• Developer: Giants Software
• Publisher: Focus Home Interactive
• Systems: Xbox 360, Xbox One, Playstation 3, Playstation 4, PC, Mac
• Where to buy? Steam, PSN

Never in my dreams would I ever think I would play a game about running a farm. I just never truly understood the simulator series of games until a little gem called Goat Simulator came around. If you have not played that title by the way, I encourage you to do so. Very fun and pretty easy to get a hold of. Anyways, I never gave the series a chance due to thinking the gameplay would not be fun and exciting at all. Who would want to play a game about running a farm right? Strangely enough, after playing a hefty amount of Farming Simulator for the PS4, I can say I had my foot in my mouth removed. The game is actually a lot of fun. This review will be focusing on the PS4 port of the game, with ports on Xbox 360, Xbox One, PC, and Mac as well.

Going in I did not expect much honestly, but I can sum up my experience by saying it surpassed all my expectations, and then some. While the story may not be the most interesting, you should know what you are in for just by the title alone. You are managing your own virtual farm. With numerous Vehicles, equipment, and ways to spend your currency, Farming Simulator 15 offers so much content that it can be a little overwhelming at first at where to start. After experimenting however, you will find yourself finding a way to make decent coin, and unlock more vehicles to make even more of a profit.

Farming Simulator 15  is impressive in terms of the visual deparment. The grass sways in the correct direction with the wind, and the textures, while not AAA quality, offer a realistic looking environment to explore and build upon. While I don’t have much knowledge on farming equipment, most tractors and forklifts and such look true to their real life counterparts. Again, while this is not going to push the hardware to its limits, it is still a visual treat overall.

I don’t know how I can explain the sound without just outright saying it feels like royalty free music at times. That being said, I love the soundtrack. You see, this reviewer suffers from insomnia, so sleeping is a treat to me. Without fail, every time I would leave the main menu on and focus on something else around the house, the music would put me to sleep without fail within 15 minutes. While that may not be saying anything about the music in terms of a review, I love the soundtrack just for being able to let me relax and be able to actually drift into sleep. So, if you have problems sleeping, I recommend the game to you solely for the soundtrack. A weird recommendation I know, but one I felt I should share.

The controls take some getting used to for sure. At the start of the game I was trying to load pallets onto a trailer and was having a hard time maneuvering the forklift. After around 20 minutes of having a hard time loading the trailer, I began to find the technique for swift turning and was able to do the next loading mission swiftly. While I got used to the rest of the games controls over time, I always was left feeling the controller could have been better utilized. However I come from a history of RPG’s, shooters and racing titles, so I may just be unfamiliar with controls of this type.

You earn money doing various chores and work around your farm, which you spend to buy equipment that will allow you to expand your farm even more. Doing that then allows you to buy better equipment to make even more money. Farming Simulator also has vehicles you can buy for real money. The prices themselves are pretty fair. On the PSN store, the prices ranged from 99 cents to $2.99 USD, which is not bad at all. If you enjoy making your own virutal farm, I can see the appeal in picking up a couple vehicles that would hurry your path to being a millionaire.

After playing around 12 hours on a particular file, I still have a to-do list that is larger than what I started the game with. While I cannot see myself spending hours upon hours perfecting my virutal farm, I do want to continue mowing my lawn and dumping the clippings for spare change. Something about the experience is enjoyable and leaves you wondering why it is 12:30 in the morning when you started playing at 6 pm. You can get sucked in, and not feel like you wasted your evening. This leaves me wondering what other types of professions can be made into a simulator title, and which ones I would want to play. The skys the limits I suppose. Safe to say after playing Farming Simulator, I will actually keep an eye on future releases for a “series” of sorts that I was not looking at earlier.

If you think you would enjoy running a business, or enjoyed games like Rollercoaster Tycoon, I would say give Farming Simulator 15 a shot. While there is no big flashy story to be had, there is enough there to keep you wanting to improve your farm and make the big bucks.

Recommended