The Garden Path

Enjoyable and engaging, The Garden Path is all about taking your time and simply existing within its charming world, letting go of the anxieties of life to make your own place without constant objectives bogging you down.

72%Game Brain Score

graphics, gameplay

story, grinding

72% User Score Based on 58 reviews

Critic Score 73%Based on 2 reviews

Platforms

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About

The Garden Path is a single player and multiplayer open world simulation game. It was developed by carrotcake and was released on July 30, 2024. It received mostly positive reviews from both critics and players.

Uncover a long forgotten garden, and help it grow anew to attract vegetable inhabitants and curious animal travelers.

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72%

Audience ScoreBased on 58 reviews

graphics12 positive mentions

grinding6 negative mentions

The game features a beautiful art style and calming music, creating a cozy and relaxing atmosphere.
It offers a unique and meditative experience, allowing players to explore and engage with the garden at their own pace.
The solo developer is actively working on updates and improvements, showing commitment to enhancing the game.

The game lacks clear guidance and tutorials, making it difficult for players to understand its mechanics and objectives.
There are numerous bugs and technical issues that hinder gameplay, including problems with inventory and tool usage.
Many players find the gameplay to be grindy and lacking in meaningful content, leading to frustration rather than enjoyment.

graphics
30 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
40%
50%
10%
The graphics of the game are widely praised for their charming art style and beautiful aesthetic, evoking a cozy and magical ambiance that resonates with players. Many reviewers appreciate the visuals and sound design, noting that they enhance the overall experience, despite some frustrations with gameplay mechanics. Overall, the art style is considered a standout feature, contributing significantly to the game's appeal.
- “The aesthetic of this game is so beautiful and cozy — it gives me such strong 'Over the Garden Wall' vibes, and I adore the art style of the world, particularly that of the characters.”
- “The art style is wonderful, the soundtrack is awesome, and the gameplay is very simple in the best way.”
- “I love the art style; it’s very charming and chill.”
- “Art style is good, not great, and overall mechanics are very buggy.”
- “All in all, some great ideas; nice visuals and sound design, but somewhat poor execution of what could potentially be some fun relaxed gameplay.”
- “That being said, as much as I adore the visuals and the foundation of the game, the core mechanics are so frustrating and off-putting that turning it on to play has begun to feel more like a chore than a treat, and more days are starting to pass in between my play sessions.”
gameplay
20 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
40%
40%
20%
Gameplay reviews highlight a mix of frustration and enjoyment; while the art style and soundtrack are praised, many players find the mechanics buggy and lacking direction. The game offers a casual experience suitable for short play sessions, but the absence of clear tutorials and character customization detracts from the overall experience, making it feel more like a chore for some. Despite its potential, the execution leaves much to be desired, leading to a divided reception among players.
- “The art style is wonderful, the soundtrack is awesome, and the gameplay is very simple in the best way.”
- “I am only an hour in but I love how it is set up to be casual as my current schedule allows for small chunks of gameplay, so this fits perfectly.”
- “The art style is lovely, the gameplay so far feels great from my limited amount of time; no complaints from me and I have a feeling that opinion won't change.”
- “It's just really bad at offering direction, and a lot of the game's menus and mechanics make it feel a bit... annoying to play.”
- “That being said, as much as I adore the visuals and the foundation of the game, the core mechanics are so frustrating and off-putting that turning it on to play has begun to feel more like a chore than a treat, and more days are starting to pass in between my play sessions.”
- “I never thought I would complain about a game not having enough of a tutorial, but it took me days to figure out some base aspects of gameplay because it either wasn’t clearly enough explained or just wasn’t even mentioned at all.”
story
16 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
19%
62%
19%
The game's story is presented in a fragmented manner, primarily pieced together through the collection of journal pages, which adds an intriguing layer to the narrative experience. Players appreciate the freedom to explore different missions cooperatively, although some express frustration with unclear quest objectives and the lack of traditional quest structures. Overall, the unique storytelling approach is recommended for co-op play, enhancing puzzle-solving through collaboration.
- “My favorite bit is definitely the fragmented story you’re putting together by collecting all the journal pages.”
- “Most games nowadays are designed with a clear goal in mind and a chain of quests like 'do this, do that' — and people are so used to it that when a game doesn't have that, it's seen as 'boring'.”
- “I still have a couple of quests that I can do but have no clue how to complete them, and some of these have to do with how it’s explained.”
- “I could have sworn I had a quest about an encyclopedia that either a) disappeared or b) didn’t actually exist and I’m crazy.”
- “I’m also not sure if I’m going to find quest items the same way I find journal pages — that’s how I’m assuming I’m supposed to find page 123 and, now, rocks.”
- “I still have a couple of quests that I can do but have no clue how to do them to complete them and some of these have to do with how it’s explained.”
music
12 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
50%
The music and art in the game are consistently praised for their beauty and calming ambiance, enhancing the overall experience of exploration and discovery. Reviewers highlight the soundtrack as a standout feature, describing it as magical and soothing, perfectly complementing the game's visuals and atmosphere. Many recommend the game solely for its enchanting music and ambient sounds.
- “The music and ambience alone is worth playing the game for, and it complements the pleasant earthly colors of the garden to the point of lulling you to sleep.”
- “The artwork and music drew me in with their magical ambiance, and I was hooked by the vast amount of exploration and things to discover!”
- “I'd recommend it just for the music and the ambient sounds; it's so calming!”
grinding
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players find "Garden Path" to be grindy due to its convoluted trading system, which detracts from the overall experience. While the game has a pleasant atmosphere, it fails to deliver a satisfying farming experience, especially in short play sessions that don't fulfill players' expectations.
- “I always felt like I could do so much in ACNL in a short amount of time, whereas Garden Path feels grindy thanks to its convoluted trading system.”
- “The game has a great vibe to it, but doesn't really offer much of a farming experience.”
- “30-minute gameplays here and there don't really satisfy the itch of a farming experience.”
atmosphere
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
50%
The game's atmosphere is described as incredibly rich and immersive, inviting players to relax and explore its environment for extended periods. Many users find themselves drawn to the experience, enjoying the process of unraveling its intricate threads.
- “The atmosphere is incredibly rich, and I enjoyed just wandering around for more than an hour.”
- “Overall, the atmosphere of the game makes me want to curl up on my couch, following and unraveling threads.”
stability
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game's stability is criticized due to numerous bugs affecting its mechanics, which detracts from the overall experience, despite the art style being considered decent.
- “The art style is good, but the overall mechanics are very buggy.”
- “The game suffers from numerous stability issues that detract from the experience.”
- “Frequent crashes and glitches make it hard to enjoy the gameplay.”