Garden Stories (Everyman's Library Pocket Classics)

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It’s for Budgie,” she told me. She led me inside to collect the tiny, still body of the bird that had lived for several years in the cage in her front room. Grandma unwrapped the cloth that held Budgie and stroked the blue feathers with a finger. Budgie lay on her side, her dark eye wide open but unmoving. It was the first time I’d been brought face to face with the reality of death. I couldn’t make sense of it. Just the day before, I’d watched Budgie tilt her head to the side, then plunge her beak into her dish and spray water in a little halo around her head. It was clear she’d never do that again. One day the next Spring, I arrived at Grandma’s and found her pacing off the rows for her new year’s vegetable garden. I settled down on the grass to watch—and saw a small patch of violets blooming right in front of Budgie’s pile of stones. Yesterday I was driving through an unfamiliar neighborhood, searching for a garage sale I’d read about, and my eyes spotted a small wooden cross, painted white, beneath a tree. I realized that someone’s beloved pet must be buried at that spot—and almost immediately remembered the day my grandmother buried her dead budgerigar, rolled up in a handkerchief, beneath the pussy willow in her garden. I mentioned a twist earlier, and here it is: Garden Story gives the player the opportunity to live in - not just pass through - the four main villages. Temporary homes await Concord in each. You can rush through the story, but you can also get comfy. Lay your grape hat in your grape home, and start pitching in. Protecting, restoring, and helping the residents flourish. You see, Garden Story may lure you in with its Harvest Moon and Stardew Valley-like aesthetic, but this game about community and saving the world turns out to be an RPG in farm sim's clothing.

This circle of life image captivated me and helped soften the edges of my sadness. Not only did it mean that Budgie would live on in a way that wasn’t dependent on my spotty memory, it also made it clear to me that death and life were inextricably intertwined—a lesson one learns time and again in a garden. Combat Rot: Solve puzzles and fend off Rot as you delve into particularly infested locations of The Grove. Take caution: especially formidable Rot have taken residence in the depths of these areas! So Concord will arrive at a bustling beach town, meet the townsfolk, be given a place to crash, plonk themselves down on a big leaf, make the most heart-melting resting animation, then conk out. Each morning, new requests come in from the villagers. Repair a bridge, beat down some bad slimes, collect and deliver a rare resource, and so on. Complete tasks, level up the village, get access to new weapon upgrades and other shinies. It makes for lovely “loops within lines” progression, letting you alternate between climbing the beanstalk and enjoying the view, whenever the mood takes you. Gardens of the imagination round out the anthology: the beautiful but fatal garden of Nathaniel Hawthorne’s “Rappaccini’s Daughter,” the crystal buds of J. G. Ballard’s “The Garden of Time,” ravenous orchids in John Collier’s “Green Thoughts,” and Matsudo Aoko’s “Planting,” in which a young woman plants each day whatever she has been given—roses and violets, buttons and broken cups, love and fear and sorrow. Garden Stories is an abundant crop of entrancing stories and the perfect gift for gardeners of all kinds. cottage living inspired me to do more gardening activities together with my sims. however, the majority of in-game objects are very cottagecore/country-style - which is cool, but i tend to grow tired of using the same type of garden boxes or flower arrangement table... that's why i am super excited to release this GARDEN STORIES set!

I need to talk about combat now, because despite all the cosy creativity and charming characters, hitting things is still at least half the game. I like the ‘RPG’ part of Garden Story fine - collecting and upgrading weapons, slotting in ‘memories’ to boost stats - I’m just not as sure about the ‘A’. The action is a bit fiddly, dictated by an initially stingy stamina bar that feels more like a hindrance than a challenging limitation, stifling flow rather than dictating rhythm. Foes feel like obstacles to be manipulated and cleaned up, rather than sparring partners. All game combat is pattern exploitation in one form or another, I know, but it rarely feels natural here. The frequent combat in this ARPG is hit-and-miss, but behind it is a sweet and sincere tale set in a land you’ll care about saving and starring the G.O.T.Y (grape of the year). the string lights and the overgrowth have a default height that matches the height of the pergola, but with the bb.moveobject on cheat you can set it higher if you'd like!

You play Concord who, as mentioned, is the custodian of a tiny garden. But they are soon seconded by a giant plum called, um, Plum, to become a ‘Guardian of the Grove’. This is a rather important title in the Grove, as it effectively positions you as one of the four towns’ champions. Being a Guardian means that you will be fixing bridges, clearing out water supplies and boshing the odd slime on the head with a hammer. Experiment with equipment: Utilize a variety of items to help gather resources, grow gardens, stave off Rot, solve puzzles, and indulge in the occasional musical interlude!Even static screenshots of Garden Story practically bloom out of the screen, so it’s no surprise that the presentation is a treat throughout. Unique animations nestle hidden in surprising places. My favourite was the deadly serious face Concord makes while impaling rot slimes with a parasol, as if performing some terrible ritual execution. Concord’s stair-walking animation is life affirming. When I first saw it, I squeed loudly, nodded in stoic appreciation, then repeated it for six actual minutes. Take it slow, says Garden Story. Yes, peril approaches, but fences need fixing just as monsters need slaying. Foster community: Take on requests, complete favors, and work as a role model to provide inhabitants with the confidence to support one another. Don’t be afraid to ask for help: we’re rebuilding together! Of course, that’s not the end. Mary Ann’s grandmother was clearly a very special person, and used the moment to teach Mary Ann a very important and comforting lesson about life. Gardening Stories Can Clear The Mind and Help Us Heal. Read So Many More of Them in GreenPrints It felt all wrong to me. This was the way it had to be, Grandma told me. Budgie would live now in our memories of her. I fashioned a pile of small stones under the pussy willow to mark Budgie’s resting place, feeling very unsettled. If Budgie lived only in my memory, then she could cease to be altogether—I forgot a lot of things! Sometimes I forgot to close the latch on my rabbit’s cage and had to chase her around the yard. Sometimes I forgot that I was supposed to brush my teeth before I went to bed. Sometimes I couldn’t even remember my parents’ phone number, despite the fact that my mother rehearsed it with me on a routine basis. My memory challenges did not bode well for Budgie’s chances of immortality.