In the pantheon of indie video games, 2016’s Stardew Valley holds a place of pride. Singlehandedly developed, designed, programmed, and even scored by one guy—he goes by the online handle ConcernedApe—it’s ostensibly a farming simulator, but it goes way beyond Farmville.
Players can grow and harvest their crops, yes. But they can also fish, mine for ore, protect their farms from the monsters that roam the surrounding wilderness, use the profits from their farms to upgrade their tools and homes, and visit nearby towns to chat with the populace—and maybe even find love. It’s a game you could almost play forever: There are no concrete goals, and just when you think you’ve done everything, ConcernedApe will drop an update with new features.
But right now, ConcernedApe has vowed to hold off on new expansions while he focuses on finishing his next game, Haunted Chocolatier. If this has left you looking for something new to play, here are seven other games with similar attributes: an addictive gameplay loop, elements of resource management, mechanics like fishing or crafting, and a touch of role-playing.
Bear and Breakfast
IGN user rating: 7.5
Though it’s heavier on the resource management side of things than Stardew Valley, it’s hard to resist the charm of Bear and Breakfast, in which you take on the role of Hank, a brown bear who decides to open a cozy inn for the humans that populate his valley. You time will be spent fixing up a run-down building and furnishing rooms, booking guests, and foraging for the supplies you’ll need to keep them fed and happy. This one is less of an open sandbox than Stardew—you don’t have nearly as much freedom to make your own choices about how to build your B&B empire—but the graphics are cartoonishly adorable and there’s plenty of silly humor to keep you playing.
Platforms: PlayStation, Nintendo Switch, Steam
Fields of Mistria
IGN user rating: 9
Though still in an early-access beta at the moment, Fields of Mistria is an extremely promising contender for Stardew Valley’s crown. The setting is the titular town of Mistria, recently devastated by an earthquake and badly in need of rebuilding. Don’t worry—while the vibes are depressing, the townspeople aren’t letting a little thing like a natural disaster get them down: They’re still tending to their gardens, running their businesses, and sourcing ingredients for delicious meals. You play a newcomer to the area who inherits a tiny cottage on a run-down patch of land, and it’s up to you to clear the land and build a life—while helping the community of Mistria rebuild along the way. The bitmap graphics and friendly vibes are highly reminiscent of Stardew Valley, but the supporting cast of lovable NPCs sets it apart.
Platforms: Steam
Coral Island
IGN user rating: 8.2
Coral Island eschews Stardew Valley‘s retro vibes for a more polished visual presentation, but the gameplay is a familiar mix of farming, harvesting, fishing, crafting, cooking, and relationship building—plus a few fun twists, like raising animals and diving to explore underwater areas. You goal is to build up your own farm while helping your neighbors revitalize the island to keep corporate buyers at bay, if you like a little anti-capitalism messaging in your gaming.
Platforms: PlayStation, Xbox, Steam
Sun Haven
IGN rating: 7.9
Here’s a farming sim with a difference: Sun Haven leans a lot harder on the RPG elements. There’s a much stronger focus on combat, and you can choose and level up your character’s skills even as you carry out the usual tasks of farming, harvesting, and resource management. With a quirky sense of humor, a slow-burn storyline, and lots of monsters and magic, it’s Stardew Valley meets Dungeons & Dragons.
Platforms: Nintendo Switch, macOS, Steam
My Time at Portia
IGN rating: 8
Though the art style may be a bit divisive—the main character reminds me of Jimmy Neutron (derogatory)—this isn’t a bad pick if you enjoy the crafting aspects of Stardew Valley. You play as a feisty lad who moves into his Pa’s rundown old workshop, determined to fix it up and help brighten up the surrounding town of Portia along with it. The focus is on gathering resources to build stuff, with the usual cozy game trappings of dating and mini-quests like horse racing and battling the local toughs. The fact that the game’s map expands as you craft items to help you access new areas will keep you racking up hours of playtime.
Platforms: Nintendo Switch, Android, iOS, PlayStation 4, macOS, Xbox, Steam
Graveyard Keeper
IGN user rating: 7.4
A macabre twist on Stardew Valley, Graveyard Keeper puts you in charge of not a farm but, well, you guessed it. Instead of garden beds, you tend to family plots! Instead of fruits bursting from the ground, there are zombies! It’s capitalism meets a medieval graveyard, as you gather resources, manage your plots, and seek to draw in the locals with fun events like a witch-burning festival. There are graves to dig, dungeons to explore, and mourning locals to exploit. Truth be told, the execution (no pun intended) isn’t quite as good as the concept, but once you get the hang of it, it feels less grind-y and more fun and funny.
Platforms: Nintendo Switch, Android, PlayStation 4, iOS, Xbox, Linux, macOS, Steam
Dave the Diver
IGN rating: 9
This 2023 Game of the Year nominee is a far cry from a cozy farming sim, but its engaging and expansive storyline—as the titular Dave, you run a sushi restaurant located near a magical body of water and must each day head out on a boat to dive for the seafood you’ll be serving up to customers—makes great use of the familiar gameplay loop. Though there’s plenty of Stardew-esque resource management and task repetition baked into the restaurant simulation chunk of the game, this one, uh, dives much deeper into the story-based RPG elements, but it’s no less satisfying for that.
Platforms: PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch, PC
