Whenever people ask about my hobbies, I tell them I play Stardew Valley. But when they ask what it is, I have a sudden identity crisis.
I usually lie and say, "Oh, it's just a cozy, healing game where you grow crops, pet cows, and decorate your farm."
Meanwhile, in reality: I am running a ruthless industrial-scale wine monopoly, aggressively stuffing 1,000 kegs, drinking espresso to run faster, and passing out in my own driveway at 1:50 AM.
How do you guys explain this "relaxing" game without exposing your inner capitalist?
by EZ_Choi
29 Comments
It’s a farming simulator, you farm. You live in a small village and run a farm.
This explanation hasn’t failed me yet.
I usually just say “Oh it’s just like Farmville” and they would just say “Yeah but it has weird graphics” and I’d answer with something like “Does it??” No one ever really asked more after that. Only my bf knows that I even use google sheets for this cozy game ʘ‿ʘ
It’s a adult game, that looks like a kids game, that uses kiddy language but is actually pretty dark
You could fit 8 more kegs in that shed if you used a more optimal layout
I’d love to answer your question but first let me go re-design my shed of money burr burr
it’s a farming game, you run a farm in a small town. you don’t have to tell people how you run your farm if you don’t want; if they’re asking what the game is, you can just tell them the premise. if they’re asking what you like to do for fun, then you can give the other answer.
think of it this way: if someone asked me to describe a movie, i wouldn’t tell them the ending right away, just the basic outline. The Terminator is about a robot who gets sent back in time to delete an important future guy who they don’t like. You don’t have to tell them who John Conner’s dad is right away unless you already know they care about the whole paradox angle.
Tribute to ayn rand’s work
My husband saw me playing it the other day and asked me what I was playing, which was *weird* because our whole family is gamers and I figured between me, the kids, and him being a gamer (even if his style of games isn’t the same as mine), he’d have at least seen screenshots or something. So I kind of struggled to describe it at first, partly due to said surprise.
After a bit of back and forth, we understood it to be “like if you enjoy the resource management and sandbox elements of Minecraft, but also want the NPC-social, community growth aspects of Animal Crossing, this would fall midway between those two endpoints of a continuum.” We also decided that on that same Minecraft<->AC line, SimCity games would fall closer to Minecraft than to AC.
With your picture as context-
“Ever thought about making your own wine? SDV is the game for you to explore that dream, right from planting your own fruit tree, to the eventual casking of your own fruits of labor.”
And as a teaser-
“Oh btw, try not to turn into a ruthless optimizer while doing that”
Doing chores and running a business. You know, to relax.
I don’t.
In the quickest way possible, my explanation would be summarized as “A game with many goals”.
i tell them the truth specifically because i do not like stardew valley anymore. my boyfriend, for example, isn’t much of a gamer. he’ll play roblox at times and barely understands how to work minecraft, so i told him that it’s meant to be a cozy game but also explained how it makes me want to rip my hair out at times.
“It’s a farming sim”
“Oh cool”
Identity crisis.. 🙄
Get high with a wazard and get the amazing idea to repair a dilapidated community centre because “the forest spirits told me to”
I tell people it’s a relaxing farming sim where you befriend villagers and raise chickens. What I don’t tell them is that I’ve min maxed my ancient fruit wine production to the point where I have 800 kegs in a tunnel, a basement full of casks aging cheese like it’s fine art, and I carry espresso like a paramedic carries adrenaline. I pass out at 2am in a strangers mushroom cave because I needed one more copper ore.
“Cozy farming simulator where every choice matters but no choice is overly consequential. Complex low stakes world building.”
I simply say it’s one of the best games ever made (imo).
It’s a farming simulator that I play for fishing.
A Harvest Moon fan wanted to make his own game and this is it
Late stage alcoholism the movie featuring Danny daveto as pam
Cozy game where you restore your grandpa’s derelict farm and befriend the townsfolk.
Plant, harvest, mine, fish, quests and date questionable characters.
Good question.
https://preview.redd.it/s7ubrvoy9kug1.png?width=1928&format=png&auto=webp&s=1db0509d10ee55367f9877033943de57f8af8782
It’s the game I used when I’m in-between games or I’m depressed and don’t know what to do. It’s like a bridge with a soul
My friends sold it to me 6 weeks ago as ‘it’s like animal crossing combined with terraria you’ll love it’
And here I am, 150hr play time, half way through winter year 4 going ‘…yep well they weren’t wrong’
I usually fumble over my words with excitement.
Like Sims but you’re in a town.
Digital crack