Garden of the Sea
- January 13, 2022
- Neat Corporation
- 5h median play time
Get on Steam"Garden of the Sea" is a relaxing VR game that allows players to craft and customize their own gardens and care for local creatures. Explore and gather resources to upgrade your house, cook new dishes, and complete quests to unlock new creatures and adventures. The game encourages players to take their time and enjoy the calming atmosphere of the virtual world.
Nintendo Switch
PC
Playstation 5
Virtual Reality
Windows
PlayStation
PlayStation VR2
Reviews
- Charming and relaxing gameplay with adorable creatures.
- Beautiful graphics and immersive atmosphere that create a peaceful experience.
- Fun crafting and gardening mechanics that allow for creativity and exploration.
- Limited content and objectives, leading to a feeling of emptiness after a short playtime.
- Movement controls can be finicky, with only teleportation available, which may detract from immersion.
- Inventory management is cumbersome, with a small inventory size and no clear storage options.
- grinding122 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The grinding aspect of the game is generally perceived as minimal and non-intrusive, with many players appreciating the relaxed and enjoyable farming mechanics that avoid tedious mobile game-style mechanics. While some find the farming too easy or limited, the overall experience is described as zen and charming, making it a suitable choice for fans of cozy farming games. However, a few players express concerns about potential repetitiveness and the need for more content to sustain long-term engagement.
“I find collecting seeds, wood, plants, and tools to be tedious, but even more tedious in VR.”
“The closest thing this has to Stardew Valley is that there's farming in it, which is the most shallow farming that I've ever seen in a game.”
“I like the crafting system, but I worry that having to go back to the house to craft everything could get tedious quickly, especially with a limited inventory.”
- graphics116 mentions
- 38 % positive mentions
- 59 % neutral mentions
- 3 % negative mentions
The graphics of "Garden of the Sea" are characterized by a charming and cute art style that many players find appealing, reminiscent of titles like "Wind Waker." While some reviews note the simplicity of the graphics, they are often praised for their polish and ability to create an immersive, relaxing atmosphere. Overall, the visuals are considered beautiful and well-optimized, contributing significantly to the game's enjoyable experience, despite the absence of customizable graphics settings.
“The graphics have a very Wind Waker feel to them, with enough polish and charm to impress.”
“The graphics are gorgeous and are well optimized, really highlighting that the art style is supreme when it comes to delivering pleasing aesthetics.”
“This game really is just a chill farming game, with incredible music and beautiful graphics.”
“If you've ever seen the meme picture going around of Sonic saying he wants shorter games with worse graphics, from devs that are paid more, Garden of the Sea is a contender for almost exactly that.”
“The one weird thing is that there are no graphics settings.”
“I almost didn't buy this because of one reviewer bashing the graphics and felt like the trailers might be a lie.”
- story112 mentions
- 16 % positive mentions
- 79 % neutral mentions
- 5 % negative mentions
The game's story is described as short and minimalist, allowing players to engage at their own pace, with many opting to focus on crafting and exploration rather than rushing through the narrative. While some players appreciate the cozy and relaxing atmosphere, they express a desire for a more substantial storyline and additional content post-completion. Overall, the story serves as a backdrop to the gameplay, which emphasizes creativity and casual enjoyment rather than a deep narrative experience.
“Cute, relaxing, interesting story and gameplay.”
“The main story can be completed quickly, but the relaxing cuteness makes up for it.”
“This game is so wholesome and precious; I bought it yesterday and already finished the story, and I absolutely loved it! I will continue to play to just relax with and take care of my lovely animals.”
“I have zero clue what the story for this is.”
“My main complaint is that the game's 'story' feels a bit short if you try to b-line it like I did.”
“The story isn't engaging or anything and is pretty obvious, but again the fun of the game is the simple tasks themselves.”
- gameplay109 mentions
- 25 % positive mentions
- 72 % neutral mentions
- 3 % negative mentions
The gameplay in "Garden of the Sea" is characterized by its simple, relaxing mechanics focused on crafting and gathering, reminiscent of games like Stardew Valley. While many players appreciate the charming visuals and intuitive interactions, some feel the gameplay lacks depth and a compelling loop, leaving it feeling shallow and unfinished. Overall, it offers a cozy experience but may not satisfy those seeking more complex game mechanics or objectives.
“An absolute delight of an experience, so many little things I tried to do just for the sake of doing them and had the game actually respond with a fully thought-out mechanic or system... movement/setting the camera can be a bit of a struggle at first, but otherwise everything works quite well intuitively, and the little details more than make up for it.”
“From the solid physics to the charming visuals and the calming yet also somehow exciting gameplay, this game scratches that itch of a true adventure in the form of a VR game. I spent an hour and a half before even exploring the other two-thirds of the starter island, and every step of the way I was pleasantly surprised.”
“The gameplay is rather simple, but it's fun and relaxing, perfect for unwinding after a stressful day.”
“If you're like me and prefer crafting in games to support stronger game mechanics instead of being the primary game mechanic, then you won't like the gameplay Garden of the Sea has to offer.”
“It's a beautiful game, very cute, but it lacks gameplay as of right now, and from what I can see, there's very limited mechanics.”
“It is an unfinished game with some very basic game mechanics... you'll like the game for a bit but it will be shallow and leave you hanging... really unfortunate.”
