Let’s find out together, in this quick review, to whom we can recommend the purchase of Farm Manager 2022, the annual title of the franchise in which you are immersed in the administration of a farm
Ah, life in the fields. Hard, very hard, but very satisfying, which however presupposes a dispassionate love for discipline and a decent musculature of the spine. We have been able to experiment with it in different forms, within the videogame medium, often in more cartoon universes and series such as Story of Seasons or Harvest Moon, but there are real and very deep themed managerials, perhaps definitely too much. Like the annual Farm Manager titles, for example.
Developed by Cleversan Games and published by Ultimate Games (do you remember them? The ones from Fishing Simulator!) Farm Manager 2022 moved from PC to Xbox platforms to then be published recently on PlayStation 4. So we rolled up our sleeves, at least virtually , given that our back is no longer so high-performance, and we have put ourselves at the head of the farm that Cleversan Games has proposed to us again this year. At least an educational experience: welcome to our review of Farm Manager 2022.
“Complexity”
Let’s start with a rather trivial but necessary assumption: Farm Manager is neither Harvest Moon nor Story of Seasons. However, not only from a mere graphic and aesthetic point of view, but also from a conceptual point of view. Unlike the two franchises mentioned above, in fact, in Farm Manager we do not impersonate the farmer immersed in the life of the fields, but we will be called to manage a farm in a managerial context. View from above, therefore, many menus and submenus, markets, machines, structures and, above all, money.
Essentially, Farm Manager 2022 has four different game modes on its side: Tutorial, Campaign, Free and Scenario. The first three are all pretty self-explanatory, so we won’t go that far into their description, while the Scenario mode allows the player to focus on specific aspects of the game. Do you want to learn all about the Crops? Or do you want to invest everything in education, to learn all the secrets of agriculture? Each Scenario will allow you to deepen some specific features of Farm Manager 2022, giving greater overall complexity to the title.
Maybe a little too much… | Farm Manager 2022 review
Complexity. A word you will read often in this Farm Manager 2022 review. Yes, because although there may be a Tutorial mode, we assure you that understanding something about the Cleversan Games title is really complex, especially for newcomers to the franchise. Like most of the annual managerial titles, in fact, unfortunately there is an undergrowth of “unspoken” and “unexplained”, not even in the Tutorial mode, which makes the title too difficult, especially in the early stages of the game.
At the end of the tutorial, for example, we didn’t know how to move buildings or roads. We didn’t know how electrical grids actually work, or how to move staff hired in one service to another facility. All because, obviously, Farm Manager 2022 is a niche title and strongly indicated to those who already know the franchise, and simply want to continue their personal experience with the new annual iteration.
Tutorial … useful? | Farm Manager 2022 review
Let’s admit, however, that the more we went on with the hours of play, the more we took hold of the menus (there are really an infinity of them), the more Farm Manager 2022 became, so to speak, addictive. Especially in its campaign mode, in which you are guided in the various chapters in the construction of a real empire, the great economic availability given to us by the developers and the constant hints of the “Signorina del Turorial” made the several hours spent in the company of our farm at least pleasant.
Not easy, that’s for sure: we found ourselves several times having to restart the chapter of the Campaign because some mechanics were not clear: why the heck did our animals starve when we had enough resources to feed them? Why weren’t the day laborers using the correct machinery to work the fields? The answers came as the hours and attempts passed, definitely not thanks to the “Miss of the Tutorial”.
Finally, the Free Mode, a true expression of all Farm Manager 2022 and what true enthusiasts will aim for. A real playground, where the gamer is free to build, invent, arrange and manage his own company to the best of his ability. Of course, we recommend approaching this mode exclusively to those who have at least completed the Campaign, or who in any case have extensive knowledge of Farm Manager. Otherwise other than the musculature of the spine.
Very good | Farm Manager 2022 Review
Technically speaking, Farm Manager 2022 it is a visibly low cost title, also and above all considering the budget price at which it is sold. We admit, however, that we would have expected much worse: of course, the textures are not so beautiful to look at and your company will be scarce in terms of details, but a pleasant day-night cycle has been implemented and climate change, which will definitely improve the general atmosphere. Also pleasant is the soundtrack, which will accompany you for several hours without getting tired.
An applause to the controller implementation. Let’s be honest: to play games like this, the best option is always Mr. PC. However, we must admit that, at least as far as our PlayStation 4 test for this review of Farm Manager 2022 is concerned, the mapping of the controller keys is functional and rather intuitive (perhaps the only intuitive thing of the whole game, actually) . Once you understand that to open the left side menu you just need to press the touch pad of the PS4 joypad, it will really all be downhill. Ah, please.
Farming all the way
We conclude this fleeting review of Farm Manager 2022 by recommending the purchase exclusively to two types of gamers: fans of the franchise and those who really have many hours to spend in order to become one. The overall complexity of the Cleversan Games title is not so much a merit or a defect, as much as a fact. If you are willing to immerse yourself in hours of menus and submenus to be able to manage your business, you will find in front of you a low-budget title that is decidedly cared for in every management aspect.
Farm Manager 2022 is now available on PC, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. Let us know if you have played it below in the comments, we will continue to keep you updated with all the news, guides and reviews on videogame and tech! And if you are interested in game keys at advantageous prices, we recommend that you take a look at the Instantgaming catalog!
Points in favor
- Deep and complex managerial …
- Look discreto…
- Climate and day / night alternation
Points against
- … definitely too much for newbies
- … but we always talk about a low budget title
- Completely useless tutorial