Phoenix Labs is dipping into the farming sim genre with Fae Farm and after spending time in its first few chapters after getting access to the game, it feels like accessibility is a core concept. In many different ways, it feels like the team endeavored to create a game that goes out of its way for players. For example, it means elements to allow you to make an avatar that looks like you. It also involves being clear about who characters are or where you might find some resources. It also cuts out some hassle behind managing your equipment.
Fae Farm’s accessibility options when you start creating a character. All sorts of skin colors are available, and you can choose from four body types regardless of gender. You pick your pronouns. The hairstyles are universal as well, with many different options present. If you want dreadlocks, those are there. If you wear a hijab in real life, you can immediately select one for your avatar here. A lot of elements to make your character look like, well, you are right there. You don’t need to unlock them.
Image via Phoenix Labs
This continues on to the controls. For the main tools you’ll use most often in Fae Farm, they’re context sensitive. So if you water plants, use an axe to chop, swing a scythe to cut, dig with a shovel, or smash with a pickaxe, you don’t need to dig through tools. The only pieces of equipment that do involve tabbing through with the triggers are the net, fishing pole, and wand. This means a lot less fuss and streamlines a lot of the more mundane interactions.
This doesn’t mean those tools that don’t automatically swap in when you need them aren’t also accessible in their own way. The concept still carries over into certain sorts of creature catching interactions. Say you’re going to go fishing or hunting bugs. There’s a visible rainbow halo around “special” ones, to help signify they are rare on sight. This means you don’t have to memorize their appearances. When you’re fishing, you clearly see a charged line when you cast. In addition to audio cues, you’ll see movements. If the line is in danger of breaking, its color changes to red and you’ll see little stress mark signifiers. When stalking bugs, holding down the button to sneak causes little stars to appear around your prey when you would be able to successfully catch it.
Even interacting with people features some accessibility options to aid players. In the map menu, you can go into areas and choose to select a certain location to help guide you there. You can also track specific people. This is a huge help when clearing out the quest list. Also, whenever you speak to someone you’ll see not only their name, but a brief summary of who they are and what they do. While the characters who act as shopkeepers don’t leave their posts, this is helpful for other NPCs who do move around quite a bit.
Image via Phoenix Labs
I would even say the dungeon diving is accessible. When you head into these areas, which also function as mines you’ll head into for ores and gemstones, you can craft seals. These use ores and sometimes gems. When placed in a pedestal at the start of a new floor, you can unlock the door to the next one and open up a fast-travel point that lets you immediately warp to that floor when at that point of the level. The menu will also note which resources will be on that floor and provide an idea of how plentiful they are, in the event you’re going in specifically for an item like copper or maybe some topaz.
In its early hours, it feels like Phoenix Labs made Fae Farm the sort of game that is accommodating and easy to play. However, it does that without holding someone’s hand too tightly. So there are elements that make it easy and take some extra actions off of your shoulders, while still ensuring you need to think about what you plant and manage your time and resources properly.
Fae Farm will come to the Nintendo Switch and PC on September 8, 2023.
