I’ve been playing a fair amount of Farming Simulator 22 lately, and I’m in love. It took me a long while to get to grips with what to do though, and that’s a huge barrier to entry. I can see most players picking the game up, getting stuck because it doesn’t explain what to do, quitting, and requesting a refund. Sure, there’s a core fan base of players who are almost certainly farmers as well that love the game and will know exactly what to do. However, the community won’t grow if the game isn’t made more accessible, and there are two ways to do that.
First, let’s have a tutorial. I know everyone hates them, but you seriously need it in this game. It could be a feature you turn on and off and that is only available in easy mode. It would walk you through everything you’ll ever do once at sensible points, such as when you buy a new building in a new industry. Then, the tutorial tips will be available to review whenever you want, but they won’t always pop up. I just think that making the game a little easier to get into like this would go a long way for new players like me.
Alternatively, let’s have a story mode for the game. The story mode could walk you through the process of growing a farm step by step, entering new industries as you complete new goals. It doesn’t need to be massive, but it does need to explain how to do everything. This is also where you could introduce a few cheeky romance options, as clumsy and unnecessary as they may be. I know I’m asking for something that the minority of players will want here, but I really do think that it would make all the difference for new people.
The bottom line is that Farming Simulator 22 is a great game, but it’s going to struggle to get new players in if there’s this barrier to entry that is the lack of understanding everyone has when they start. I don’t know if it’s meant to foster a helpful community or something, but it really does just hurt the game in my opinion.
