Game Review: Pocket Farm

Pocket Farm by Egerter Software

Pocket Farm is a farming and design game. You get to design your farm's appearance, as well as decide what crops to grow, which animals to raise, etc. The game is broken down into two different games: one in which you manage your farm, and another in which you sell your crops and try to turn profit.

At the beginning of the game, you are given a plot of land, a shovel, and some seeds. Along the top of the screen are a series of vegetable icons. The icons with a yellow outline show the vegetables that are currently in demand. This is important to keep note of: In order go to the market to sell, you will need each of these veggies.

On the farm

Once you have collected enough vegetables (how much is 'enough' is entirely under your control), you can tap on the market icon at the top right-hand side of the screen. Once you arrive, you'll see a bunch of vegetables rolling out on conveyor belts and a line of buckets, each with a vegetable picture and a number. Your goal at the market is to sell as many veggies as you can before the market closes.

To sell vegetables, tap a vegetable to select them, and then tap the corresponding bucket. The buckets tell you where the vegetables are supposed to go, and however many you need per bucket. Filling buckets that are across from each other vertically or horizontally will chain them together, increasing your points.

That's all there is to it, really. While you might think that this would get boring quickly, I actually really enjoyed the market aspect of the game. It makes you think on your feet. It's very casual, and almost soothing, in a way.

There are some cool things you can buy to make your farming experience a little easier, such as the tractor, which will plow all your fields for you. You can also get the pond, which will water all your plants for you, both of these are quite pricey though and cost money to do the jobs they do.

Conveying good times

The good: I really enjoyed this game, its simplistic nature is very soothing. I don't know what it is but this game really appeals to me. I've never wanted to be a farmer or anything, so it's kind of strange that I enjoy a virtual farming game so much. For only $0.99, it's hard to go wrong here.

The bad: Maybe too simple? (I didn't have a problem with that though!)

The breakdown: This game surprised the hell outta me! I figure for the cost and the amount of peace the game seems to bring me, it's totally worth the buck I paid for it. 5/5