Over the past few years, since I bought a house, I’ve tried my hand at growing food, from vegetable, to fruit trees, to chickens, with varying levels of success. The experiences I’ve had were influential to some degree, in the design of farming in Farthest Frontier, so I thought it might be fitting and fun to share some of the fail.
Of course, Farthest Frontier is supposed to be fun and not overly frustrating, so the degree to which it mirrors my actual experience is limited. It did help me generate some ideas though, such as having to control weed level, soil type, diseases and deer raiding fields. Honestly, I have no idea how anyone survived frontier life, in any past age, vying against the ravages of nature to grow enough food to survive.
To start out, here’s where most of the action happens - a shot of my modest rocky garden area the year after I moved in, when I was first trying to restore it from its previously overgrown condition:
Ah, so you have the growing bug too big M. I used to grow a few veggies, nothing as big as your plot; just a few big plant troughs. Have a small patch at the front of our house that I keep thinking of turning into a veggie patch, but after 10 years it’s still a weed choked mess.
I got my Mom a banana tree. When it start it was a tiny leaf pair sticking out of soil. Now it’s a 2 feet talk and looks palm like tree only 1 year later. I mean when plants go through their growth stage, it’s fast and you see progress quickly. But the problems don’t really start until fall comes around. Bugs and insects that couldn’t live in the heat start poking their heads out of the dirt and damaging your hard work. Luckly she’s got a indoor area for these times, though in the really world we can’t indoors the majority of our food supply. In the game I think (you can correct me if I’m wrong) you’re trying to capture life realistically, as an intuitive way to play. Lots to consider to make that happen and I hope you trade those frustrations for something problematic though less frustrating.
My garden has changed each year, with veggies in some areas, flowers in others, with tall bushes to screen from the road and bad weather.
Like the game, weeds are always a problem .
This year having it landscaped so as to make it easier to work.
Getting back to the game however you look at it, its nice and refreshing to have a game that is for the most part giving a realistic feel.
There are still problems in the way the game works, but i assume this is a beta stage.
