Garden Story is an action role-playing game created by Picogram and released by Rose City Games. The game became available for macOS, Windows, and Nintendo Switch on August 11, 2021, and for Xbox One on July 12, 2022. Limited Run Games said that physical copies would be available in the third quarter of 2022.

In the game, Concord, a grape, is responsible for caring for a kindergarten that is looked after by the youngest Greenling. Plum, the Guardian of Spring Hamlet, explains that the Rot is causing fewer new Greenlings to appear. Plum chooses Concord to become the new Guardian of Spring Hamlet, and Concord travels across the Grove to fight the Rot. Garden Story received mixed reviews. Critics liked the game's visuals and music but found the gameplay less exciting.

Gameplay

In Garden Story, players control a grape named Concord who must travel through the Grove to defeat the Rot. Concord can use a sword, a hammer, and a dowsing rod. Each weapon can be improved using materials. Some enemies can only be defeated with specific weapons. Weapons help solve puzzles and collect resources. Concord uses the dowsing rod to pick up items or activate switches. Using the sword, rolling, or sprinting uses up Concord's stamina.

In each town, Concord can visit a house to change clothes, store materials, and refill bottles. The game has a day-night cycle. The day ends if Concord dies or sleeps. When Concord wakes up, they receive daily tasks. Each day, the tasks on the bulletin board change. Completing tasks gives experience points to one of three categories. Upgrading these categories improves the town's shop inventory. Some towns need to reach a certain level to progress in the story. Towns level up when Concord completes their tasks. Concord can plant seeds to collect new resources. Some seeds must be planted to continue the story. Concord can build structures and buy cosmetic items from stores. To enter a dungeon, Concord must complete tasks and gather resources. Defeating the dungeon's boss allows Concord to move to the next area.

Orbs can be found around the island. Concord can break them to get gems inside. These gems give permanent improvements to Concord's stats, like stamina, health, resistance, and mind. Perks change Concord's stats and abilities. Perks are earned by completing tasks. Perks are based on memories that change stats and add abilities. Concord can use bottles filled with dew to restore health.

Development and release

Garden Story was created by a Filipino-American developer named Picogram. The game's music was composed by Grahm Nesbitt, who also made the soundtracks for Goodbye Doggy and Floppy Knights. Development of Garden Story began in March 2018. After the game was shown at events in Portland, a company called Rose City Games partnered with Picogram.

In August 2019, Viz Media announced that Garden Story would be released for PC, with a planned launch in spring 2020. The game was shown at PAX West 2019 and PAX South 2020. A demo featuring a part of the game called Autumn Town was released on Steam in November and was available until December 21. Garden Story was included in the Indie Megabooth at PAX East 2020. The developers demonstrated the game at events like Fellow Traveller and LudoNarracon. To prepare for these events, Picogram recorded themselves creating art. Grahm Nesbitt discussed music composition and performed live versions of the soundtrack's songs.

In June, the release of Garden Story was delayed to 2021. In July, the game was highlighted at Twitch's Indie Showcase. The developers received support from Kowloon Nights, a funding group started in 2017. A demo of Garden Story was playable during the Steam Game Festival: Spring Edition. At the Day of the Devs event, a trailer showing gameplay was released. The game was scheduled for a summer release and was included in Wholesome Games' Wholesome Direct. In August, Garden Story was shown at Nintendo's Indie World event, and a release for the Nintendo Switch was announced on the same day.

On August 11, 2021, Garden Story was released for Windows, macOS, and Nintendo Switch. The game was also shown at Nintendo's Indie World Showcase. A free expansion was added, which included new shops in Perennial Plaza and cosmetic items for Concord. This expansion was released on Steam on October 28. At Limited Run Games' LRG3 event, a physical version of Garden Story was announced. Copies of the physical release are expected to be available for pre-order in Summer 2022.

Reception

Garden Story received "mixed or average" reviews, according to review aggregator Metacritic.

TouchArcade's Shaun Musgrave described the game's world as "positively adorable" and compared it to a "Zelda style" action-adventure. He noted that the game's presentation and characters helped make the game enjoyable. However, he criticized technical problems with the Switch version, such as long loading times. Musgrave believed the game would appeal to fans of Blossom Tales or Ittle Dew.

Kate Gray from Nintendo Life praised the game's music and the variety of systems included. However, she felt the game lost its momentum quickly.

Izzy Parsons from RPGFan praised the game's graphics and enjoyed the soundtrack. However, Parsons found the game design repetitive and noted a lack of cohesion or progression in the dungeons. Parsons believed the characters and world had a strong appeal and wrote that Garden Story was "definitely worth checking out."

Jordan Rudek from Nintendo World Report said the game made a good first impression but did not maintain its momentum. He praised the art style and music, comparing the visuals to Turnip Boy Commits Tax Evasion. Rudek felt the story and combat were not compelling enough, and he found the gameplay loop uninspired.