Volume 1, Issue 1
Farming Simulator Monthly
B L A I K E T R
O V E R V I E W
A N D N E W S
F a n t a s y F a r m i n g :
• These games are
considered satis-
Back in 2000 there were over
factory supple- 2,166,780 farms in America
ments for the which has declined at a steady
popular farming rate. As of 2017 there were over
simulator Harvest 2,048,000 farms. With the
Moon. weakening of the farming com-
• They have all munity, it’s up to us gamers to
been featured on fill the void. Over the past few
The Game of weeks I have showcased several
Nerds website indie farming simulators and
and written by this week is no different. I’d like
Blaike Trujillo. to welcome you to Fantasy Farm-
• They are all per- ing: Orange Season demo.
sonal opinion
pieces.
The Fantasy Farming: Orange
Season demo has many ele-
ments one would expect in a
farming RPG, the growing of
I N S I D E T H I S
crops, taking care of animals,
I S S U E :
and town exploration. However,
there are several elements that
Castaway Paradise 2 ers, Hudell Tales, encourages
surprised me in the most de-
lightful way. The marriage sys-
Garden Paws 3
tem has more spouses than one
could ever ask for, rival marriag-
Yonder 4 es, mini games, and festivals
inspired from events celebrated
around the world. Gamers can
Farm Folks 5 these different features, how
also invite a villager to hang out
with them while they go about
Harvest Moon: Light of their day, as a work-date experi-
6
Hope
ence. The aspect that I am most
intrigued by is the rival marriag-
Graveyard Keeper 7
es, I remember this in Harvest
Moon: Friends of Mineral Town
Closing Thoughts 8 and Harvest Moon: More Friends
U J I L L O
O r a n g e
of Mineral Town. The idea that I
can influence who an NPC mar-
ries is exciting and I hope that if
I marry someone’s potential
spouse, they aren’t out of luck.
Orange Season title screen
For you modders, you’ll be inter-
ested in the fact that Fantasy
Farming: Orange Season is com-
pletely open code. The develop-
total customization of their prod-
uct and hope to see what in-
ventive mods people can create.
This is not something I have
come across and thought it was
a fascinating addition. With all
could I not give it a try?
After the quick download off
Steam I was thrusted into the
create a character page and was
impressed by all the options.
Several different skin tones and
hair colors, of course I had to
March 22, 2019
S e a s o n
become an alien with blue hair.
After naming my future dog,
Bayge, and farm, A Shrine Atop A
Hill, the tutorial begun. I was
pleasantly surprised that it was
sort and full of humor. The
Mayor and her brother gave me
the basics of what to do, con-
trols and whatnot, without over-
loading me with information. I
often feel games have either too
many moving parts in their tuto-
rials or not enough however, this
was perfect.
After growing some turnips and
meeting potential love interests,
I was hooked. Fantasy Farming:
Orange Season is the perfect
blend of classic Harvest Moon
and modern gameplay. I highly
recommend anyone that loves
causal gaming to give Hudell
Tales a try, the demo is free and
it’s a really great game. Overall,
while real farming in America
may be declining, virtual farming
is on the rise. In the end, these
games may inspire the next
generation of gamers to grab
their cheap hoe and start tilling
their own little plot of land.
P a g e 2 F a r m i n g S i m u l a t or M o n t h l y

C a s t a w a y P a r a d i s e i s H a r v e s t M o o n
a n d A n i m a l C r o s s i n g s ' L o v e C h i l d

Animal Crossing is a game
like no other, it has captivat-
ed audiences young and old
for nearly 20 years. Whether
it’s the casual gaming style or
the unique characters, gam-
ers flock to any game that
resembles the classics we all
know and love. Needless to
say, when I found Castaway
Paradise on the Google Play
store, I was intrigued.
I have been on a real mobile
game kick these last few
weeks, I felt that I never really
gave them a chance. Now
that I am at university (Go
Sun Devils?!) I find myself
with more free time in be-
tween classes and course
overload. To pass the time I
meander on Reddit and
Google Play giggling to myself
at the ridiculous things peo-
ple have created until I find a
diamond in the rough. After
nearly an hour of searching I
found the one, Castaway
Paradise.
Castaway Paradise is a sand-
box simulator with point and
click capabilities found on
IOS, Google Play, Mac Store,
and Steam. It boasts a Har-
vest Moon and Animal Cross-
ing vibe with a dash of island
flare. Gamers can engage in a
variety of activities including
bug hunting, fishing, farming,
quests, and customizing their
characters. There are over
1,500 items to decorate the
island with and hundreds of
quests to complete, players
will never find a dull moment.
It is also hinted that players
Characters from Castaway
can trade with friends, does Paradise
that mean multiplayer? Cast-
away Paradise couldn’t down-
load fast enough; my greedy

