I've been keeping up with this game before it went into EA, but, due to Steam being problematic at the time, I could not pick it up. After those troubles have gone by, I've finally picked this game up during the Spring Sale.
I love this game as a fan of Touhou, a fan of Stardew, and a fan of videogames.
You've got these wonderful pixel environments, lively sprites of the characters in cutscenes and as they go about their business in the world, amazing jazzy renditions of several iconic Touhou songs, the characters convey expressions clearly in their portraits when you talk to them, and their dialogue is endlessly entertaining and comedic when it fits. When it comes to these creative fields; the crop harvest is ripe and rich. Maybe there could be more than 2 tracks per season. But, if there was, I wouldn't have been able to hear a cover of my favorite Touhou song in the summer as much as I did. None of the art or music ever got old to me. As a Touhou fan, this does the franchise due diligence in aspects the series is well-acclaimed for. P.S. I need to buy the music; OST pack one day? Maybe artbook too? I'll give you money for those things!!!
23.7 hours in over 3 days, I just reached Day 1 of Winter (which currently suffers from a lack of activities as a result of Early Action BUT THIS IS CLEARLY STATED IN THE DESCRIPTION). All the way to this point, from the start of Spring to the end of Autumn, I've never felt like I was bored or engaging in tedium or just suspect to poor RNG inclusions. There's a range of activities that kept me so busy, I didn't even feel the time pass by until it gets dark in the game and outside my window. From clearing out debris from my farm, planting my next batch of crops, tending to current crops, buying more seeds or an upgrade and planning it around my budget, adding more chickens to my coop, heading to the mines to get rocks and some precious metals, spending the day fishing, heading to an adventure zone for danmaku fights, scrounging around the world for foraged goods or the characters that populate the world so I can fulfill a request they have, give them a gift, or just talk to them; I could easily spend one day in the game doing about 75% of this casually on Serious Mode. And I know I haven't even really gotten into the depths of the micromanagement for farming because I'm just that dumb; don't tell anyone this but I accidentally planted 9 cranberries in a 5x5 terrace without any scythe magatama upgrades. Yet, I know that I didn't buy all those hoses and sprinklers for nothing; maxing out my Kappa Generator is my next goal. And this game does that to you: it keeps your attention, it encourages a constant pursuit of fulfilling one goal after the other in a way that stays fun while actually offering you meaningful progress and rewards. It's kept me busy, to say the least; I have been busy playing this and even busier enjoying and gushing about it to my friends.
How is this game as a Touhou fan? I love Studio Hexeye's interpretations of the characters, both visually (spritework + portrait art) and personality-wise. A wide roster Touhou characters are in the game; from staple picks to the often-less-seen characters (some of which include my favorites). I praise the BUFF Yuugi inclusion, foxgirlfailure always-plotting-her-next-scam-and-scheme Tsukasa implementation, and the Urumi addition, who is actually slotted in a very fitting position. That's a cow-mama W. Many characters offer funny jokes, references for Touhou fans, and entertaining dialogue that made me smile or sometimes even laugh, something that I normally don't find myself doing even in games centered around amusing dialogue. You don't have to talk to them if you don't want to. You also don't have to eat delicious food, but you're not going to NOT do that because the hundreds, if not thousands, of lines of dialogue you get from talking to the characters when you just come across them or have an event are a treat. Not to throw other Touhou fangames under the bus; there's plenty of great ones out there, but many do not give you the wit or charm that a lot of the characters used in this fangame are oozing. If you aren't a Touhou fan, this game will make you one.
OH, and my favorite part: CASUAL YURI. You can date several characters, some of which are rather underused in the community. I haven't reached this part yet, but, apparently, you can be polyamorous AND have your partner(s) move into your home. I'm glad that the game features a wide cast of characters, ranging from well-known and established characters to the lesser-known or not-as-popular characters because everyone needs to experience someone like the buff, fluff, stoic Momiji to the bottled anxiety moonrabbit girl Seiran. On top of being able to date several characters, there are also already relationships established between some of the characters, and they're expressed through some fun, sometimes slightly raunchy, dialogue and innuendos. I love playgirl Raiko, we need more of her. Also I think Yuugi might be genderfluid, I'm not sure; Yuugi's the best though.
From the artstyle to the music, the environments and the interpretation of many of these characters, and all the minigames and management of time and resources; I can simply just say it's been a fun Touhou farmsim. But, to be honest, that doesn't do this game justice. This isn't just a regular farming game with Touhou slapped onto it, and it's not a cheap clone of Stardew Valley either. It cleverly uses the charm and beauty of Touhou, and it mixes the elements that come from the series into a farm-management game that, while maybe not as content heavy as Stardew Valley (naturally, one of these games has been out for a decade by now), is rich in the juice, the mojo, the vibes, the nouns that describe just how much of a fun experience this was for me.
I already know I will be making another file once V.1.0 comes out (at the moment, this seems to be slated for full release before Summer; without a price increase too, which is insanely generous by the team), and I can be happy with V.1.0. I would also be delighted if, when V.1.0. comes out, we hear "work's not done, more stuff soon!" (though I will also understand if you, Studio Hexeye, will consider the game complete after V.1.0. beyond some bug fixes; btw I've only had like 1 inconsistency in the game and weird bug, I'll go to forums for more details).
This message is for you, Studio Hexeye team!
I also need Studio Hexeye to know that, despite you expressing that maybe that the Aki Sisters game might be better, you have something special here. Your game is more than good enough, it's great, it's amazing, and my gushing about your game to my friends has gotten some of them to wishlist it or to express great interest in it and Touhou as a whole. You have done the Touhou community a great service with your game, and, no matter what else is released, that can't be taken away, especially not from this Shinmy-sized Touhou fan writing this review. As you said, it will likely be a two-cakes situation. While I may eventually get two, I think it's going to take a lot to rip me away from this cake you've treated us all to (though I also hope you can reach out to the Aki-Sisters team and do a collab with them; that'd be fun, and, given their track record, very feasible). No matter what, I don't want you to think your game will be overshadowed because the other team is well known or anything like that. Your game is stellar; and that shines too bright to have a shadow. And I know it will only be brighter the more we close in to V.1.0.
To wrap this up, I will simply tell you that, if you enjoy Touhou, Stardew Valley, farm-sims, yuri, charm and wit, videogames, fun, you just want to own property in a year like 2026, or you just need to escape this year, you will LOVE Touhou Farming ~ Minoriko's Homestead Harvest.
Go find ya smooch in there, ya punks.
