Story of Seasons: A Wonderful Life Reviews
Story of Seasons is a good game for relaxing. There's plenty to do and discover, but given the length of the game, these various tasks can become monotonous and repetitive. The game has an addictive feel to it, and the hours spent playing are hard to miss. Still, I would have preferred more events and interactions to develop relationships with the inhabitants. If you like games like Harvest Moon, Stardew Valley or even FarmVille, you'll have a great time in Forgotten Valley.
Review in French | Read full review
Story of Seasons: A Wonderful Life proved to be a Marvelous hit on both a technical and conceptual level. The progression by chapters of the original, which was already way ahead of its time when it was released in the early 2000s, even today follows a nice differential that sets the product apart from other more robust farm simulators. Despite one or another questionable decision that causes the concept of the original to lose some of its strength, the remake is still a solid enough revitalization and finally worthy of the name it bears.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
Even though it has some problems and limitations, Story of Seasons: A Wonderful Life is an incredible and well-deserved rescue of one of the rarest farm simulation games. With the essence of the original product fully maintained, it is a game full of nostalgia and that will certainly please veterans of the GameCube and PS2 versions.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
While it is a simple farming simulator at its core, it’s also profound in its design, leaning heavily into a quiet philosophy that lends the action a sense of meaning and purpose. It’s a wonderful exploration of living, and while silly and simple at times, it understands exactly why the smaller moments are so precious.
The new events, tools, fish, and more added in the remake make the game feel new, even to veteran players like me who played the original to death. For newcomers, the fresh additions will only lead to a great gameplay experience, and I’m honestly jealous of those getting to feel the joy of A Wonderful Life for the very first time.
But to put simply, Story of Seasons: A Wonderful Life is an addicting and relaxing farming game with a solid gameplay loop and lots of replayability. Definitely one of the better farming games out there, so put down the sword and shield and pick up a watering can for a change—you won’t regret it.
If you can take the time to pace yourself and slowly enjoy everything the game has to offer from charming neighbors to home-cooked meals, then there is a whole lot to enjoy about Story of Seasons: A Wonderful Life.
Marvelous did a great job on the remake, STORY of SEASONS: A Wonderful Life is a good game, even 20 years after its origins. You should be aware that STORY of SEASONS: A Wonderful Life tells the story of a farmer’s life. At first, there isn’t a huge variety of crops, fish and things to dig up. Still, your focus should be on trying to make the farm profitable and socializing with the people in the valley. The first chapter is only the intro. New things are introduced in the other chapters as well. And while your family expands, the other people in the valley get older, too and have their own stories. The management part of the game is deep, maybe even deeper than later Story of Seasons games. Soil quality is important, for example, and sometimes crops just wilt without any indication. The quality of milk is important and not constant over the seasons, and you can influence it by breeding your cow after a certain time. Overall, I think the fans of Story of Seasons will be pleased!
I’ve got to tell you, Story of Seasons: A Wonderful Life feels like a game that arrived right when I needed it most. This is a game about redefining what matters to you. First, it’s about settling into a new community and forming bonds with your new neighbors. One of them being romantic. Then it’s about supporting your growing family both emotionally and via working hard on the farm. As time passes, you get to see how that influences things. It’s like you are building a life while farming, rather than working a farm and taking “you” time to be social when you can.
Story of Seasons: A Wonderful Life is an amazing game. It has the mechanical soundness you’d expect from a long-running series while offering S-Rank quality updates to a classic title. What really makes this game sing and come together is the union of the time-proven gameplay and some truly heartfelt themes. Themes of life echo throughout this game. You must nurture your crops, your relationships, your child, and your own self as you journey down the tumultuous yet rewarding road of life. Everything changes. Sometimes those changes are bittersweet. However, if you work hard and open your heart, everything will be alright.
Story of Seasons: A Wonderful Life is worth a play if you’re a fan of the previous Harvest Moon or Story of Seasons titles, a fan of wholesome life sims, or just need a moment to relax.