eyes were eager for a chance
to get in on the action.
“Castaway After the painfully slow down-
Paradise does rip load was completed, I found
myself on an island covered in
-off aspects of seaweed. My ship had been
wrecked during a storm and I
Animal was now forced to live in this
Crossing” humble village. Greeted by
Mayor Viktoria, she cleaned
me up and gave me a modest
tent that she assured me
could be upgraded in the fu- which is rare in games like
ture. I grew corn for the town this.
chef Gustave, went fishing
The music in Castaway Para-
with the aviator named Ame-
lia, and got bullied by the con-
dise is fun and light-hearted
with flutes playing the stereo-
struction manager Angus. I
was having a blast watering
typical island music. It remind-
ed me of summer, which is
random plants and pulling
desperately calling my name,
weeds, it was a total Animal
Crossing meets Harvest Moon
and even as I type this I have
it playing in the background.
experience. I really felt that
The graphics are pretty stellar
their promise was delivered,
considering it’s a mobile

game, characters have a fun
blocky appearance while the
land is vibrant and colorful.
The only complaint I have is
that the grass looks exactly
like a lightened version of
Animal Crossing and when
fishing, the shadows do as
well. The game is unique and
fun on its own, I feel they
didn’t need to take these
elements from previously
celebrated games. Otherwise,
Castaway Paradise is the Castaway Paradise is still one
perfect love child between of a kind. It gave me hope for
two of my favorite games. mobile games of the future,
and I am interested to see
Castaway Paradise is the
what other games Stolen
perfect blend of Harvest
Couch Games have created.
Moon meets Animal Crossing.
The quests are inimitable, the
storyline is interesting, and
the characters are adorable.
Aside from the landscape rip-
offs, I feel that while ele-
Amelia likes to fish and fly her
ments from the previously
plane.
mentioned games are there,
V o l u m e 1 , I ss u e 1 P a g e 3

L o v e C r e a t e d F a r m i n g S i m u l a t o r
S e n s a t i o n G a r d e n P a w s
They say the body has crazy responses
to stimuli. One being, if an object is too
adorable humans want to squeeze
them to death. Don’t believe me?
Check out what National Geographic
has to say on the matter. Either way,
Bitten Toast Games Inc., has created a
slew of characters so cute I could
squeeze them to death in “Garden
Paws”.
Enjoy crisp graphics
Your character’s grandparents have
finally retired and left you their farm!
Take your adorable character on the
journey of a lifetime filled with, farm-
ing, fishing, mining, exploration, and
combat. In addition to running the
family business, a quaint shop. This is
the best way to earn coins and help
your fellow citizens build up the town.
According to the Garden Paws’ website
players can sell anything from flowers
to poop. How the poop is collected is
beyond me, but the idea is highly intri-
guing.
The aspect of Garden Paws that really
peaked my interest was the customiza-
tion of the character. One can play as a
bear, a bunny, or a kitty with several

different color patterns and
accessories. When I found out
it was a farming simulator, like
Stardew Valley and Harvest
Moon, I was hooked. All things
farming excite me and I knew I
had to give the demo a go.
While I personally had a rough
start with the controls, I’m terri-
ble at using any keyboard key
that doesn’t have an arrow, it
was easy to pick up. The ani-
mation was just as great as it
was in the snapshots and I
found myself ogling over the
landscape. The cartoonish
realism was stunning, and I
often led my sweet bear run-
ning toward the trees. This
combined with the tranquil
music and the adorable con-
versations I encountered,
made for a riveting experi-
ence. Overall, the demo had
me hungry for more, and I am
excited to see what the fin-
ished product has in store.
After looking over the press
page there was one final thing
about Garden Paws that made
my heart melt. The creators
Daniel Snd and Kristina Van-
dale are a couple and created
Garden Paws as a game to play “Garden Paws
with each other. If that isn’t the
sweetest thing ever, I don’t know was created by a
what is. Garden Paws allows for
up to three additional players
husband and wife
which is definitely something that that enjoy gaming
lacks in other farming simulators.
Overall, the love and detail that together.”
Snd and Vandale put into Garden
Paws is apparent and I encour-
age anyone who loves a good
farming simulator to check out
their Kickstarter and see it for
themselves.

