Harvestella

"Overall, Harvestella is a mixed bag of a JRPG with many flaws but also many great, engaging elements. As a result, I wouldn&s;t recommend it to anyone except those who especially love farming simulators and classic JRPGs."

"Harvestella starts from a very interesting proposal, combining a story in the style of Final Fantasy with mechanics of games like Stardew Valley, but fails to give the chest by not delving into any of its elements. Add technical defects …"

"A good mix between life-sim and GdR, Harvestella seems to be a game addressed to the less experienced players, rather than the expert ones."

"Harvestella may have unsightly character models and rote combat, but it offers a satisfying blend of farming sim and action RPG that scratches the itches it&s;s supposed to."

"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 …"

"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;s like the game is begging for "just one more day" and …"

"Harvestella isn&s;t going to remove Rune Factory from existence, but it has a lot of potential as a strong competitor. This first (and hopefully not only) outing has an extremely strong basis and manages to hit a lot of the …"

"Harvestella is a fresh take on life-sims that wears many different hats well, but doesn’t always know when to wear them."

"Harvestella attempts to create a unique gaming experience by combining farming and life sim elements with action RPG elements."

"Solid and definitely have an audience. There could be some hard-to-ignore faults, but the experience is fun."

"Our test of Harvestella took place on Nintendo Switch, but the JRPG is also available on PC. With a playful soul constantly poised between Action RPG and life-simulator, the JRPG alternates real-time clashes, cultivation of the fields and socialization activities …"

"Harvestella is Square Enix&s;s endearing first attempt at a farming sim RPG, only slightly held back by its budget."

"Harvestella is a game full of immersive environments, beautiful music, and an engaging and meaningful narrative for both its world and main characters, which is enough to redeem the game&s;s more mediocre elements. There are several areas of Harvestella, like …"

"Harvestella is a fresh coat of paint on a familiar wall. It&s;s a good wall, solid foundation, level, able to withstand the elements, and damn good paint. But it&s;s still a wall. If you want to play the newest, most …"

"Harvestella is the secret best game you probably haven&s;t played yet."

"Harvestella is a solid life simulation RPG, which has its farming system and intuitive mechanics as its biggest draws. While the presence of beautiful visuals, a flawless soundtrack, fluid overall mechanics, and a charismatic set of characters and narrative manages …"

"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 is a rather blurry but calming and eventful RPG farming simulator that fails to capture the beauty in its two primary genres. Its gameplay is busy, often distracting, and ultimately leaves plenty to be desired. While this game is …"

"Harvestella cultivates its characters and story, but other mechanics aren&s;t quite as ripe."

"In lesser hands, Harvestella&s;s balance of JRPG and farming sim could&s;ve ended up as a bland mishmash. Instead, Live Wire and Square Enix have created a solid blend. Its effective gameplay loop and engaging story push you down surprising paths …"

"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."

"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 …"

"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 …"

"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 …"

"Harvestella stumbles before it finds a decent pace, with the biggest drawbacks being the slow start and temperamental graphics. If you can get past these shortcomings, there’s plenty to be enjoyed here and a hefty completion time to keep you …"

"Harvestella could be described as one of the best &s;good&s; games you&s;ll play this year. Its performance issues and rather simplistic mechanics hold it back from being great, but its quest design, dungeon exploration, and successful fusion of very distinct …"

"This is a game with a lot of heart that I kept wanting to explore even with its messier aspects. If you&s;re looking for a farm sim mixed with a JRPG or a JRPG mixed with a farm sim, this …"

"Harvestella doesn&s;t deliver the farm sim that it promises, which is one of its great positive points, but it does bring one of the most consistent RPGs of the recent Square Enix era."

"I’ve seen a lot of people complain that Harvestella is just another farming game, when in reality, it’s a full blown RPG that has farming as an economical side quest that’s meant to boost the RPG side of things, and …"

"If you can overlook these issues, and are a fan of stuff like Rune Factory, Stardew Valley or even the slept-on Level 5 title Fantasy Life – the latter a definite kindred spirit in terms of its JRPG tropes, action, …"

"Harvestella is rough around the edges, and it&s;s not particularly accomplished at anything it sets out to do, but it&s;s a fun, engaging farming sim at its core, and certainly worth a look for fans of the genre."

"Harvestella is more than the sum of its parts, but it tries to merge some different gameplay souls into one nonetheless, resulting in a lack of depth in any of these."

"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 …"

"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 …"

"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 …"