It is time for another bite-sized review! Today, we’re off to the lovely town of Sunnyside in Japan in a charming farming sim. Well, just calling Sunnyside a farming sim is slightly incorrect, and there’s a lot more to the game than meets the eye. Big thanks to the lovely folks at RainyGames for providing me with a review code.
Sunnyside is a pretty big game with a ton of content, so consider this a general impressions piece. I’ve played about twenty hours of the game so far, and I feel I’ve got enough of a grasp on the mechanics to share my thoughts. I’m writing this during a mini UK heatwave, and everyone knows how much we British folk love complaining about the heat! Seriously, the combination of island humidity plus no AC is not a pleasant time! So I’m hunched over my laptop with cooling fans set to full power, hoping I can be productive.
Launching into Early Access last month, Sunnyside started with the usual launch bugginess, but many of the bugs and technical issues were quickly squashed by the team. It’s sitting on a ‘Mostly Positive’ score right now, which is probably where I would place it too. Before I dig deeper, I can say if you are in the mood for a farming simulation game with some interesting mechanics and a great atmosphere, Sunnyside might just be the game for you. As an Early Access title, it is in active development and will see some unfinished stuff behind the scenes. Its current price tag is $29.99, which is what I would expect for a large game like this. For Early Access, some might call that a little high, especially given the rough state.
Sunnyside features a fairly robust narrative alongside the typical farming gubbins. You play as a lady who moves into the rural region from the big city, determined to try something new. Despite her big sister doubting she has what it takes, she can secure the run-down farming plot, losing most of her money. I was delighted to find out you will lose the game immediately if you don’t bid on the plot, so that’s a funny little thing the devs put in. It made me laugh. Either way, you get the farming plot, receive some help from some happy locals, and the game begins in earnest. With the aid of construction drones and some modern technology, the usual farming grind is not as frustrating in Sunnyside.
Let’s slow down to discuss the characters and dialogue. Overall, I quite like the characters in Sunnyside. There are many, and they seem fairly well written from my experience. They have their distinct personalities and quirks that make them stand out. One pitfall of having a town full of people to befriend in these games is being able to make them unique, and Sunnyside does a decent job with that. I’m torn on the main character you play, however.
Her dialogue is very straight, to the point, and almost robotic. You’ll be meeting a ton of people in the early game and I found myself speeding through the dialogue scenes. I’m not saying her dialogue is bad because it might be a character trait. Given her relationship with her sister and all the interactions I’ve experienced in the game, it is possible our main character just might be that personality. I haven’t got any insight from the developers on what their intention was around the main character, but if it is a deliberate writing choice, then I’m happy to keep it as is. It was just something I needed to point out, as I’m sure I’m not the only one who noticed something off with her dialogue.
There are some odd science fiction elements too. While discovering the local cave for resources, you’ll come across a strange robot from an alien race, lost and confused. This robotic chap is called Sparky, and you’ll be bringing him with you on a long journey to uncover the secrets behind this civilization. The caves are also full of weird creatures who will attack you on sight, leading to a deckbuilding combat game. This is just one of many mechanics in Sunnyside. While I was surprised by the twist in the story, the combat is relatively enjoyable with many cards to use. You can adjust game difficulty in several areas from economy to combat, and I appreciate the amount of accessibility Sunnyside offers.
Visually, Sunnyside is very easy on the eyes. Getting around has a couple of frustrations with invisible walls (some paths are blocked off which felt weird to me) but overall the exploration is great. You get access to a bike fairly early on which helps exploring even further. This is a pretty large map to explore, and being able to call any vehicle to you from the phone is a big perk. One problem a lot of farming games share is getting around the world, and Sunnyside bucks this trend. You get access to other ways of transport as you progress in the game, but I have yet to unlock them.
To conclude, what can we decipher from my experience in Sunnyside so far? It offers something refreshing from the usual farming games with the setting and storyline, and it gives players enough tools to overcome some of my usual gripes with the genre. It is fairly easy to make money, it looks great with its gorgeous atmosphere, and I felt emotionally attached to the gameplay. As an Early Access title, it does not skimp on content, but it carries some rough edges despite the improvements to performance since launch. I’m still really unsure of what the main character’s dialogue is built around, but overlooking these things, I can still recommend Sunnyside in its present state.
However, this is a tough market. First impressions are important, and while Sunnyside has improved a lot since its launch, it is still a little janky. Farming sim fans will probably enjoy what Sunnyside has to offer, but they might want to wait a little longer for performance improvements before diving in. Regardless, I was looking forward to Sunnyside for months before its launch, and I’m fairly happy with it so far.