Snazzy clothing
options

Garden Paws can lead to amazing adventures

P a g e 4 F a r m i n g S i m u l a t or M o n t h l y

E m b r a c e y o u r C u r i o s i t y i n Y o n d e r :
C l o u d C a t c h e r C h r o n i c l e s
Stephen Hawking once said,
“Look up at the stars and not
down at your feet. Try to
make sense of what you see
and wonder about what
makes the universe exist. Be
curious”. Not many aspects
of life instill a sense of mystic
and wonder that designates
deep within us, let alone a
video game. Sure, we may
find ourselves in an adven-
turous state every now and
again but unless something
really clicks, it doesn’t stick. I
found myself enthralled with
Yonder: The Cloud Catcher
Chronicles and I highly rec-
ommend that anyone reading
this, hops aboard the voyager
train with me.
Yonder: The Cloud Catcher
Chronicles is a game that
follows a sea explorer after
their ship was wrecked in a
storm. Lost with nothing but
their trusty compass, they
must set off to make friends
and thrive on a strange is-
land full of magic and
strange beasts. Sprinkled
T h e
throughout this land is
quests, fishing, farming, tam-
ing of the creatures, and
puzzles galore. Animals mi-
grate based on the seasons
which are captured in an
authentic and eye-catching
manner. This causal RPG is
stunning and has all the ele-
ments a gamer such as me
could ask for.
To be completely honest, I
purchased Yonder: The Cloud Groffles roam free all through-
out Yonder
Catcher Chronicles when it
came out on Steam in 2017.

I was excited for a different
take on my usual farming
simulator and saw how adora-
ble the bison-like critters,
“Stay curious Groffles, were. However, I
instantly hated it. The camera
my friends.” angles killed me, I couldn’t
walk straight without having
to use my trackpad to switch
the angle. This angered me,
and I counted it as a loss,
never to play it again. That is,
until spring break 2019 when
I remembered my computer
had Xbox controller capabili-
ties. I feel ashamed to admit
this never crossed my mind in
my state of distress and I
thought I’d give Yonder: The
Cloud Catcher Chronicles
another whirl. Oh boy, I am so
glad I did.
After creating my beautiful
blue-haired girl I was quickly
working through events that
gave me problems my first go
around, I could walk around
without ripping my hair out
and I fell in love. The graphics
are crisp and colorful in what
can only be described as an
animated reality, meaning I
wish the world looked like the
land of Gemea. I met count-
less villagers, befriended sev-
eral mythical creatures, and
began the journey to find my
character’s roots all with the
help of the goddess Aaerie.
Hours were spent on this
game and I still have a pletho-

ra of puzzles to conquer and words in everything they cre-

quests to find. Overall, I am
glad I got over myself and
embraced the world of Yon-
der: The Cloud Catcher
Chronicles.
In the end, Stephen Hawking
was right, being curious
should remain with us well
into adulthood. Prideful Sloth
perfectly displays Hawking’s
ated within Yonder: The
Cloud Catcher Chronicles.
The beautiful graphics,
cheery music, and unique
characters just barely scratch
the surface. These are the
superficial aspects, while the
deep storyline conveys a
message we should all hold
near and dear to our hearts.
The Yonder logo
Stay curious.
V o l u m e 1 , I ss u e 1 P a g e 5

D r o p Y o u r S i c k l e s , I t ’ s T i m e
F a r m F o l k s !
When I started my gaming career I
was about six-years-old. I started off
playing Yoshi’s Story and would even-
tually move on to more challenging
titles such as the God of War series
and Dante’s Inferno. However, no mat-
ter how old I get, I always have a soft
spot in my heart for Harvest Moon and
other games like it. Therefore, when I
was perusing Kickstarter, I stopped in
Farm Folks logo my tracks when my eyes laid upon
Farm Folks.
Since the birth of Stardew Valley, I
t o P l a y
have uncovered a plethora of different
farming simulators, but not all of them
have been as intriguing as Farm Folks.
The story is reminiscent of other titles
like it although there is a few twists.
The farmer’s brother gifts them a boat
and they ship off leaving their old life
behind, when a terrible storm leaves
them shipwrecked on Softshoal Island.
The comically fashion forward Mayor
Snodgrass gives the farmer a parcel of
land and the journey of a lifetime truly
begins.

