![]() ![]() Regardless, it takes far too long for even the most basic enemies to be defeated in Garden Story. Players will encounter this enemy constantly throughout Garden Story and I felt like it took forever to get enough upgrades that I could kill the main form and the tiny blob before my stamina ran out.Įnemies usually move slowly, allowing time for stamina to recover. The most frequent Rot enemy is a purple blob that takes three hits to kill, upon which a tiny bouncing blob is ejected that can harm Concord or slow them with its toxin. ![]() Initially Concord only has a few stamina charges, meaning he can slash an enemy two or three times with the starting spade weapon. This starts to show after a few rounds of fighting the minions of the rot. Garden Story is a surprisingly easy game but presents itself in a way that is often needlessly complex. The frequency and seemingly infinite use of dew stations means that the only time a player should faint is when in a dungeon. Different bottles can heal faster but hold less charges or heal more HP at once, each with an upgrade path. Similar to an Estus Flask, Concord can hold a few bits of dew in a bottle until they must find a station to refill. Health is recovered through holding down a button and sprinkling or drinking dew. Combat generally has an impact and encounters are over quickly enough to not wear the player out. Along the journey, players will acquire new weapons that attack differently and can be upgraded through collecting materials. Concord is capable of slashing with various weapons, guarding with a shield, running, and dodging. There is a sense of danger to the world and the threat the Rot holds and one of urgency to completing tasks for the Grove and its denizens.Īs a top-down action game, Garden Story has little room to control in complex ways. While it maintains a childlike wonder, there are enough sharpened edges that Garden Story doesn’t feel suffocating in its cuteness. Never once did I tire of traipsing into a familiar screen or speaking to a new character with an appropriate name. The sense of adventure players eke out from Concord waking up on their first day to dangerous boss encounters is reminiscent of the Zelda games Garden Story so clearly is inspired by and pays respect to. From the many puns based on fruit and other vegetation to a jolly tackling of seasons and gaming location tropes, Garden Story‘s world is fully realized. Keenly aware of how precious its greenery is, developer Picogram imbued the Grove with personality. Though most of the playable space is covered in terrain and buildings that Concord may never walk over or enter, it evokes the provocative beauty of nature or the intimate simplicity of a home garden. The world possesses a sharpness and level of detail that I didn’t expect, even on the Nintendo Switch. Not only do the vibrant colors pop right off the screen, the art itself is crisp and detailed. Unless you are completely against otherwise adorable pixel art, it’s impossible not to love the game’s aesthetic. ![]() Garden Story is an infectiously cute game. The Rot is the dimmest spot in the bright world of the Grove, acting as the primary antagonistic force that would disrupt an otherwise a harmonious place. The Grove and its four regions were being attacked by the Rot, an unpleasant force full of blob-like enemies that excreted poisonous mist or seemed to possess large beasts. As a young grape named Concord (cute), I had taken on the role of a Guardian after the previous Guardian Plum departed the Grove. Up until that point, Garden Story had been mostly straightforward. Not only was I in full-blown RPG territory, I was staring down the barrel of a pixelated crafting game. Garden Story had introduced several wrinkles in its Link to the Past-like homage that it had become more than just a top-down action game. There came a point in Garden Story after I had learned how to fish items out of the water, collect world lore, break rocks with a hammer, revitalize plants with dew, and survive a day/night cycle that the game taught me how to craft. ![]()
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