- music44 mentions
- 32 % positive mentions
- 61 % neutral mentions
- 7 % negative mentions
The music in the game is widely praised for its relaxing and ambient qualities, enhancing the cozy atmosphere and providing a soothing backdrop to various activities. Players appreciate the dynamic sound design, which adapts to their actions, such as fishing, creating a unique and immersive experience. While some users noted minor sound glitches and expressed a desire for more background music options, the overall sentiment is that the soundtrack complements the game's charming visuals and gameplay perfectly.
“The music itself is very relaxing and ambient, which is perfect, and I love that everything you do has a beautifully adaptive little chime, ding, or piano key.”
“My absolute favorite in this game is when you fish; the music picks up as you tire the fish, but slows down as you reel it in. It's as if the music is the fish, fighting and resting as you reel it in, and I love that kind of attention to detail.”
“The sound design is also very nice, with contextual noises depending on what you're doing, giving you some really nice audio feedback to interactions as well as mood-matching soundtracks.”
“As for the game, I like it, I'm hoping for more sound upgrades; some background music would be nice. Other than that, I noticed that there's some sound glitches here and there.”
“The music isn't amazing, but it doesn't get annoying or repetitive.”
“The coral island has a really cool atmosphere to it, with somewhat intense and spooky music as you sail up to it and realize those giant stone structures surrounding the island are actually tentacles, as well as the eternal night that shrouds the island.”
- emotional32 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The game is widely praised for its emotional impact, characterized as extremely wholesome, cute, and relaxing, evoking feelings of nostalgia and joy reminiscent of childhood. Players appreciate its charming aesthetics and engaging mechanics, making it a delightful experience for fans of wholesome games like Stardew Valley and Slime Rancher. However, some critiques suggest that the design may feel superficial, as if it caters to trends rather than offering depth.
“This game is so wholesome and precious. I bought it yesterday and already finished the story, and I absolutely loved it! <3 I will continue to play to just relax with and take care of my lovely animals.”
“It made me feel like a kid again.”
“Beautiful, wholesome, relaxed game.”
- atmosphere22 mentions
- 73 % positive mentions
- 14 % neutral mentions
- 14 % negative mentions
The atmosphere of the game is widely praised for its beauty and serenity, with many players highlighting the soothing music and cozy environment that enhance the overall experience. The blend of charming visuals, engaging gameplay, and a mix of intense and mellow elements creates a captivating world that players find enchanting. Despite some minor control issues, the game's atmosphere is consistently described as a standout feature that invites exploration and enjoyment.
“I cannot stress enough how absolutely beautiful this game and its atmosphere is.”
“The coral island has a really cool atmosphere to it, with somewhat intense and spooky music as you sail up to it and realize those giant stone structures surrounding the island are actually tentacles, as well as the eternal night that shrouds the island.”
“The mellow atmosphere blends well with some hidden secrets you can discover.”
“I can't help but fall in love with this world and its adorable inhabitants all while being soothed by the soft weighted blanket that is the music and atmosphere.”
“The puzzles are the right amount of challenging, and the atmosphere is serene.”
- stability22 mentions
- 27 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 73 % negative mentions
Overall, the game demonstrates good stability, with most players reporting a smooth experience and only minor glitches affecting gameplay. While some users noted occasional sound issues and temporary object malfunctions, these were generally considered minor and did not significantly detract from the enjoyment of the game. The developers appear to be actively addressing these bugs, leading to improvements over time.
“It feels polished and bug-free.”
“Runs great on a system that's from 2016: Z270 Asus Prime, i7 6700K @ 4700, 16GB 3600 RAM, and a GTX 1080 at 2000.”
“Game runs great and the low-poly style is charming.”
“There are still a lot of small glitches that I have noticed, but I believe they are working on fixing them.”
“As for the game, I like it. I'm hoping for more sound upgrades; some background music would be nice. Other than that, I noticed that there's some sound glitches here and there.”
“I've come back to this after quite a bit of time, and it appears the devs have put a lot of work into making it less buggy.”
- optimization10 mentions
- 40 % positive mentions
- 20 % neutral mentions
- 40 % negative mentions
Overall, users report a mix of good performance and significant optimization issues, particularly experiencing lag when turning their heads despite achieving high frame rates at high resolutions. While the visuals are praised, there is a consensus that better optimization is needed to enhance the gaming experience, especially for lower-end hardware. Future content updates are anticipated to address these concerns.
“I really enjoyed the visuals; it just needs better optimization.”
“Good performance.”
“Managed to launch it today, but poor performance with lagging when turning head.”
“Would rate much higher if optimized and with planned future content updates.”
“That said, I'm getting solid 90 fps using resolution 500% - that's about 45 million pixels per frame for both eyes with the Index (2 x 4500 x 5000 pixels) - so surely the developers can add even more details without having GTX 1060 owners complaining about bad performance.”
- humor6 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
Users appreciate the humor in the game, noting amusing moments like accidentally dropping a fishing rod and the lighthearted approach to early access challenges. The comedic elements enhance the overall experience, making it enjoyable for both new and seasoned players.
- replayability4 mentions
- 75 % positive mentions
- 25 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
Users consistently highlight the game's "infinitely replayable" nature, indicating that it offers a compelling experience that encourages multiple playthroughs.
“Infinitely replayable.”
“Infinitely replayable.”
“The game offers endless opportunities for replayability.”
