Stardew Valley's popularity since its release in 2016 has definitely kept its momentum, even 5 years down the line. In fact, Stardew Valley is now the inspiration for a few games. One of these games is Monster Harvest, developed by Maple Powered Games and published by Merge Games. It incorporates elements of Stardew Valley, as players take control of a farmer who is tasked with restoring a farm in a town booming thanks to harvesting monsters from certain plants that are called Planimals.
What sets Monster Harvest apart from other farming sims is that it also has a monster-battle sim component that players can engage in. With such complex gameplay mechanics, Monster Harvest can be fairly overwhelming for players who are new to this genre. Fortunately, there are a few tips and tricks that novices can apply when playing the game to make it slightly easier for themselves.
10 Clear The Farmland
Monster Harvest starts the player off with an overgrown farm that has to be weeded down to a better shape. The game doesn't do an amazing job at helping beginners understand what they have to start with. The best option would be to clear out a certain patch of land that takes the player's fancy and to start growing some basic crops there.
The player will have to work according to their stamina bar, as they cannot keep working throughout the day. In the limited time given to them, it'll be better to clear out the trees, stones, and logs that are strewn about first.
9 Understand How Time Works
Despite all the complications related to the gameplay mechanics, Monster Harvest has a relatively simple understanding with time. There's not much for the player to consider in real-time, as the game only recognizes Morning, Evening, and the Next Day as acceptable time slots. Once the stamina bar reaches 0, the player cannot continue farming. The player can take a nap during the middle of the day.
They have the option to wake up the Next Day with a full stamina bar. They can also opt for waking up in the evening. This will only restore 25 percent of the stamina bar.
8 The Dungeon
The Dungeon in Monster Harvest gives players the opportunity to harvest some important items that can be utilized later on during farming. These include Red and Blue Crystals, Iron, Gold, Logs, and even Rocks. Players can enter the Dungeon and go in multiple directions to explore what each room has to offer.
However, they should be careful about leaving the Dungeon as a visit to the Dungeon is only allowed once a day. Players may also come across Planimals that have hostile dispositions. In this scenario, they will have to stand their ground and fight for the treasures.
7 Slimes and Crops
Slimes are used in Monster Harvest to cultivate crops into dungeon-battling Planimals. The slimes come in different colors and have different reactions based on their own characteristics, and the plants they are used on. These slimes can be found throughout the world of Monster Harvest, either by exploring the in-game world or by buying them from the markets in different towns.
The balance works well as traditional crops will bring the player money, while the Planimals can be used to dive into dungeons and sweep them for rare loot. Players should designate areas to grow both.
6 Crafting
Crafting is an important part of Monster Harvest. It allows the player to continue making progress passively while they work intensely on improving the condition of their farmstead. This level of crafting and customization also enables the player to make worthwhile changes to their farms, especially in terms of fences and tools.
Every time the player levels up, new items are unlocked that can be crafted with the required supplies. As the game can be quite daunting with all the extra items, crafting chests would be a good idea so that extra items that aren't needed at the moment can be stored safely.
5 Planimal Battles
Planimal Battles in Monster Harvest aren't as complex as the battles on other simulation games. Both the player's Planimal and the hostile Planimal will be pitted against each other, and use their special abilities when they take turns. The one to lose their HP first is defeated. Defeating hostile Planimals in battle will reward the player with Seeds.
These Seeds can be used later to grow crops, and some of the Seeds may even be extremely rare. If the player's Planimal dies, it cannot be restored. Instead, players get Heartslime in return that can improve the farmstead's Soil Level.
4 Pick Up Honey Peppers
Honey Peppers are round, green items that can be found in the game world, especially during exploration. They can be easily mistaken for rocks or other such matter, but if the players find them, they can be sold for a profit. This small profit at the early stages of the game will make a larger difference in the latter half.
Moreover, a Honey Pepper is needed by the player to fill the consignment and notice boards that are given to them at the beginning of the game. Pick up as many of these Honey Peppers as possible, and go to the various towns to sell them for a small profit.
3 Check The Calendar
Monster Harvest provides the players with a handy calendar that should be checked every day without fail. There are special events in the player's town that they can participate in to win some useful rewards. The calendar keeps a track of the day's events and can be an effective substitute to waiting for NPCs to inform the player about different events and requirements in the town.
This mechanic is quite similar to other games of this genre. In addition, the calendar helps the player keep track of the different seasons and the preparations that they need to make before the seasons set in.
2 Pickling Vegetables
Pickling vegetables in Monster Harvest is a great way to delay immediate payment for a much better price later on. Pickling a vegetable will lead to an increase in the selling price by 50 percent. Players should take advantage of this after they reach Level 8. It is at this level that the pickling recipe is unlocked.
Players can only pickle one vegetable at a time though, and the process takes about three days to be completed. If players pickle a large number of vegetables and are patient enough, they can sell the vegetables later on for a much neater profit.
1 Engaging with NPCs
While most players might consider this as a basic requirement to any RPG or simulation game, it is one of the most important parts of Monster Harvest. Players should explore the different towns and check the different kinds of buildings. Quite a few of these buildings have NPCs that can guide the player regarding the various aspects and uses of the buildings.
They can also approach the player and tell them about different areas on the map that haven't been explored earlier. Players should engage in conversation with the NPCs as often as possible -- it could lead to unforeseen rewards.
Monster Harvest was released on July 22, 2021, and is available on PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch.