Garden Story

 PC
Metascore
70

Mixed or average reviews - based on 6 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 2 out of 6
  2. Mixed: 4 out of 6
  3. Negative: 0 out of 6
  1. Noisy Pixel
    Aug 20, 2021
    90
    Garden Story isn’t necessarily about what you do, since you mostly take on simple and tedious tasks. Instead, the game is about the people you meet along the way, the lives you touch, the connections you make, and ultimately not forgetting about your roots, no plum intended. It has honestly been a while since I’ve been emotionally moved by a game this sweet, especially one paired with a beautiful soundtrack. If you are looking for a cozy world-building game with some combat and a whole lot of charm and whimsy, then The Grove welcomes you like a home away from home. Concord, you’re truly one-in-a-melon, and you did a grape job raisin me!
  2. Softpedia
    Aug 24, 2021
    85
    Garden Story is not actually about gardening, in the Stardew Valley sense, and that’s great. The story is about growing friendships and the organic development of communities. The mechanics are good enough to keep players engaged with the world. The stakes are never high. Concord doesn’t shine as a protagonist but the world around him is colorful and fun, a good reason to spend 15 minutes at the end of the day doing a little work to make it even better for everybody else. But longer sessions with the game tend to reveal that there’s a lot of repetition, especially when it comes to the action parts. And if the friendly spell of the world-building breaks it can be hard to go back and pick Garden Story up again. The team at Picogram has a good instinct for universe development and cuteness hooks but they do need to put some extra time into creating a better gameplay loop for their unique universe.
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  1. Rock, Paper, Shotgun
    Aug 16, 2021
    And it’s a world to spend time in, too, not just turn up and smash a few pots and hoard a few coins. Take it slow, says Garden Story. Yes, peril approaches, but fences need fixing just as monsters need slaying. Fighting to save the world is a lofty abstract. Instead, fight to save the soil and the sky, the frogs and the flowers, the wise cacti and the talking pickles. Fight like only a grape in a green bucket hat armed with a parasol can.

User Reviews

All reviews »
User Score
8.4

Generally favorable reviews- based on 5 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 3 out of 5
  2. Mixed: 2 out of 5
  3. Negative: 0 out of 5
  1. FMagno
    Oct 30, 2022
    6
    Such a comfy and sweet story hold back with an unnecessary and albeit meaningless grind, what start as a nice mechanic to restore the villagesSuch a comfy and sweet story hold back with an unnecessary and albeit meaningless grind, what start as a nice mechanic to restore the villages you find in the game, at the end turns out to be just one more "do that to achieve 100%".
    There is nothing wrong with the combat and the fetch quests per se, but on the second half of the game it becomes crystal clear that there is no more real purpose to do anything else for the villages, what end up leaving a really bad taste through the end of the game.
    I had to force myself to finish the game because I could not stand anymore of it, even though I really enjoyed the story and narrative.    … Full Review »
  2. Zenodo
    May 7, 2022
    10
    Garden story is not what i expected it to be but the story and the journy where awesome. Building the community and watching the world getGarden story is not what i expected it to be but the story and the journy where awesome. Building the community and watching the world get better and better was amazing. I love this game! It's in my top 5 games of all time!… Full Review »
  3. Loki_the_Great
    Aug 23, 2021
    10
    Garden Story is just a cute game. The journey of a young grape Concord to become the Guardian and complete quests. Basically just the averageGarden Story is just a cute game. The journey of a young grape Concord to become the Guardian and complete quests. Basically just the average casual RPG. Great music, animation, and easy, low effort play style is what I love about this game. It helps me anti-stress.… Full Review »
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