The developer behind Budget Cuts VR, Neat Corporation, is bringing back a dilapidated farm to its former glory with Garden of the Sea. The village creatures offer simple fetch quests in the form of pictures to ease you into the game, and without any other handholding you are free to explore at your own pace.
The controls are mapped to VR well, using teleportation controls VR players will be familiar with by now. You can adjust your view with the analogue sticks, and interact with items with L1 and R1. It works well and is comfortable to play, but we have a hard time moving into precise spots to view requests from villagers.
Planting, watering, and harvesting plants, fruits, and vegetables are the core of gameplay. Crafting and cooking these items will help you fulfill quests for the island’s inhabitants. If farming and decorating distract you, you’ll take three to five hours to complete these main quests.
Overview
First, you will have to till a spot with the hoe, plant a seed by shaking the packet over the ground, water it, and finally erect a fence or trellis as needed. For several hours, we perfected the placement of each vegetable patch and its surrounding fence, and it’s all very engaging. You can grow a wide variety of plants here, including strawberries, tomatoes, carrots, mushrooms, sunflowers, and bluebells. Due to the wide variety of items and limited inventory space, we had to micro-manage constantly, deciding which items to dump on the floor.
Various creatures roam the islands, like puffins, manatee-cows, dragon sheep, and moleberts, which can be tamed by feeding them and building stables for them to stay in. The eggs they lay will hatch into young. You’ll want to catch ’em all’ to fill your farmhouse’s pond with the haptic feedback and adaptive triggers of fishing.
As a result of its soothing setting, vibrant visuals, and freedom to design and decorate, this game will appeal to Animal Crossing and Stardew Valley fans alike.
Pros:
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Explore freely.
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Good control.
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Variety of recipes and plants.
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A cute visual style.
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Oozing with charm.
Cons:
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It’s a bit short.
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Repeatable quests.
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Inventories limited.
Score is 7 over 10