Harvestella is exactly as it sounds. You harvest things. Basically another farming sim game. AND it’s by Square Enix. At first you might be like… ‘wait doesn’t Square Enix make action RPGs like Final Fantasy and Kingdom Hearts?’ That was my initial thought too—I was skeptical they could make a good farming sim game.
So I tried the demo. It was surprisingly good! What they do better than other similar games is the beautiful artwork, the battle aspect, and a stronger focus on story. The one part that I disliked from the demo was that each day was too short, but fortunately they took feedback from the demo and fixed that aspect. Respect to the developers!
Like many other similar games, you’ll grow crops, cook food, craft equipment, explore dungeons, fight monsters, and bond with your teammates.
By far, my favorite part of this game was the cooking aspect, and not due to some unique fun gameplay, but just because it looked so delicious. As you visit different towns and do more sidequests, you get more recipes. They’d range from basic things like tacos to complex dishes like pumpkin gratin. Even the basic riceballs look so good.
I swear there’s something about food in anime. It can’t just be because I’m a weeb right? Omg is it like 2D vs 3D waifus? 2D FOOD SUPREMACY!!!
In Harvestella, cooking is really your only good way to replenish your stamina, which is used whenever you run and pretty much do any action in the game, including regular attacks. And because the dungeons in the game are pretty large with multiple maps each, food is really important. I often find myself running out of stamina long before the day is over. Basically, you eat food a lot in this game.
But that’s no different from real life.
The Life Lesson
Do you eat to live, or live to eat? I absolutely love good food despite having a weak ass sensitive stomach and live to eat. Unfortunately, just because I consider myself a ‘foodie’, doesn’t mean I have the best eating habits.
I’m not a doctor, nor a nutritionist, nor a fitness expert, but I think it’s universally understood that what you eat plays an incredibly important role in… almost everything—diet, fitness, health, mood, energy, skin, etc. What you should eat is a whole another discussion in itself, but it’s important to first ensure you consistently eat to replenish your stamina and energy.
Just like in Harvestella, it’s hard to function at your 100% if you’re low on food. This includes brain power too. Even though a balanced diet is important, eating in general is better than not. And like everything else, there are edge cases; you likely will NOT feel better ingesting a whole stick of butter compared to eating nothing. I’ll never understand how people can even think of eating deep fried butter.
The worst part for me when it comes to eating, is that I’m the opposite of a stress eater. If I’m super upset, anxious, or depressed, I can’t eat at all. I’m basically a happy eater. Unfortunately, I’m more stressed and anxious than I’d ideally like to be, and am trying to not be stick thin, so it doesn’t work out in my favor. That means no heartbreak ice cream sessions. Just heartbreak. Nada mas.
The thing is, if you’re like me, sometimes some food IS the way to go. We need energy to process our emotions. Have you ever tried dealing with things logically when you’re hangry? It’s not easy. Even if your favorite meal doesn’t seem appetizing, just force yourself to cook or order it. A taste could trigger an appetite, which could boost your mood. Voila, just like that, food has improved your mental health!
If all else fails, always carry a snack with you! I get that sometimes there’s just very little time.
Of course, not everybody has the luxury of not having to worry if they can even feed the table every night. So make sure you don’t take being able to eat for granted, and try not to waste!
I want to eat this even though I don’t want to eat this (if ya get me). That’s how good it looks.
