![]() ![]() Along the journey, players will acquire new weapons that attack differently and can be upgraded through collecting materials. Concord is capable of slashing with various weapons, guarding with a shield, running, and dodging. There is a sense of danger to the world and the threat the Rot holds and one of urgency to completing tasks for the Grove and its denizens.Īs a top-down action game, Garden Story has little room to control in complex ways. While it maintains a childlike wonder, there are enough sharpened edges that Garden Story doesn’t feel suffocating in its cuteness. Never once did I tire of traipsing into a familiar screen or speaking to a new character with an appropriate name. The sense of adventure players eke out from Concord waking up on their first day to dangerous boss encounters is reminiscent of the Zelda games Garden Story so clearly is inspired by and pays respect to. From the many puns based on fruit and other vegetation to a jolly tackling of seasons and gaming location tropes, Garden Story‘s world is fully realized. Keenly aware of how precious its greenery is, developer Picogram imbued the Grove with personality. ![]() Though most of the playable space is covered in terrain and buildings that Concord may never walk over or enter, it evokes the provocative beauty of nature or the intimate simplicity of a home garden. The world possesses a sharpness and level of detail that I didn’t expect, even on the Nintendo Switch. Not only do the vibrant colors pop right off the screen, the art itself is crisp and detailed. Unless you are completely against otherwise adorable pixel art, it’s impossible not to love the game’s aesthetic. Garden Story is an infectiously cute game. The Rot is the dimmest spot in the bright world of the Grove, acting as the primary antagonistic force that would disrupt an otherwise a harmonious place. The Grove and its four regions were being attacked by the Rot, an unpleasant force full of blob-like enemies that excreted poisonous mist or seemed to possess large beasts. As a young grape named Concord (cute), I had taken on the role of a Guardian after the previous Guardian Plum departed the Grove. Up until that point, Garden Story had been mostly straightforward. Not only was I in full-blown RPG territory, I was staring down the barrel of a pixelated crafting game. ![]() Garden Story had introduced several wrinkles in its Link to the Past-like homage that it had become more than just a top-down action game. Locations are overly greebled with landmarks and winding paths, making it difficult to get around with ease or speed-and the map is obtuse, instead of helpful, at a glance.There came a point in Garden Story after I had learned how to fish items out of the water, collect world lore, break rocks with a hammer, revitalize plants with dew, and survive a day/night cycle that the game taught me how to craft. Menus are confusing and difficult to use. But every other aspect of the game feels one step away from being memorable. The art is rich and beautiful, and the interfaces look great. This game wants to be very charming, and it sometimes comes very close. ![]() I found myself wondering about hard resetting quickly after dying, because the game only saves during your overnight rests. That feels frustrating when the only way to level up your stats and unlock content is by completing the daily gathering and combat goals-but failure to complete them usually means just being shut out of them rather than being imposed a reset penalty. If Concord dies during combat, the day immediately ends with a small financial penalty. Plus, each chapter concludes with a boss fight, featuring bosses that take around 20 hits to kill. Fighting uses progressively stronger weapons and household implements too. Your HP begins with a Zelda-like three “hearts” to start, with upgrades that increase your maximum health throughout the game. Garden Story definitely struggles to make the repetitive gathering and combat tasks more interesting.Ĭombat is one of the places where the game is the least fleshed out, as is the crossover between combat and the game’s other, more pastoral, goals. But by my third day in-game, my slate of goals was just slight variations to the ones I had on the first day. Each day, Concord is given two to three goals, like delivering a handful of a specific resource or ridding an area of its enemies. ![]()
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