If Zelda Wind Waker and Har-
vest Moon: Light of Hope had a
love child, it would be this
game. The graphics are fun
and animated without losing
its integrity, while the music is
whimsical and childlike. The
trailer began with happy sheep
bleating in the distance and
allowed viewers to really get a
taste for what Farm Folks is all
about. There was farming,
animal raising, mining, fishing,
and making friends with the
locals. All while the seasons
changed from a bright happy
summer, to a silent yet beauti-
ful snowy winter.
One complaint that is often
made of games like Farm
Folks is the lack of customiza-
tion of the character. However,
fear not because not only can
you change the character’s
clothing, that does look eerily
similar to a Hero’s Tunic, but
also the hair color and style as
well. Another amazing addition
is the sheer number of in-
game holidays boasted in the
Kickstarter. Each holiday
comes with its own set of tradi-
tions that fellow villagers enjoy “Farm Folks is
thoroughly. Finally, our beloved
farmer will also be able to find
the marriage
an individual to share the rest between Zelda
of their life with, which is al-
ways the best part of any farm- Wind Waker and
ing simulator.
Harvest Moon.”
As far as I am concerned, eve-
ry farming simulator deserves
a special place in my heart and
Farm Folks is no exception. I

look forward to seeing the fin- able to enjoy Farm Folks on

ished product and desperately Windows, PlayStation, Xbox,
hope the fishing aspect is easi- and Nintendo upon completion
er than in Stardew Valley. The of the game if enough funds
one aspect I am looking for- are generated.
ward to the most? Two words,
unicorn cows. I mean look at
them, they are the cutest
things in the galaxy. Overall,
farmers everywhere will lay
down their sickles and pick up
Unicorn Cows are adorable
a controller to play Farm Folks.
Farmers everywhere will be
P a g e 6 F a r m i n g S i m u l a t or M o n t h l y

A S i d e
O p i n i o n
Natsume first stole gamers
hearts in 1996 after releas-
ing Harvest Moon on the
Super Nintendo. The year is
now 2017 and Natsume is
back at it again with Harvest
Moon: Light of Hope
(HMLOH) which was released
via Steam on November
14th. This is the first Harvest
Moon title available on PC
and enthusiasts were hopeful
for a classic product.
However, many fans were
thrown into a pit of despair
after realizing HMLOH con-
P o n y - t a i l a n d U n p o p u l a r
o n H a r v e s t M o o n : L i g h t o f
H o p e
sisted of three-dimensional
characters in a two-
dimensional world. The
graphics are a marriage be-
tween Harvest Moon: Friends
of Mineral Town and Tree of
Tranquility which I will admit,
is an odd combination. Nev-
ertheless, my unpopular opin-
ion is that I do in fact adore
the new addition to the Har-
vest Moon line.
Harvest Moon: Light of Hope
begins with a harsh storm
with the main character
dazed and confused. This
leads to the player receiving
their farm and learning the
basics behind cultivating
crops. The one major down-
side I found whilst play was
the inability to use arrow keys
to move around. While one
can play via Xbox controller, I
wanted to attempt to play
organically. I found myself Meeting your neighbors can be hard
hoeing every patch of ground
I came across reducing my
ability to move around swiftly.
However, the classic music

playing in the background
washed away my anger and
transported me to times of
old.
“Graphics aren’t While many players are put
everything.” off by the graphics, I found
them to be quite interesting. I
enjoyed the three-
dimensional Harvest Sprites
and being able to enjoy my
female character’s side pony-
tail. I also liked the back-
ground being reminiscent of
the games I played as a child. hair. Harvest Moon: Light of
These graphics aren’t typical Hope is a refreshing take on a
of the series, but I found them well-loved classic.
to be a refreshing change.
Overall, I love Harvest Moon:
Light of Hope and look for-
ward to logging in countless
hours milking cows and hoe-
ing the land. I happily await
the chance of finding true
love and allowing my farm to
flourish. My main mission? To
find my savior with the purple

