesive thematic design, beautiful orchestrated music, and well-structured gameplay systems. However, the game stumbles as it becomes more complex, with the early-game dungeon providing more enjoyment than the end-game dungeon. This raises concerns about the overall progression and enjoyment factor. Additionally, frustrations with animal care led to neglect, reducing the animals to mere 3D models used for gathering materials and feeding. Despite these issues, Fae Farm remains undeniably charming and captivating.
Fae Farm can be a bit of a mixed bag, shifting between moments of freshness and polish and others that feel more like an Early Access title in need of refinement. However, if Phoenix Labs commits to post-release patches, many of the issues could be addressed. These improvements wouldn't necessitate a complete overhaul but rather tweaks like balancing enemy damage, limiting the number of daily animal interactions, and reevaluating potion ingredient requirements. Despite its initial challenges, Fae Farm offers a rewarding experience with substantial potential. With the right adjustments, it has the potential to become a standout in the farming sim genre