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For only $7.99, less than the cost of three large lattes in most places, you can take the popular indie PC game Stardew Valley with you everywhere you take your Android smartphone. That’s a bargain compared to the $14.99 asking price for the Nintendo Switch version, which is the same as the Steam release for PC gamers. That price nets you the base game, with the mobile-exclusive features promised during the pre-registration period, along with all future updates. That includes free content updates, of which the game has already had plenty.
If you’re not already familiar with Stardew Valley, to put it quite bluntly, you’re missing out. The game essentially continues what Nintendo and Natsume’s Harvest Moon franchise started, while upping the ante in a number of significant ways. While the core of the game revolves around farming at first, things quickly evolve into a number of different directions, and it all depends on how the player decides to approach things.
On the mobile-specific front, you have a number of creature comforts meant to make the game fit the platform better. For starters, there’s an auto-save feature to ensure you don’t lose hours of progress when you have to mash the home button or turn your screen off and then go attend to real life. There are also automatic options for attacking and farm tool usage and switching to make things quicker and easier, and a wealth of touch and controller-based control options to suit different play styles. If you want the plodding, methodical, zenlike farming found in the PC version, you’re free to experience that. If you want to pop in for a quick run around town and do your daily crop tending on your lunch break, that’s also fine.
It’s worth mentioning that the mobile version will be a bit behind the console version in features and storyline out of the gate. The game will be caught up in due time, and because of how much the game has at release, there will be plenty for eager players to chew on while they wait. All of the mysteries, quirks, and things to do that make Stardew Valley the unique game that it is are either already in place, or already in the works. The only exception is mutliplayer, which is not supported for now. There’s no word on when or if it may come to Android.
Stardew Valley is one of the biggest indie games of this generation, and it’s not to be missed. Thankfully, at a price like this, you’ve got no reason not to pull the trigger. If you’re averse to spending money on mobile games, you can even save back your Google Opinion Rewards, and if you’re diligent, it won’t take too long. This is a game that everybody who plays video games should try at least once thanks to its inventive nature and the vast amount of things you can do and explore. All the better if you can have the game tucked away in your pocket to bust out and play any time you please.