I still remember when Farmville came on to the gaming scene, causing hardcore gamers to scoff at its casual appeal. But Farmville Hooked me for some time. The sequel, Farmville 2 released a few years back on Facebook, but I was a little underwhelmed. At that point in time, I was playing casual games on my phone to pass the time (not on my computer). In a move that made it seem like Zynga was out to snag back one of their earlier gamers, they released Farmville 2: Country Escape on iOS and Android not to long ago. Conveniently, I was a little irritated with Marvel Puzzle Quest at the time, so I was looking for a new time killer. And now, its claws are in me once again.
There’s a few things that really hook me into Farmville 2: Country Escape, but here are the main three.
1. Focus
Farmville, and even it’s successor, had a lot of freedom. Some people jump right into those situations and let their creativity run wild. But for me, I need some sort of focus. Country Escape preserves the basic feel of Farmville 2. You plant crops to sell them. Except you can’t just sell whatever you want and it doesn’t eat into your funds to plant something. There’s a billboard system, and a few other opportunities down the road as you level up, to sell specific quantities of items. You can’t just collect, sell, collect, sell. With the limited storage space, and recipes increasing with each level up, planning is essential. You need 9 of those 50 spots to hold cow milk, so you can make 3 butter; then you have to make sure you have space for the chives so you can mix with the butter for the final product that you need to sell. The deeper you get into the game, the more discipline is required.
2. Offline
Some people just hate social games. I get it. That said, some people also have crappy internet or no 4G at their house (like myself). I love shooters, but my internet connection leads to long waits between matches (when the connection works for me at all). When I’m waiting for a match of Titanfall to start, I can kick WiFi off on my phone (and I have zero phone connection), and tend to a few crops until I get into my match. There’s no requirement for Facebook connection. Social interaction makes the game a lot better mind you, but the fact that it’s not required it a definite plus.
3. Unlimited Water
Timers are a pain in the ass. Anyone that plays free-to-play games will agree with that statement. The only timers in Farmville 2: Country Escape are on the plants, animals and buildings. My first sitting lasted me far longer than I care to admit. I could water crops, tend to other things while they grew, come back, replant them, and repeat. Plants took a minute or less to produce, and then I was cooking something to sell, and then it was back to the plants. Zynga really ironed out the first dozen or so levels to make sure to entrench the player and get them good and addicted.
I’m at level 20 and still unlocking new things. Like most games of this type, it’s easy to pick Country Escape up for a few minutes at work or before bed. Fans of the original or Farmville 2 may dislike the freedom in Country Escape on mobile devices, but if you have ever been just slightly entranced by the casual time-wasters on Facebook, Country Escape is worth looking into.
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