←
Harvest
Moon: Light
of Hope logo

Meet sprites
V o l u m e 1 , I ss u e 1 P a g e 7

G r a v e y a r d
Graveyard Keeper logo
K e e p e r D i s t u r b i n g
R o m a n c e
I won’t compare it to Stardew Valley,
it’s over done and quite frankly inaccu-
rate. While the design style is similar,
the basic premise is completely differ-
ent. I do love a pixelated farming simu-
lation, but Graveyard Keeper is more
complex than that.
I had been anticipating the launch of
Graveyard Keeper for several weeks.
When I finally received the alpha re-
lease email, I couldn’t get my pocket-
book out quick enough. Graveyard
Keeper had been circulating around
M e e t s
Stardew Valley Facebook groups and I
was expecting a macabre farming
simulation. However, what I got was
far superior than anything I ever could
have imagined.
Graveyard Keeper elegantly mashes
an epic love story, dangerous quests,
surgical precision and light farming
into a perfectly painted package. The
art is simple yet deliberate, care was
taken in creating each flower and
blending the grass, so it didn’t look
like an over pixelated mess. Overall,

the design of Graveyard Keep-
er is fantastic and leaves the
player wanting to explore
deeper into this medieval
world.
The game starts out with a
man torn apart from the wom-
an he loves and his despera-
tion to get back to her. He is
then transported into time of
old where he learns that he is
the new town graveyard keep-
er. His new job entails preform-
ing autopsies, digging the
graves, and maintaining the
overall appearance of the
graveyard. A charming donkey
drops off the deceased and a
loveable talking skull shows
him the ropes. The player will
run into many charming char-
acters such as a blacksmith,
bar keep, an actor, and an
astronomer.
There are many highs within
the land of Graveyard Keeper
but there are a few lows as
well. I found myself running
out of time with each day.
Each action depleted a health
bar and early in the game I
found myself needing to sleep
often to replenish it. I started a
vicious cycle in which I’d work
with a body, sleep, and repeat.
This left little time for other
quests and attempting to
maintain my graveyard. How-
ever, despite this I played for
about six hours the day I pur-
chased the alpha. Needless to
say, it’s terribly addicting.
Overall, Graveyard Keeper is a
moving love story jam packed
with death and gore leaving
players excited for the future.
The official release is August
15th, 2018 and will be availa-
ble on PC and Xbox One. I look
forward to throwing many more
bodies in the river and seeing
what all Graveyard Keeper has
to offer.

“Graveyard
Keeper can’t be
compared to
Stardew Valley.” Even the locals aren’t impressed

Life as an undertaker never

makes sense

B L A I K E T R U J I L L O
Game of Nerds Writer
“Where there is no shame in having an
unhealthy obsession with a fandom”
C l o s i n g
Each week I scramble to get my work
done and often procrastinate. Some-
times writing for a blog, for free mind
you, can be daunting. With deadlines
being Fridays, most of the time I just
want to sleep but I must say, I have
met some fine people along the way.
Covering cons and weird “nerdy”
events around Arizona has been fun
and I adore it. My favorite thing is
emailing a creator and gushing to
them about how great their game is. I
love to hear the excitement in the
words they type, the feeling of accom-
plishment, being able to tell someone
their hard work was worth it. Deadlines
may be exhausting, but bringing a
community together is completely
THEGAMEOFNERDS.COM
I am a blogger for The Game of Nerds. Each
week I upload an article, usually video game
related, and wait for people to click on it. All
these articles are mine, further distribution or
duplication is prohibited.
T h o u g h t s
worth it. Overall, it was fun to go
through and see old article and see
how much I have progressed. Towards
the front of the newsletter are newer
articles, they were easier to find, and
towards the end are early works. Sure,
I’m no Stephen King or Agatha Chris-
tie, but I have fun and at the end of
the day, that’s all that really matters.
In the end, I look forward to many
more years of meeting interesting
people, searching for new content, and
waiting for people to click on it.
The Game of Nerds logo