Ritual of Raven Impressions
She’s not like other witchy farming sims.
Ritual of Raven by Spellgarden Games is a story based farming sim with a very memorable style and a super fresh take on the beloved and booming genre! I find myself really gravitating towards cozy games in the more autumnal months, and it was the perfect time to give this highly anticipated title a try.
As a newcomer/budding witch, you arrive in a quaint new community and are tasked with various responsibilities which help you create a flourishing farm and provide help to all of the quirky residents of the neighborhood. We’ve definitely seen this formula before in many farming sims and honestly, it almost always works for me. Ritual of Raven is no exception, and Spellgarden Games is making their usual impression on me with their whimsical and wholesome style. Here, they manage to balance those vibes with a healthy dose of humor and sincerity, so although I’m familiar with this formula, I feel like I’m experiencing something incredibly stylized and unique. It feels special.
Creative characters, vibrant visuals, and twinkly tunes
For many of us farming sim lovers, the character creation and customization is KEY! In Ritual Of Raven, it feels Stardew-esque in the way that you’re presented with your options, but it feels a lot more intuitive to design. Players have a great variety of choices for hair color and skintone, but the devs are taking things a step further by also giving you three options for tone of voice. There isn’t any voice acting in the game, but NPCs and your playable character do provide vocal reactions and affirmations! It’s very effective, and I can’t really explain why this meant so much to me, but I guess it’s something I don’t see that often in character customization for farming sims.
Ritual of Raven in Action
When designing a character, it’s important to me to create something that feels true to myself visually, and I think audio attributes are often overlooked, but can be just as affirming! I consider this to be a really special offering in Ritual of Raven! I truly believe that the game has several options for all kinds of folks to create something that feels close to home.
The artistic design is a delight to take in, and it’s incredible to see the iconic Spellgarden visual art style in a more vast, detailed, and open environment. Sticky Business is one of my favorite games, and I’m so impressed at the visual identity that Spellgarden Games has created for themselves. To go from a sticker design/shop management game to a 30+ hour farming sim is a pretty big leap when it comes to genre, but I knew I was looking at a Spellgarden game the first time I laid eyes on Ritual of Raven. They’re using really vibrant colors, which make the crops look absolutely stunning. It’s so satisfying to visually take in your bounty at the beginning of each day!
I knew I was looking at a Spellgarden game the first time I laid eyes on Ritual of Raven. They’re using really vibrant colors, which make the crops look absolutely stunning. It’s so satisfying to visually take in your bounty at the beginning of each day!
The original game soundtrack by Marie Havemann is a lovely accompaniment to the visual and mechanical rhythm of the game. The tracks Nevar Village and Pip’s Lament can only be described as perfectly twinkly and magical, and musical tempo and dynamics are paced so pleasantly. It’s downright delightful listening, and I’ve even taken to putting on the soundtrack to relax, cook, or fall asleep.
Mesmerizing mechanics
This game will challenge you on what you think you know about farming sim gameplay, as they’re making an innovative departure from the classic approach. It took me time and practice to not habitually run towards my crops and try to just pick them all up to harvest. The process here is a lot more nuanced, prompting you to enchant magical constructs to automate and execute the farming for you (afterall, you are a witch)! This process involves a beautiful arcana of cards, and each card has a specific action (sowing, watering, harvesting, etc) so you must order your cards correctly to fulfill all of your farming quests and desires.
Ritual of Raven Trailer
This process begins as a bit of a head scratcher, but I believe has the potential to be quite meditative if you can really lock in. If you’re anything like me, this method of farming will take some getting used to. I found that several hours into the game it was making more sense, but I’m still not quite at the point where it feels super intuitive or second nature.
As someone who struggles with short term memory and big picture type of puzzles, the farming in this game feels a bit challenging and takes me some time to execute. However, the game will reward you for your efforts of following through with this slightly more complex approach, and I actually liked the way that this game required me to show up differently than I was expecting. A card based automation approach to farming is something I’ve never seen before, and I think Spellgarden definitely deserves their flowers for that!
Hopefully this has given you a good sense of whether or not this game is for you. I’m looking forward to continuing my playthrough as I move through the fall season, and I would say that Ritual of Raven is an absolute must play for the farming sim fans who want to stay within the genre while trying something totally new and engaging!
Kate was provided with a review key of Ritual of Raven by Spellgarden Games
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No Small Games is an indie game recap and review podcast brought to you by hosts Kate and Emily! They became friends while streaming on Twitch and bonded over their love of indie video games. In each episode of No Small Games, the two will discuss an indie game they both played independently. They’ll compare their experiences: the good, the bad, their most memorable moments of their playthroughs.
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