The thing that impresses me most about this game is that every single element of it works in service of the message, which like, duh, that's how games are supposed to work, but this is the first time I've ever felt really aware of it. The gameplay and how it's structured sucked me into the world until I felt like WAS a small farmer living in this post collapse world... and once I was there, I understood what they were trying to tell me.
The actual farming simulator is bare bones, only a handful of crops to choose from and outside of planting/watering them there's not much to tending them, but it's not the most fun part of the game. It's the player's /job/, not their life. Ostensibly you're working to save up money for an elevator ticket to the moon, a place your character has a connection to I won't spoil, but they earn the money really quickly and could probably leave the town in like under a year. They won't though.
The real fun of the game comes from poking around town and getting to know the locals, who are a very well-developed cast of characters. The cutscenes involving them are unlocked simply by being in the right place at the right time- though you can give them items as well, but I'm unclear if this actually has any impact on your relationship with them (and I kind of prefer the ambiguity). These scenes are just ordinary situations like sitting on the porch sharing a drink with someone, but they're written with such charm and sincerity that they wind up being riveting to witness.
(I think I realized that they had me when I accidentally gave away an item worth 10,000 credits to an NPC and felt /happy/ about it because the two lines of dialogue he gave me meant more than the money would have.)
In particular, Before The Green Moon has one of the best written romances I've seen in any videogame... like there is genuine HEAT between these characters at times. I don't want to spoil anything but there was a scene where I just got to click to slowly walk towards someone and it somehow made me wanna melt inside. I would grow a million different vegetables just to make Elvis smile.
The amount of time you have to do things is just tight enough to force you to make choices- multiple times in the game I wound up being late for or even missing certain events I was looking forwards to because I had sunk too much time into my harvest. But this just made me value everything more because I really felt like I had earned it whenever I found the time to relax and explore.
Speaking of exploring, I loved the world of this game. The setting is like... post-apocalyptic, but in a soft way. The worldbuilding is subtle (mainly fleshed out through context clues in conversations with NPCs) but the game doesn't hide how hard your character's life was before this or what a sad state the rest of the world is in- but as you walk through your dilapidated little outpost and over exposed pipes and ruined buildings and see the way their edges have softened and grasses have begun to reclaim them for nature, it's hard not to feel like maybe the world is okay after all.
The art is scrumptious- it's far from realistic but it has a clear style and it does more to suck you into the world and make it feel truly otherworldly than more traditionally "good" graphics would. The world is awash with soft tones of greens, browns, and greys, which are easy on the eyes and contribute to the relaxed, rustic feel of the world, and the soundtrack is lovely as well.
It's a town where you could easily make a life for yourself, and that's what I did! After ten or so hours of playing I had made friends and settled into a routine that I was carrying out day after day. I had a loving partner, I knew what exactly I had to do every day, and it was peaceful.
But here's the thing: eventually, I ran out of things to do. I exhausted every cut scene, bought every item, and I was just be farming endless crops to collect tons of money I couldn't do anything with. At a certain point I had even stopped farming entirely and just spent my day running between various areas to try to make something happen, and I had to accept that buying the ticket to the moon and getting on the elevator was the only way to unlock new dialogues and cutscenes. And really, isn't that the point?
You'll never be able to see the full potential of the game, of the world, unless you're willing to make the decision to leave it. The characters have words for you that you'll never get to hear unless they're accompanied by a "goodbye." The ending /is/ a part of the story, and you can't deny it forever.
Or maybe you can! I'm marking the game as complete but I didn't technically beat the game because I didn't have the guts to get on the elevator... yet. I probably will at some point, but I like that it's my decision when to do so. Just let me be at peace for a little bit longer before I have to move on with life.
Also, just a hot tip for anyone who hasn't played the game, I know there are a bunch of references to baseball throughout the game but the developers said in an interview that it's all for a cut storyline so don't bother with it.
The actual farming simulator is bare bones, only a handful of crops to choose from and outside of planting/watering them there's not much to tending them, but it's not the most fun part of the game. It's the player's /job/, not their life. Ostensibly you're working to save up money for an elevator ticket to the moon, a place your character has a connection to I won't spoil, but they earn the money really quickly and could probably leave the town in like under a year. They won't though.
The real fun of the game comes from poking around town and getting to know the locals, who are a very well-developed cast of characters. The cutscenes involving them are unlocked simply by being in the right place at the right time- though you can give them items as well, but I'm unclear if this actually has any impact on your relationship with them (and I kind of prefer the ambiguity). These scenes are just ordinary situations like sitting on the porch sharing a drink with someone, but they're written with such charm and sincerity that they wind up being riveting to witness.
(I think I realized that they had me when I accidentally gave away an item worth 10,000 credits to an NPC and felt /happy/ about it because the two lines of dialogue he gave me meant more than the money would have.)
In particular, Before The Green Moon has one of the best written romances I've seen in any videogame... like there is genuine HEAT between these characters at times. I don't want to spoil anything but there was a scene where I just got to click to slowly walk towards someone and it somehow made me wanna melt inside. I would grow a million different vegetables just to make Elvis smile.
The amount of time you have to do things is just tight enough to force you to make choices- multiple times in the game I wound up being late for or even missing certain events I was looking forwards to because I had sunk too much time into my harvest. But this just made me value everything more because I really felt like I had earned it whenever I found the time to relax and explore.
Speaking of exploring, I loved the world of this game. The setting is like... post-apocalyptic, but in a soft way. The worldbuilding is subtle (mainly fleshed out through context clues in conversations with NPCs) but the game doesn't hide how hard your character's life was before this or what a sad state the rest of the world is in- but as you walk through your dilapidated little outpost and over exposed pipes and ruined buildings and see the way their edges have softened and grasses have begun to reclaim them for nature, it's hard not to feel like maybe the world is okay after all.
The art is scrumptious- it's far from realistic but it has a clear style and it does more to suck you into the world and make it feel truly otherworldly than more traditionally "good" graphics would. The world is awash with soft tones of greens, browns, and greys, which are easy on the eyes and contribute to the relaxed, rustic feel of the world, and the soundtrack is lovely as well.
It's a town where you could easily make a life for yourself, and that's what I did! After ten or so hours of playing I had made friends and settled into a routine that I was carrying out day after day. I had a loving partner, I knew what exactly I had to do every day, and it was peaceful.
But here's the thing: eventually, I ran out of things to do. I exhausted every cut scene, bought every item, and I was just be farming endless crops to collect tons of money I couldn't do anything with. At a certain point I had even stopped farming entirely and just spent my day running between various areas to try to make something happen, and I had to accept that buying the ticket to the moon and getting on the elevator was the only way to unlock new dialogues and cutscenes. And really, isn't that the point?
You'll never be able to see the full potential of the game, of the world, unless you're willing to make the decision to leave it. The characters have words for you that you'll never get to hear unless they're accompanied by a "goodbye." The ending /is/ a part of the story, and you can't deny it forever.
Or maybe you can! I'm marking the game as complete but I didn't technically beat the game because I didn't have the guts to get on the elevator... yet. I probably will at some point, but I like that it's my decision when to do so. Just let me be at peace for a little bit longer before I have to move on with life.
Also, just a hot tip for anyone who hasn't played the game, I know there are a bunch of references to baseball throughout the game but the developers said in an interview that it's all for a cut storyline so don't bother with it.