Grow: Song of the Evertree Review

I absolutely loved the developer’s previous game, Yonder, so I was quick to jump on Grow. It wasn’t quite what I expected, though, but it’s my own fault for thinking they were just gonna make Yonder again. Where that game was pretty open-ended with an emphasis on exploration and side quests, Grow is more linear in how you progress and focuses on farming and town management. Unfortunately, the farming aspect of the game is very repetitive and tedious. You’re presented with mini worlds that need to be “cleaned up,” but you don’t have any creative control over where things are planted or how much work you actually want to do on each world. I did like how creating these worlds was somewhat random, so you never knew what the next one was gonna look like. But taking care of them is still a slog.

I stuck with it, though, because farming provides the resources needed to open up the rest of the game. Large sections of the main world are blocked off until you can raise a town’s happiness level, which requires building houses and shops and assigning people work. The town management is fairly simple but rewarding to see come together. Plus, a lot of the shops you build actually serve a purpose. Pro tip: build a tailor shop as soon as you can, because you can buy new clothes there on a daily basis! It’s fun to check in on the shops before heading off to explore the town’s surroundings. Exploration isn’t as integral to the game as it is in Yonder, but I still enjoyed finding what few secrets I could. Each district also has a nearby temple/dungeon to complete. The challenges inside are… not challenging. But it adds that much more to the variety in gameplay, making this a very unique experience overall.

Reviewer

Clark
I love gaming so much, I wrote a book about it.

Published by

Clark

I love gaming so much, I wrote a book about it.