Harvestella Reviews
While Harvestella takes a while to get going, the journey is rich, rewarding and wholesome. For a genre that is usually the province of the mid-tier developers, having something like this that doesn’t cut corners, doesn’t feel like a series of concessions and feels creatively liberating is an inherent joy. Many years ago I read a wonderful analysis of Harvest Moon that effectively argued that the series has been so popular in Japan for so long because farming is a genuinely aspirational pursuit to so many people, who feel locked into soul-crushing and exhausting work in concrete jungles. That being the case, the pure fantasy escapism of Harvestella makes a particularly potent example of its little genre indeed, and for just about anyone on the planet right now, this is exactly what we needed.
HARVESTELLA is a thoroughly enjoyable JRPG with farm management for when you want some downtime after exploring its elaborate dungeons. The fact that you can take your time going through the story and managing your farm means that the pacing is controlled by you so it never gets dull. As long as you enjoy RPGs as much as you do farming, this is a great game that you'll absolutely love.
Harvestella isn’t trying to innovate anything. It’s a cozy throwback JRPG that stands apart by having a heavier emphasis on life sim elements. But it’s a story driven action JRG at its core, not a farming sim. Harvest Moon fans will probably be disappointed by its lack of farming mechanic depth, but fans of classic JRPGs who don’t normally love life sim games might really love it. Anyone who really enjoyed Sakuna: Of Rice and Ruin, or the multi-gameplay-style of the ActRaiser games should really take note.
Overall, I would definitely recommend Harvestella to fans of games such as Rune Factory or JRPGs like those in the Tales series. I would not necessarily recommend it to any fan of farming games, however. Definitely pick this game up if you are ready to focus primarily on questing and not farming. If you are used to more laid-back experiences like Stardew Valley or Story of Seasons, this game could serve as a nice introduction to JRPG elements.
At full price, it’s a hard pill to swallow picking up Harvestella, when there are many strong efforts with indie titles which manage to pull of much of what Harvestella has to offer. But with a discount, it can be a worthwhile experience.
Harvestella is a Frankenstein creature of several genres with a golden heart. It's one of the year's most soothing games, with an addicting gameplay cycle and some intriguing quests.
Harvestella is the perfect game to cuddle up on the couch with, preferably in handheld mode on Nintendo Switch or on Steam Deck. While it doesn’t deliver the best JRPG or farming sim, it is the only game that delivers both experiences at the same time, delivering a unique entry in a crowded genre that manages to be a breath of fresh air.
Harvestella is a fresh coat of paint on a familiar wall. It's a good wall, solid foundation, level, able to withstand the elements, and damn good paint. But it's still a wall. If you want to play the newest, most innovative farm sim to date, it's not going to be Harvestella. If you want to play the best version of the farm sim for the modern era, look no further. While it does some odd things, like invisible walls to areas you can clearly see, or not being able to jump on a rock, in the end, those don't matter. Farming is fun, dungeon crawling is fun. The visuals and soundtrack help make Harvestella one of the best possible versions of the farm sim.
If you're looking for an enjoyable title that won't require you to bend over backwards on its difficulty or mechanics, then Harvestella is the perfect candidate!
Review in French | Read full review
HARVESTELLA is yet another great release from Square Enix. The neat plot, the beautiful and accurate soundtrack, the charismatic characters and the simple but enjoyable combat, make the title one of the best experiences of this year.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
Harvestella is a mix between a JRPG and a farm simulator with touches of social simulation. With a story full of mysteries and challenges and a farm to take care of, the game offers more than 60 hours of gameplay.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
Harvestella tells an enthralling tale filled with gorgeous designs and interesting characters but it's simple gameplay mechanics hold it back from truly shining.
Solid and definitely have an audience. There could be some hard-to-ignore faults, but the experience is fun.
Harvestella is a game with a very addictive loop. With each dungeon leading you to a new plot revelation, and each season giving you new crops to grow it's like the game is begging for "just one more day" and it can be hard to say no. While I wish that there was more depth to the characters, especially in the voice acting department, and the game doesn't make any major strides, it is still a decently fresh take on the genre. It is important to know that Harvestella really is a JRPG before it is a farming sim; even though farming is a lot of fun, it is not the main thing you will be doing. Even though both farming and combat are simple, the combination of both manages to make Harvestella feel deeper than it actually is. So if you are on the lookout for a new RPG farming adventure to play after finishing Rune Factory 5, this might be it!
Harvestella is an interesting concoction of a JRPG experience merged with farming, which results in pure escapist fun. The combat and farming aspects are by no means elaborate, but their simplistic approach creates a relaxing atmosphere that is great to play in short bursts.
Harvestella offers a unique mix of farming sim and action RPG Lee. While there are some flaws in both aspects, and the presentation, Harvestella still offers an entertaining experience thanks to the gameplay mix and story.
Review in German | Read full review
Overall, Harvestella is a mixed bag of a JRPG with many flaws but also many great, engaging elements. As a result, I wouldn't recommend it to anyone except those who especially love farming simulators and classic JRPGs.
Harvestella is a fresh take on life-sims that wears many different hats well, but doesn’t always know when to wear them.
For the right players, Harvestella is a game of the year (or even generation) contender. Everyone else might be left wondering what they are missing.
Harvestella’s systems feed together in a way that forces you to engage with nearly everything it offers, whether you want to or not. But those slice-of-life activities are mundane and get in the way of letting you enjoy the RPG elements on your own terms. Maximizing a day’s schedule is sometimes rewarding, but the sluggish pacing makes it tough to stay engaged for the long haul. Harvestella forces you to do a whole lot to complete comparatively little. At 70-80 hours, it’s one of the biggest chores I’ve played in some time. That’s unfortunate because the combat, story, and characters are decent enough that, in a more traditional RPG framework, they’d shine brighter. As it stands, squeezing this fruit isn’t always worth its small amount of juice.