Corvid's Corner - March 2023

Welcome to Corvid’s Corner! This is a place for me to geek out about whatever video game I’m playing or music I’m listening to, and write about it in a longer form than a staff pick. If you try any games or albums on for size, please let me know! I’d love to hear your thoughts!

Stardew Valley: Life in Pelican Town is picturesque and community-focused

Stardew Valley is an open-ended simulation role-playing game available on every platform. Windows, Mac, Xbox One, Playstation 4, Nintendo Switch, and mobile devices all carry a version of this game. Starting out working a dead-end soul sucking job, your character opens a letter from your dead grandfather. He left his overgrown farm to you! With only a few coins and a pocketful of tools to begin your new life, hard work will lead you to prosperity. The only limit to how many parsnips you plant is how much energy you have to water them.

Stardew Valley starts a little slow as you learn the ropes and unlock new features. There are 30+ characters to meet in the game, and each character has unique dialogue as well as likes & dislikes. If one of them catches your eye, you can bestow gifts upon them in hopes of winning them over and dating them. This game will draw you in for the long haul, with endless quests and achievements to unlock, recipes to cook, and fish to catch. (A note on fishing: Don’t get discouraged! It is very hard at first, but it does get easier as you level up. Keep at it!) I have played over 400 hours. Hopefully that speaks to how much there is to do in Pelican Town!

This game is suitable for even young gamers, with a rating of E10+, meaning everyone 10 and up. It is reading heavy, but it doesn’t have a high reading level. There is a casino-style area of the game that can be unlocked later on, but it isn’t a necessary function of the game. Players can purchase and craft alcohol in the game, and two characters struggle with alcohol addiction. Fighting monsters in the mines (my favorite pastime!) can leave you bloodied, but it is not graphic. These are the main things I can think of being a point of concern in this game. On a whole, Stardew Valley is a very tame yet enthralling game!

Full of enrapturing music, adorable pixel frogs, and a menagerie of marriable NPCs, this game is sure to delight.