Being SE32’s first game, Cute Farmer Life holds more secrets than you might expect from a farming simulation. Putting you into the shoes of Matt, our protagonist, from the get-go, it immediately throws a hard message at you living to work. It outlines just how treacherous his life is, being a declining cycle of working to live. It’s a strong message that will catch your attention right from the start. I know you have thought about quitting your job because of how it changed your life for the worst, but we have been taught that we should work to live, forgetting that we live on a planet with endless possibilities.
Thus, our protagonist decides to break free from the chains of Capitalism and move to a small farm that’s just outside the border of a small town which just so happens to be full of secrecy.
Immediately, a bright coloured house and farm await you, reminding both yourself and Matt that there is more to life than working in a draining office from the minute you leave education. Cute Farmer Life quickly guides you through the basic mechanics: planting, watering, selling and refilling your watering can whilst working hard to level up your skills. Music fills your ears as you become accustomed to the controls (don’t fear, they are quite easy to get the hang of) and before you know it, you’ve been on a farming spree, planting, harvesting and selling all of your crops.
Upon discovering more, you find a bird that you can talk to — he introduces himself as ‘Punkbird’, educating you with tips and tricks to allow your new life on the farm be as efficient as it can be. As time passes, you find yourself pushed to craft a ‘repair kit’, allowing you to cross over to the neighbouring ‘island’ where, upon arrival, you’re greeted by a bunny named ‘Bunyi’ (creative, I know).
Soon you’ll be crafting other items, such as the axe, which allow you to access more areas of the map and unlock more recipes. It’s a familiar structure, but not one often found in farming games which tend to have new mechanics breeze in with the seasons.
There’s many shops here as well as the most significant one: a hat shop. I know.. hat shop, but this allows you to trade certain items for different hats. There are too many to choose from — ranging from a TV to a horse head. Personally, I traded for the first one available as I had just finished selling my harvest.
The mechanics of this game feel more than just satisfying, especially when selling your harvest: left click to see information about them and right click to sell them in bulk. It’s handy
to be able to see the value of each harvest as there is a luck skill which allows you to harvest more rare crops, selling for more. The trees, dotted around the map carefully, provide a source of income too – they drop other useful items which you can use to craft or sell for your own good. As your skill levels increase, you’re consciously unlocking more and more possibilities on your farm: shaking trees to gather branches, pulling on weeds, levelling up your animal pens. You’re granted to craft more as you progress through this game.
Though, as short as Cute Farmer Life is, the time period between unlocking the cows and the plot that starts after you craft the nightlight is somewhat long. Truly, this may be an issue on how slow I play through games as I want to enjoy it fully, doing all that I can — I’ve still yet to craft a nightlight as you need to gather materials after materials many, many times before you can uncover the truth behind the farm.
Despite this, it is safe to say that Cute Farmer Life can provide you with hours of limitless fun, never losing sight of your goal. It’s an easy recommendation if you prefer a slow paced, story-rich farming experience.
Cute Farmer Life is available now on Windows, Mac, Linux via Itch.io and Steam.