 Did you like Harvest Moon? Because Stardew Valley is Harvest Moon, it's got the same story, revitalizing a farm from disrepair and making friends along the way, it's got the same gameplay mechanics, the same overhead perspective, the same day night cycle, the same everything, pretty much, just a lot more of it. And believe me when I say this is not a bad thing, this game plays like a hardcore fan invested 80 gazillion hours into Harvest Moon, picked out all the flaws and redesigned their own Harvest Moon game and called it Stardew Valley. Now for people that aren't that familiar with Harvest Moon type stuff, there's two potential hurdles here to get over I think. One is that on the surface, this game looks and sounds really really boring, for the most part you pretty much just simulate a day's work on a farm, you wake up, you go to town and screw around or whatever, talk to people, go back home and till some soil and plant some stuff, water some other stuff you planted earlier, clear out an area of rocks, brush and trees, I mean yeah, that doesn't sound like the most exciting thing in the world. There's so much more than that though, there's skills you can learn like fishing in combat. It's the odd skill of keeping in the townspeople's good graces, there's stuff like the arcade games at the bar, there's a corporation trying to buy out the town, there's these forest spirit things invading an old community center, you can craft new items, some of the stuff here kind of reminds me of Rune Factory or Terraria, plus there's lots of weird unexplainable stuff that makes you say what the hell was that. Not to mention the fact that the actual farming here is super detailed with tons and tons of options available to you, but therein lies hurdle number two for many people, Stardew Valley is a huge game and that can be kind of intimidating, where the hell do you even start with a game like this? The size of the town, the number of people and the sheer amount of stuff you can do can really be overwhelming to some people, it can be easy to fall into the trap of feeling like you have to do everything at once or just get everything done that you possibly can in one day. But going back to my review of Harvest Moon for Super Nintendo, you gotta look at a game like Stardew Valley, like it's a gigantic jigsaw puzzle, it's impossible to get everything done at once, you gotta form a routine, plan out how you want to do things, and create your own strategy. That's what makes this game so addictive, because of the game's open ended nature, you can create whatever kind of routine you want, and even then it's so easy to just get sucked into the game's universe. For example, one day you're out maintaining your crops, but you get something in the mail, someone in town wants to go hang out, so you go, then you find out through talking to people that something else is going on, or maybe you want to buy a new backpack, or just chill and have a drink and play some video games or something, or maybe you want to meet and hang out with people and throw stuff at them until they like you. It's so easy to get lost in this game's world, it's great. By the way, the dating stuff in this game may seem hokey and just kind of thrown in for fun, but these people at least actually do have attributes and characteristics and, you know, traits that make them seem like actual people. For example, Abigail works at her parent's general store, she wants a cat, but her dad is allergic, and she likes to hang out by herself by this bridge, while Penny lives with her friend Pam, tutors students at the museum and loves to read. There's a lot of detail here. Stardew Valley does have its limits though, despite its open ended nature. For example, you have an energy meter, which is, uh, quite literally an energy meter, meaning you have to go to sleep every night. If you stay up and your energy depletes all the way down, you pass out and get taken to a medical clinic and you're billed 50 gold. So yeah, manage your time wisely. Anyway, yeah, Stardew Valley is so much more than it seems at first glance. I know people love the Harvest Moon games, but I like this game way more than any Harvest Moon game I've ever played. Don't let the subject matter of farming scare you off, and conversely, don't let the scope of this game's world overwhelm you too much. Stardew Valley is incredibly absorbing and addictive, and even if you get bored with the game, there's plenty of mods to dig through. It's one of the best, if not the best, game of 2016.