I'm still playing Stardew Valley · 3:33pm Mar 27th, 2020

I don't mean still as in “Oh, it's not popular but I still like it.” I mean that as I'm writing this I'm playing the game. I just checked and I've got over 100 hours on this game and I'm not sick of it.
I get to be an Apple!
The game starts with your grandfather on his deathbed. No, it's not secretly a horror game, it's just your grandpa passing and leaving his farm to you.
Then it cuts to you at work, a cube jockey just itching to get out of this faceless corporate life. You see your grandpa's letter and decide to completely upend your life, quit your job and move to the country to do a job that you have no idea how to do in an old cabin that's only in livable condition because of your grandpa's friends.
You're clearly not the sharpest tool in the shed.
That being said, you've got heart and are determined to make things work, and slowly you get things pulled together and things start running the way you like.
It's not an exciting game, there's no deep story, it's just a nice relaxing game where you grow crops and improve your farm.
You can talk to people, there are some singles in town so if you want to get married you can. If you want to fight monsters, there's a mine with 120 levels you can clear out, and it replenishes itself each time you go down so you can fight until you're satisfied.
The controls are sufficient, nothing special or great for combat, but combat controls wouldn't be great for the rest of the game.
The menu layout is straightforward and simple, you'll not get lost in a web of sub-menus and choice boxes.
It uses SNES style graphics and I think it's nice for the kind of game it is. It doesn't use more than is necessary and keeps that nostalgic charm. Many people have told me it's like the original Harvest Moon games, and I'll have to trust them as I've never played them. But if you have and want a game with that feel I understand that this could scratch that itch.
It's a peaceful game with a lot of open room for you to make your own internal story, but there is something going on in the back ground that you only ever get hints about: The nation you live in is at war with another nation, you get this from a one off line from a boy who lives with his brother and mother.
Year two a new character shows up, turns out he's the father of the boy who told you about your nation's enemy. Talking to him it's pretty easy to learn that he just returned from combat and has PTSD. And the game doesn't treat it like a personality quirk. Talking to him you find out that he has difficulty with wide open areas and even the sound of popcorn. In addition to a general difficulty adjusting to civilian life.
The guy who runs the general store is stressed about several things, including the superstore that recently opened up, but he also has a nagging family concern.
As you talk to each person and build relationships in town you find out a bit of their story, no character (that I've found) is one dimensional.
You have a choice to either restore the civic center, or help the superstore take over. Most people in the town don't like the superstore's presence, but the company has community projects to help everyone out. They're not completely heartless. And restoring the civic center helps everyone out as well, and brings everyone together. Two paths to the same goal, really.
There's also a modding community for this game. I only know because I've wondered how hard it would be to make a character to add to the story. (I write fan fiction, someone had to see this coming.) I don't know if this is important to people. But it is there for those who are interested.
I don't have a ton to say, it's a pretty simple game. It started on PC, but it's moved to pretty much every system and even phones/tablets, so it's definitely accessible.
Give the game a shot if you want something slow paced and calming to whittle away some time.