I don't mind admitting that I'm a bit of a farming sim sicko. I've perfected the art of water irrigation in Sakuna of Rice and Ruin, I've sweated over which of Coral Island's 28 hotties to put a ring on, I'm the cutest post-apocalyptic master craftsman you've ever seen in My Time at Portia, and I have a level 30 Lumpstump in Ooblets (she's an absolute beast). But nothing has swayed my devotion to the farming titan Stardew Valley, my first and one true love when it comes to laid-back, cozy gaming.
That is until I started playing Fields of Mistria – and I've become completely smitten. I can almost see the comments now. Yes, there have been many, many games like Stardew Valley, and believe me, I've played a lot of them – some good, some not so good – but Fields of Mistria gets so much correct for a farming sim, I gotta give it its flowers. It's still in Early Access, but after tens of hours, I'm having an absolute riot. We all know that Stardew Valley isn't going anywhere soon, so let's take a stroll to the magical world of Mistria.
