I bought this game long ago when it first released on Steam, mainly because it look interesting, and farming sims have always been my favourite go-to games. I didn't play it immediately at that time, mainly because it lacked controller support, and I found it difficult to play using the keyboard.

Months later, when controller support is finally implemented, I finally decided to try it out. I intend to only play for one hour. But one hour soon very quickly became 5 hours in no time, and Coral Island soon became something I play regularly.

I've played farming sims like Stardew Valley and even the Story of Seasons franchise, so I was expecting something similar. Coral Island is similar and yet different from all these games at once. It allows full customisation of your farm which is good for those that love to decorate and are good at it, but hell for those of us that aren't. I think I scrolled through dozens of pictures on Pinterest before I found a few I like and took inspiration from. Getting the necessary resources for the machines I needed to upgrade my tools and buildings is a bit of a grind, but not in the annoying way.

As of this review, Coral Island is still in the beta phase, and had been getting constant updates rolled out. I mainly play this on the Steam Deck, only playing on my PC occasionally. But save for the occasional crash, I haven't gotten many major issues as of yet.

Hoping to see this game enter the full release soon!