If you’re anything like me, you’ve probably played and loved Stardew Valley at some point. But when looking for farming sim recs, you might be tired of seeing Stardew Valley and wonder what else is out there.
This list is a collection of farming sim games I’ve personally played and loved, although there are many more that I haven’t played yet. While some of these lean more into the fantasy aspect or the life sim genre, they all scratch that same satisfying itch of planting crops, raising animals, and building a life on your own terms.
Roots of Pacha
Roots of Pacha is a prehistoric take on the farming sim. Taking place in the Stone Age, you’re helping your clan discover fire, domesticating animals, and building the beginnings of a society. It’s a really fresh take on the genre that also has a strong emphasis on community and discovery while delivering all of your favorite aspects from other farming and life sim games.
Unique features:
- Bartering and community-driven progression
- Discover farming, tools, and recipes for the first time
- Local co-op
- Animal domestication and symbiosis
✦ . ⁺ . ✦ . ⁺ . ✦
Coral Island
Coral Island feels like the culmination of player wants and wishes for farming sims, which makes sense as the game started off on Kickstarter and they took a lot of feedback from their community. With a beautiful 3D world and amazing character art (which made deciding between romance options hard), it’s got the familiarity of Stardew with a modern, polished presentation.
Unique features:
- Island setting with an environmental focus
- Very diverse cast of romanceable characters
- Scuba diving exploration mechanic
✦ . ⁺ . ✦ . ⁺ . ✦
Sun Haven
Sun Haven is probably the most similar game on this list to Stardew, but in a fantasy world. You’ve got magic and different fantasy races, but the gameplay still follows the classic farming sim structure. One thing I really liked about this game was that you can easily spend almost one hundred hours in the game if you are a completionist.
Unique features:
- Fantasy setting with dragons, elves, demons and more.
- Skill trees that unlock different abilities
- Three different towns to explore
- Multiplayer (up to 8)
✦ . ⁺ . ✦ . ⁺ . ✦
Luma Island
Luma Island is lesser-known hidden gem that combines farming with temple exploration, puzzles, and other jobs (brewing, ship making, jewelry crafting, etc). It very much reminded me of the job based gameplay Fantasy Life had but with more structure to keep you hooked without overwhelming you. This game is great if you want the ability to take a break from certain mechanics to focus on others if you find yourself getting burnt out.
Unique features:
- Job-based progression
- Dungeon crawling and temple exploration
- Different environments unlock as you progress
- “Luma” creatures help you out around the farm
✦ . ⁺ . ✦ . ⁺ . ✦
Kynseed
Kynseed is a more RPG style farming/life sim but with a unique concept: it has legacy gameplay where generations pass and your choices matter. It’s a bit more open-ended than most farming sims, but if you like the idea of an aging, progressing world that also has a touch of humor, this could be a great game for you.
Unique features:
- Legacy style, generational gameplay
- Quirky humor and storytelling
- Unique time system where even the NPCs age and pass
✦ . ⁺ . ✦ . ⁺ . ✦
Fae Farm
Fae Farm is a fantasy farming sim that has more of an emphasis on mining in order to progress the story but farming is still an important aspect of the game. It’s visually cute and bright, and it’s also a pretty approachable game in terms of simplicity. Although it does feel a little soulless at times in terms of the characters and story, it’s still a game you can have fun with depending on the type of gameplay you are looking for.
Unique features:
- Moreso focuses on mining to progress the story
- Fantasy aesthetic with fae and magical creatures
- Cozy house decoration mechanics
- Simplified and streamlined mechanics
✦ . ⁺ . ✦ . ⁺ . ✦
Rusty’s Retirement
Rusty’s Retirement is unique in that it runs in the background while you work or browse the web as what is known as an idle game. You can set up robots to manage your farm passively but optimizing and planning your farm and what to plant and where still is engaging and fun. I’d recommend this one if you enjoy multitasking or having a companion game while you are working.
Unique features:
- Idle style gameplay
- Can be automated with bots handling tasks
- You can progresses while the game is minimized
- Relaxing pixel art aesthetic
✦ . ⁺ . ✦ . ⁺ . ✦
Harvest Moon (The Classics Only)
Before the name got handed off and drama ensued, Harvest Moon defined the genre. The classics you might have played on Gameboy or the Wii still hold up with their nostalgic charm, tight farming mechanics, and satisfying daily gameplay loop. My favorite out of all of these has to tied with Animal Parade and Tree of Tranquility.
Unique features:
- Old-school charm that gives you nostalgia
- More strict seasonal routines that encourage planning
- Marriage, children, and festivals
- Limited town areas with farming as a main focus
✦ . ⁺ . ✦ . ⁺ . ✦
Story of Seasons (The New Harvest Moon)
Story of Seasons is arguably the actual Harvest Moon games these days (new name, same developers). Pioneers of Olive Town and Friends of Mineral Town are standout remakes with all the charm and farming goodness you’d expect with upgrades we’d expect in a remake.
Unique features:
- Developed by the original Harvest Moon team
- Modern quality of life improvements with polished mechanics
- More character depth and romance options
✦ . ⁺ . ✦ . ⁺ . ✦
Ooblets
In Ooblets, you can grow adorable little creatures, have dance battles with them, and decorate your farm. It’s weird and humorous, but in all the right ways. It’s also refreshingly different from traditional farming sims.
Unique features:
- Creature collecting mixed with farming
- Dance/music battles instead of traditional combat
- Customizable card decks and creature traits
- Stylized and vibrant visuals and graphics
✦ . ⁺ . ✦ . ⁺ . ✦
Disney Dreamlight Valley
Disney Dreamlight Valley is a game that has many more mechanics and features than just farming, but if you want to focus on that while your favorite Disney character keeps you company, this is a great game. There’s always something to do even if you get tired of your current task, and if you’re a Disney fan or just love games with a lot of collecting, quests, and decoration, this one might take over your life.
Unique features:
- Moreso a life sim but has farming mechanics
- Story-driven quests
- Many customization options for your character, house, and the world
- Farming, fishing, cooking, mining, with Disney characters
- Frequent updates new characters and zones
✦ . ⁺ . ✦ . ⁺ . ✦
There’s so much more to farming sims than Stardew Valley. Whether you’re after a fantasy setting, prehistoric innovation, or low-stress automation, there’s a cozy farming game out there waiting to pull you in.
If there is a favorite farming game of yours that isn’t on this list, let us know!