As a man who lives reasonably close to Whitby, I’m fairly accustomed to seeing people dressed as vampires in places I wouldn’t expect them (admittedly, I’m not sure where I would expect them). So a Stardew Valley but vampires game doesn’t come as a particular shock.
It does make you ask “why?”, however.
The rise of “cosy” games can be attributed to many things. They’re cosy, first of all. Cosy, being a typically good thing.
Second, in world filled with more and more evil, misanthropic people, businesses, governments, it can be nice, relaxing, comforting to just tend to your little farm and chat to colourful characters without the stress of making world-shaking decisions.
Third, there’s some really lucrative ones out there, Stardew Valley, Animal Crossing, Disney Dreamlight Valley. Even Pokemon tried their hand at it to huge success earlier this year with Pokopia.
The answer to “why?”, simply becomes “why not?”
Arguably making those paragraphs meaningless, but you’re the one who went on the internet, not me. You were asking for it.
Moonlight Peaks is gothic, vampiric take on the Stardew Valley formula. Inherit a farm (in this case, steal), chat to villagers, build, farm, fish, decorate, fall in love, get married, etc. You know, the usual.
Developed by Little Chicken and published by XSEED Games, Moonlight Peaks puts you in the shoes of the daughter of Count Dracula as you run away from home. Seems that being the daughter of the Prince of Darkness isn’t easy. Putting down roots on a farm belonging to your family, you meet a wide array of interesting characters, tackle quests from the absurd to the more absurd and try to, ultimately, establish a life away from Vlad the Impaler.
Mechanically, Moonlight Peaks works exactly as you’d expect if you’ve played any of the games mentioned above and if not, not to worry, there’s very little to master.
Clear space with pickaxes, wood axes, scythes. Then, plant seeds found around the world. Reap your harvest. Make money. Spend money on improving the farm, or on gifts for the locals as you attempt to charm their pants off, figuratively and literally. However, as this is a vampire story, instead of doing your work during the day, you must operate at night, don’t want to be turning to dust, wouldn’t fit the cosy vibe.
There are many reason farmers don’t tend to their fields by night, mainly something to do with not being able to see. So the world of Moonlight Peaks is lit by fluorescent plants and lanterns befitting the season. If nothing else, this game has a superb aesthetic and is very appropriate for this time of year. So if you’re looking for a Halloween vibe, look no further.
There may be some detractors who dislike the chibi character models, and I can’t necessarily disagree with them. There’s something off-putting to me about their giant heads and tiny bodies. But this is a personal opinion and doesn’t impact my review of the game, just a heads up for those who share my views.
My final gripe is with the map, one of the early quests has you collect wood for the local carpenter so he can fix your roof. Upon finding the requisite materials, it took me about 20 minutes to find him, maybe that’s me being useless, but the map was no help at all and not being able to track quests in the overworld didn’t help much either. So maybe Moonlight Peaks is something that takes some time to learn geographically but you’re not helped a ton.
One final thing, checking early reviews online can flag some issues regarding performance. I didn’t encounter anything but this review was carried out on Nintendo Switch 2 so mileage may vary on less powerful systems. So if for whatever reason (seriously, why?) my review has enticed you into checking out Moonlight Peaks, do some research first.
All in all, Moonlight Peaks is a solid take on the cosy, farming genre that will likely please those who enjoy the aesthetic. There are however better games of this ilk, ones that directly inspired this. So if you’ve not checked those out, I’d start there, then maybe move the Moonlight Peaks (just like the MC eh?) once you’re ready.
