Steam: New alternative to Stardew Valley is much darker than it first appears

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Echoes of the Plum Grove may look like a classic farming sim. But all kinds of secrets and intrigue await behind the scenes

Come to Honeywood and start a new life! In this idyllic town, you’ll farm, make friends, survive the winter and get rid of enemies.

Wait a minute, the latter doesn’t sound as friendly as the pictures of the farming simulation might suggest. In fact, Echoes of the Plum Grove has some dark secrets

What is Echoes of the Plum Grove?

At first glance, the game is reminiscent of Stardew Valley with an alternative setting and graphic style. Honeywood is apparently based on the towns of European settlers in North America, as can be seen in the trailer:

However, the initially friendly-looking city also has its dark sides. For example, we have to survive harsh winters and can build anything but friendly relationships with our neighbors.

The developers have already revealed what is possible in the farming simulation on Steam:

  • Farm life: As usual for the genre, we start with a modest plot of land, plant fields, breed animals and expand our farm bit by bit.
  • Survival in winter: However, the success of our farm is crucial to our survival. We have to plan for winter from the outset and store enough food. Otherwise, we will have to laboriously gather berries during the cold season or hope for the kindness of our fellow human beings. In the worst case, we could even starve to death.
  • Friendships and enmities: Relationships with our fellow human beings should be very important. Good friends can help us out with food in winter, for example. However, if we don’t like someone, we can also be really mean to them or even put them out of the way
  • Building a family: Echoes of the Plum Grove is not just about the fate of a single character. We are building a family that should last as long as possible. If our character dies, we take over another family member.
  • Exploration: There are lots of secrets waiting to be discovered on the island. For example, the developers cite rumors of a witch, strange occurrences in the bay and a mysterious threat in the mine tunnels.

Echoes of the Plum Grove is set to be released on Steam on April 29, 2024

Are you excited about Echoes of the Plum Grove? Or are you not yet convinced by the farming simulation? In this case, you can of course discover many other games here. Dennis, for example, will tell you which exciting new releases await you on Steam this week. And you can read why Of Life and Land, a real insider tip, is being released today in our test.