While the indie market is a truly diverse, creative, and unique aspect of the gaming community, every once in a while a title comes along that shapes many future releases through its innovation and popularity. stardew valley, ConcernedApe’s 2016 simulation RPG that saw players build their farm and integrate into a town, was just such a game. It has been the basis for many subsequent titles that attempted to capture the same magic as stardew valleywith varying degrees of success.
A game that is clear stardew valley inspirations, but still manages to carve out its own unique niche in the farming simulation genre, is the next Pasha Roots. Soda Den and Cryptivo’s adorable RPG has many similarities to stardew valley on the surface, but a quick look beyond the cartoonish pixel-based aesthetic shows that Pasha Roots has much more going for it than just a stardew valley-sim inspired.
Roots of Pacha – a fun farming simulator
The basics are there for a typical indie farming simulator. Players must clear the brush and debris from their settlement to establish their farm and help develop their community, but Pasha Roots he adds some really useful elements that show how attentive he is to the needs of the players. Instead of a series of various tools that players must switch between, the would-be farmer only needs his sharp stone in hand to tackle any problem. Crops can’t be accidentally removed, and players can move through their growing produce with ease instead of being blocked by towering crops or having to awkwardly navigate rows of plants.
Pasha Roots It’s still in its alpha stages after a huge Kickstarter campaign, but it’s well on its way to becoming a premier example of its genre. It requires many of the elements that players would expect in a farming simulator, but with the added twist of a Stone Age setting. This is not only a way to set it apart thematically or visually from other games, it also brings a new level of challenge to the game. Unlike stardew valley, players cannot simply visit the local store to buy seeds or the latest milking machine. They need to invent, discover and innovate as they go, and get help from their community as they become a more evolved and efficient group.
Pasha Roots it was also developed with multiplayer and co-op in mind. In addition to meeting the close-knit cast of characters that players can befriend and even fall in love with, they can invite people from other communities to join them. Players can work to build their villages together with friends as they share resources and ideas and overcome challenges.
Players have the opportunity to ride a variety of animals to get around, and NPCs will even be marked on the map so they don’t have to waste time trying to chase characters. They can enjoy a fishing spot, explore the local environment while gathering all the things they need for a thriving community, and even participate in primitive festivals to meet their fellow villagers and celebrate their various survival successes. Pasha Roots may have been inspired by stardew valley and it will certainly please fans of ConcernedApe’s farming sim, but it also looks like a great game in its own right with some interesting innovations and a unique setting.
Pasha Roots It will be released in late 2022 for Nintendo Switch, PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X.
