Game: Garden of the Sea
Genre: Adventure, Simulation
System: Nintendo Switch (Also on Steam (Windows))
Developer | Publisher: Neat Corporation
Age Rating: US Everyone | EU 3+
Price: US $19.99 | UK £16.75 | EU € 19,50
Release Date: October 24th, 2024
A review code was used, with many thanks to Future Friends Games.
Originally designed as a VR-only game, Garden of the Sea has been recrafted to allow more gamers to experience this unique world. Setting up a home and befriending the local wildlife is just part of the adventure; there are places to explore and mysteries to solve.
Will the Garden of the Sea send me on an em-ocean-al journey, or will I be waving it goodbye?
Starting Your Garden of the Sea
As a first-person game, there is no character customisation in Garden of the Sea. You start on a small island, which serves as a tutorial. There are various notice boards explaining the controls, and once you’ve collected your tools, you get to practise using them by planting some turnips. Plants grow fast, so it’s not long before you can harvest.
Throughout the game, you will come across little creatures called potpots. They will request materials, and in return, they will build or give you items. Giving 3 turnips to the first potpot will gain you a blue crystal, which you use to open up the mystery island and your home base.
However, before you can get to your home base, you will need to fix the bridge. As an item is added to the orange bubble, then its pictogram is removed from the thought balloon. It makes it easy to keep track of what is still outstanding. The materials are plentiful, and you will soon discover how to make seeds to grow your own flowers and vegetables. Only as you delve deeper into Garden of the Sea will you need to go further afield to find the right resource.
Ready for Adventure?
As you approach your home base, you can’t fail to see the pink outline of a boat. If you want to explore other islands, then you will need to locate and retrieve the boat components.
One of which is being held by an adorable manateecow.
Once complete, you can use the boat to explore the islands you can see in the distance. Each one has a unique biome. You’ll have to navigate through a bamboo maze, parkour across coral in the dark; and teleport around a snowy, crystal-filled island.
Several of the islands are home to mysterious stone statues. Solve the puzzle, and you will be rewarded.
Home, Sweet Garden of the Sea
Alternatively, you may want to stay on the home island and develop your home base. Starting with a tent, you can keep upgrading until you get a multi-storey mansion complete with a windmill. However, you will have to solve the mysteries of the islands to find all the resources required for such a palatial dwelling.
Decorations and tool upgrades can be brought on the various merchant boats around the islands; however, some of the docks need repairing before the merchant will visit. The currency is shells, which can be obtained by selling items like flowers or crops.
Numerous craft recipes, from shelves and curtains to fences and walkways, can be found around the islands. These will not only help to fulfil pot pot requests but also enhance your home and grounds.
More Than Just Decorating
Take a break from furnishing your house or designing your garden, and enjoy a spot of fishing. You can even populate the pond near your home base. Simply cast your line and reel in when the fish isn’t pulling away.
You could cook some treats to befriend the local wildlife. As you upgrade your house, more recipes will become available.
And let’s face it, the wildlife is absolutely adorable.
Finally, sit back and enjoy what you have created.
Gameplay in Garden of the Sea
Once mastered, the controls are fine, although unfortunately, not all of them are explained. There is no touchscreen functionality, and I found the pictograms and storage bubbles a little too small to play comfortably on the small screen.
Within the options menu, there is a setting to change the dominant hand and, especially important for a first-person game, there is an option to reduce the camera sensitivity. Garden of the Sea is not designed to be a fast-paced game with lots of quick movements, but if you are prone to motion sickness, this might not be the game for you.
There are occasional framerate issues in Garden of the Sea, especially when travelling on the boat, and I encountered a few issues when trying to replace items, whereby I would throw the item on the floor rather than place it on the stand. However, trying to plant grass or grab the treasure map proved very problematic, as it caused other items to drop or vanish from the inventory bar. I also encountered a few software crashes in the latter part of the game.
There is a manual save via the menu, with 3 save slots available. A new game will automatically use an empty slot.
There is no clock, but time passes from day to night in around 25 minutes. Even with a bed, I couldn’t sleep through the night. Completing the main game took 5 to 6 hours, and finding the whale took another hour or so.
Conclusion
Playing Garden of the Sea makes me happy. The combination of crafting, exploring, cultivating and puzzle-solving strikes the perfect balance and encourages the next step. Completing the main story is just the start, as you can then trade and decorate, design and create the perfect environment to chill out and relax in, with all the adorable creatures.
There are just a few too many glitches to give Garden of the Sea our highest rating, but if you can cope with a first-person view, I would definitely recommend this cosy and wholesome game.
Final Verdict: I Like it a Lot 
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