Story of Seasons: Friends of Mineral Town Reviews
It’s hard to recommend Story of Seasons: Friends of Mineral Town as anything but a novel relic, it’s a remake of a game with historical importance for a well-loved franchise, but offers nothing that newer players who started with Stardew Valley or Rune Factory 4 will find interesting or worthwhile.
Ultimately, Story of Seasons: Friends of Mineral Town is a serviceable and cute farming simulator, albeit a little shallow.
I feel like I will get some backlash for this, but I did not enjoy my time with Story of Seasons: Friends of Mineral Town. I am not usually a fan of the farm sim genre, but I can tell other non-fans that this is not the game that will get them into it. It is a remake of a 22-year-old game, and for that, it gets credit for helping build this niche genre and for having little to build upon. But there are other options out there. Stardew Valley has trampled the Story of Seasons series under its hoof, and the Persona series has made the day-to-day grind exciting and meaningful. But if you love farm sims and you’re looking for a simpler, more relaxing alternative to Stardew Valley, Story of Seasons: Friends of Mineral Town will undoubtedly provide you with hours upon hours of content.
Story of Seasons: Friends of Mineral Town's cutesy aesthetic is plagued with shallow and tedious gameplay.
"Friends from the past."
Review in Finnish | Read full review
As a remake that you can enjoy as a farming game and very little else, there’s plenty to enjoy about Mineral Town. Fans of the original will enjoy the modernised visuals and most – not all, sadly and obviously – will appreciate the aforementioned marriage options. There’s little else to differentiate the two, Mineral Town doesn’t feel like a new game by any stretch of the imagination and whilst we can focus on the various plus points (the marriages, the farming festivals are a delight and the overall sweetness of the game can’t be ignored as a tonic to daily life), it’s difficult to recommend over the likes of Stardew Valley and Animal Crossing.
A welcome but underwhelming addition to the remake onslaught, won’t fail to churn up nostalgia but sadly doesn’t go the extra mile.
While parts of it feel dated at times, all the charm and joy that the series brings to the table are there so it is worth picking up.
Despite all my hemming and hawing when it comes to this game, it takes me back through my memories to a time when things were easier. I love it for that. Despite this, I can’t call it flawless, nor can I call it bad. I said it before, I’ll say it again, the game is quaint.
Although there is a fair amount of freedom to play the game as you see fit, it's difficult to recommend the latest Story of Seasons entry over something like Stardew Valley or even the two 3DS games. In-game achievements, hidden items to collect, and an easy mode are all welcome features; ultimately, though they don't contribute enough to make for a compelling experience. Those who want to enjoy the nostalgia of Harvest Moon on SNES and GBA will like coming back to something familiar, but Story of Seasons Friends of Mineral Town isn't necessarily worth throwing in the shipping box.
Story of Seasons: Friends of Mineral Town is a farm life and management simulator, aimed at a specific audience or looking for something relaxing to do in their spare time. With its shadows and lights that make something so characteristic this remake of its original released on the Game Boy Advance and that maintains all its essence by improving certain sections such as its menu system.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
A faithful recreation, but why go back when Stardew has since perfected the genre?
When you’re making a new iteration of a revered and classic series I don’t doubt the greatest concern lies in how great a risk you’re willing to take in changing things...
If you’re a fan of Stardew Valley, Animal Crossing or Dreamlight Valley and looking for a similar title to play, this is a very easy recommendation. For everybody else, there is an incredibly solid game here; but the twee nature can be off-putting, depending on your tastes
Story of Seasons: Friends of Mineral Town fits in today's scene as a balanced and good product, that can be a point of connection between an 16 years old way an audience now totally changed since then, which will still be able to enjoy the title as if it were new or as a welcome return among friends.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Story of Seasons: Friends of Mineral Town is such a calming experience from it’s very sweet and earthy tunes to its simple routine.
An interesting reboot of an old series. Shows its age in some ways, but it is a great way to revisit this franchise.
Story of Seasons: Friends of Mineral Town is a nice and chill game that’s perfect for relaxing after a tiring day.
Story of Seasons: Friends of Mineral Town is a fun blast to the past if you’re full of nostalgia for the original game like I am. Unfortunately, if you’re lacking that nostalgia, it may be a little underwhelming, especially if you’re comparing it to more modern farming simulators and the repetition of farming on such a small map can get monotonous after a while. However, if you’re willing to look past that, Story of Seasons: Friends of Mineral Town is a fun, cute, and charming experience that will take you straight back to 2003 in the best possible way.
Story of Seasons: Friends of Mineral Town is a nod to the classics. It doesn’t come packed with many of the highly useful mechanics and features that many of the newer SoS games do. But does that mean that it isn’t fun? Absolutely not. While Story of Seasons: Friends of Mineral town probably isn’t something that I’d recommend to every series fan out there, its undeniable charm and simple-yet addictive gameplay should still be enough to attract its fair share of players.