You ever start a game and realize almost immediately what you’ll eventually quit over? It doesn’t happen often, but sometimes I can tell right away what is going to be a pain point down the road, whether it’s a character, a plot point, or in Harvestella‘s case, a game mechanic. To put it plainly, the combat sucks!

I’m getting that out of the way early because I really like Harvestella. I think it’s a very well-designed game, great soundtrack, nice variety of crops, tasty-looking recipes, moderately-paced day and night cycle, the whole shebang. And I’m going to say as much later below. But there’s a real possibility that I’ll make a future post saying “Harvestella dropped!” and it will be like “what is wrong with this old lady?” so I’m just putting that out there: great game, sucky combat system.

Yes, yes, I shouldn’t expect too much from a farming ARPG… except the Rune Factory series exists and it’s been way more fun to play right from the first clunky game on the DS. The problem with Harvestella‘s fighting is that it’s an ARPG, but you can’t roll or dodge properly to escape enemy attacks. Google is telling me that I’ll eventually unlock some kind of dash dodge… except I’ve already unlocked it and it’s hard and frustrating to use. You can see the boss’s attack aiming for you and your character just. won’t. move. COME ON!

It seems you’re just supposed to stand there and trade hits with the enemy until someone dies. If that’s the case, then why not make it a turn-based game? Square Enix is good at turn based games, and I don’t have a problem with them either. An ARPG with poor mobility and positioning is super frustrating.

Also there are super powered enemies dotting the maps, called FEAR. Think of FOES in the Etrian Odyssey games. I really, really, really hate that kind of thing in video games. Especially in open world or semi-open world games. If you don’t want me to explore an area too soon, block it off. Otherwise just leave me alone, sheesh. So far the FEAR haven’t been too hard to avoid, but if they get too annoying, I will delete Harvestella without a backward glance. It’s the only way these companies will learn.

“But other than that, Mrs. Lincoln, how was the play?” The rest of Harvestella is fantastic, actually. Okay the story is a bit bland because it’s about Ein, the usual farming story amnesiac. And since it’s a Square Enix game, there are these giant crystals all over the place which are acting up so we have to figure out what’s wrong with them. And there are bad guys who are going to turn out to be not so bad in the end because that’s just how JRPGs roll. I really like that while Harvestella strongly hinted at the direction it wants me to go, they left it up to me to decide which crystal secretly evil abomination seaslight to travel to.

I’ve done all of them now, unlocked the Waterside and Cave biomes, almost at the end of Summer in the first year. Although days pass, there are no hard deadlines like in the Persona or Atelier games so it’s very chill. Since I’ve finished all the available dungeons, I’m right on the cusp of unlocking the next stage of the story (I just need to sleep and wake up), hoping they don’t mess things up too much. Did you know that farming games don’t need stories? But if Harvestella insists on having one, I hope it’s a good one.

Other random notes on why I’m liking the game so much

1. The maps are very easy to navigate. I haven’t gotten lost once, the game clearly marks quests and collectibles on the map, and it has by far the least irritating ice dungeon I have encountered in all my years of gaming. I’m also a big fan of all the bridges, ladders and other shortcuts that cut travel time and reduce frustration by a lot. Square-Enix clearly put a lot of thought into not making the dungeons annoying (based on their decades of experience in making annoying dungeons), and I appreciate that the results respect my limited time and energy.

2. The sidequests are a bit, no, very wordy, but they’re chained and develop as the game progresses so they’re interesting to follow. And they’re very rewarding for a perpetually-broke player like me.

3. Speaking of which, I like being broke. Too many farming games make you rich too quickly and then there’s nothing to save up for or prioritize. I’m enjoying not being an instant billionaire (mining in OG Rune Factory, those were the days) so that every improvement feels hard-earned and rewarding.

4. For all my complaints about the combat system, I’ve made it this far without too many wipe-outs. Lorelei was a beotch though. I’ve accomplished this by playing exclusively as a Mage so I can hang back while my party members tank hits for me. There’s a non-zero chance that this will come back to bite me in the tushie before the end of the game, but well, if I end up dropping the game, so be it. It is enough to play a whole lot of Harvestella.

5. I like the faerie achievement system. I like achievements in general. I really like being rewarded for stuff I would do anyway. Nothing beats Rune Factory giving experience for walking and sleeping, but as long as I get something just for playing, I’m happy.

6. I already mentioned the great-looking recipes, but I’ll add that I love them including meat dishes. I didn’t have a problem with Harvest Moon‘s pescatarian lifestyle, and Animal Crossing‘s English localization scrubbing all mentions of eating fish or using animal products was a certainly a choice, but… just feast your eyes on this beauty.

Mmm, looks so yummy. Here’s another one:

Ah, so rich and juicy. Nothing against meat-free games, but when I imagine my ideal farm lifestyle, it definitely includes thick cuts of meat and hearty stews. GIVE ME MEAT! Also cozy winter nights spent knitting in front of the fireplace with a bowl of soup. Let’s see if Harvestella can keep my dream alive.

7. Fast pace. No scene, plot arc or dungeon lasts long enough to become annoying, everything moves along snappily. Even the flavor text is short. Love it. One of the things I dread most when starting a new RPG is the endless reams of text, tons of forgettable lore and backstories, and the never-ending cutscenes that developers seem to think is mandatory these days. For once Square-Enix has understood the assignment: if you make a farming game, let the players farm! Keep the convoluted stories for Final Fantasy and let me farm!

8. Simple controls. I’ve played games where swapping tools or equipment is an ordeal, and it wears you down slowly but surely. Here it’s pretty easy to map an item to a button and use it right away. It took me all of 10 minutes to master the system, which is more than long enough.

9. And on the theme of simplicity, I also like the simplicity of weapons, accessories, etc. in Harvestella. There’s no armor, leveling your weapon just means paying for upgrades, and your party members are super independent so you don’t need to worry about their equipment or skills or attacks, or anything. Like I said, let me farm!

And so on, and so forth. There are other things I want to talk about, but my throat is all scratchy (am I getting a cold?!) so I need gaming therapy right now. 2026 is my year of slow gaming and taking my time with every game so I’ll be focusing on Harvestella even more going forward. See you next time!