Echoes of the Plum Grove
a game by | Unwound Games |
Platform: | PC (2024) |
Editor Rating: | 7/10, based on 1 review, 2 reviews are shown |
User Rating: | 8.0/10 - 3 votes |
Rate this game: | |
See also: | Simulator Games, Open World Games, Best Casual Games, Best Indie Games, Story-Rich Games, Games Where Choices Matter, Crafting Games, Cooking Games |
Echoes of the Plum Grove is a farming simulator with a twist. All of your choices throughout the game have consequences that will shape not only the life of the player, but the people on the island as well.
The game begins with players washing up on the shore of an island, where they discover a tiny hamlet called Honeywood. There, they discover they have been gifted a tiny plot of land to call their own.
Building a Legacy
Your farm is more than just a farm. Your little plot outside of Honeywood will be passed on through the generations. Who you befriend or make enemies with will have an influence on everyone else.
Although spending time with your friends in Honeywood is important, you can’t neglect the seasons either. There’s little to survive on in winter, so spring through fall you need to be fishing, gathering and farming to make sure you have enough to get through the long winter.
Similar to Stardew Valley
Although the storyline and artwork certainly differs, it’s not hard to notice the similarities to Stardew Valley in this game. Players own a plot of land, are expected to meet with and develop relationships with the community.
Fishing, mining, gathering and farming all work similarly to Stardew Valley. Although we can see strong similarities, Echoes of the Plum Grove grows from there to become it’s own unique game.
Unlike in Stardew Valley, where you are always your own character for a playthrough, your character in Echoes of the Plum Grove will eventually die. When they pass away, who the player plays is passed to a different member of their family.
This both illustrates why it’s so important to grow relationships (you need a family member to continue your line) and how it is different from Stardew.
Very Cute Artwork
Another difference between Stardew, and also worth noting all on its own, is that the artwork is beautiful. The art has a hand drawn appearance, with a pleasant color palette. The artwork and color have more in keeping with Animal Crossing than Stardew Valley.
Adjustable Playstyle
Although the game can get quite ferocious—you can poison that mean old lady’s cake and then go gloat at her funeral with the rest of the villagers—there’s options to tone it down. If you’re struggling with survival and just want to play the game, you can disable a few of the features like aging and illness.
This makes the game approachable for everyone from the players who love a good challenge to the players who just want to poke some seeds in the soil and relax.
Some Struggles
Like all games, Echoes of the Plum Grove isn’t perfect. The game does have a few issues that had players complaining. The biggest one is that there’s not any kind of automatic watering system like Stardew Valley has, so you have to spend half your day watering crops if you want to survive.
This is annoying, but not the most terrible problem a game can face.
If you loved Stardew Valley and are looking for a unique take on this style of game, Echoes of the Plum Grove is a great choice. If you’re not a fan of grinding however, you may find yourself struggling with the lack of auto-watering features, as you’ll spend a long time repeating the same process over and over again.
Pros:
- Beautiful artwork
- Relaxing gameplay
- Long term consequences to gameplay
Cons:
- No auto-watering gear available
- Very grindy
Download Echoes of the Plum Grove
System requirements:
- PC compatible
- Operating systems: Windows 10/Windows 8/Windows 7/2000/Vista/WinXP
Game Reviews
Echoes of the Plum Grove is an open-world life simulator in which the player finds himself among the inhabitants of an island called Honeywood. The local life flows leisurely, people are engaged in farming, crafts like blacksmithing and tailoring are flourishing.
The locals are very friendly, socialize a lot, visit each other and have a lot of fun. If you are looking for a calm and colorful game for cozy evenings at home - then you will surely like this project from the developers Unwound Games.
Game features:
- The setting is 18th-19th century America
- Very nice graphics, which distinguishes the project from hundreds of similar ones