Bit Orchard

I think a lot of us are perpetually on the hunt for ways to simplify our lives. Something that lowers that stress level to a dull roar even for the briefest of moments. Now that can be a whole lifestyle change like casting aside the busy city life to run an adorable little apple orchard, or something on a much smaller scale like playing a Game Boy inspired game all about someone who cast aside the busy city life to run an adorable little apple orchard.

That’s where Bit Orchard: Animal Valley by 2BooneGames rides in on an pleasingly pixelated white horse to rescue us from our overburdened 3D lives. Though the task of rejuvenating an abandoned apple orchard may seem like a daunting task, this game breaks it down to its simplest building blocks and shows you how to take it slow and steady. So, lean back in your chair, have a sip of cold cider and let me tell you all about a little 8-bit inspired breath of fresh air.

I’ve played a few Gameboy inspired games and even fewer OG Gameboy games in my time so my experience is limited in that fashion. I have played many a farming game, so I was very curious to see if this incredibly simplified version would stand up on its own, let alone stand out among the swath of other more robust farming sims.

After watching the trailer for Bit Orchard I was slightly dubious whether or not it would be entertaining for longer than a few minutes, but it most certainly was cute looking enough for me to want to find out for myself. Not to mention I just so happened to have a few spare eShop dollars in my account and it was conveniently on sale for less than three bucks. Not much of a gamble at all if you ask me. Also the standard price wasn’t much to sneeze at either so that would make a potential recommendation even more appealing.

Once I booted up the game I was met with the most simplistic idea of a farming game ever and honestly I was surprised that it was still fun. You are plopped onto your new farm and told you need to plant apple trees. That’s it. You have four “mode” slots to shuffle through: Apple seeds, scythe, watering can, and an open hand. You plunk down your seeds anywhere you like (preferably in a neat line you monsters!), water them, and maybe cut the few stray weeds. That’s your day for a little bit…UNTIL the glorious morning arrives where you exit your home and you see little pops of red everywhere. Now you have small and big, maybe even gold, apples to sell and money to spend. The money is a very slow trickle at first but obviously the more apples you sell the more seeds you can buy and once you run out of room you can expand your farm and planet even more. Then you can get luxuries like automatic water sprinklers and scarecrows. The money will eventually roll in.

You are also given a little list of tasks to complete that will refresh with new ones every time you fully cross off all the items. You aren’t really rewarded for finishing the list but really it’s just a milestone marker for your game progression. This simple little gameplay loop was certainly pleasing, for a time, but the more I played the more I worried that this was it. This was all the game was going to be. Luckily though just as things were starting to feel tired the world opened up via your friendly neighbor and the game was born anew. Now there were bridges to fix, frogs to catch, villagers to help, and fish to catch. There are even stores to buy costumes and furniture. My expectations were pleasantly exceeded, which doesn’t happen very often in general, let alone with such a simplistic concept.

I think for a game like this you have to give some leeway when it comes to your expectations. While Bit Orchard doesn’t stick strictly to the Gameboy restrictions, aesthetically it comes pretty dang close, and so with that you have to cast aside the modern set of standards we typically have for video games. For instance at any given time there are only two or three colors on the screen and that can make things look either very blank or very cluttered/unrecognizable, or it can look just fine, which was mostly my experience. Since you can't really put a multifaceted, 80 hour game on a Gameboy and so that means you’ll need a very simple gameplay loop that might seem like it takes awhile to get where its going. That was certainly the case for Bit Orchard and I can see that being a turn off for some people.

But these are just assumptions really and any problem I genuinely had through my playthrough were really just minor, gripey things. Like I wish the scarecrows had a visible range while placing them like the sprinklers do. Or why can I break the rocks out in the field but not on my farm? Nothing major or game breaking by any stretch.