Farming Simulator 23: really challenging for a beginner
24.5.2023
Translation: Patrik Stainbrook
The agrarian simulation series is plenty popular. There must be something to it, and I want to find out what. I decided to run my own digital farm in the compact, easy-to-handle Farming Simulator 23 on the Switch – and stumbled across quite a few hay bales…
Since getting my own garden, I know how much work and planning goes into even the smallest of areas. But it is a pleasure watching your own plants grow and harvesting them. In industralised agriculture, this takes extreme forms. As there’s no room for a tractor in my garden, I get behind the digital wheel in Farming Simulator 23 (LS 23).
Set up and ownership: of John Deere and chicken coops
To start the simulation, I choose between the areas Amberstone and Neubrunn. The former comes with a small tutorial. Perfect. Without any prior knowledge, I’m happy to see an introduction. Here I learn where to find what in the game and which vehicle I can use for what tasks. I already own a few machines to start off, free of charge.
Looking at my search history, I’m sure Google now thinks I inherited my grandfather’s farm. In fact, I’m doing in-depth research on the equipment and vehicles I already own in the game. The John Deere 4755 tractor is already my favourite.
Source: Michelle Brändle
In addition, I have two Massey Ferguson MF 3670 tractors as well as the Deutz Fahr TopLiner 4090 HTS combine harvester. That one comes into play right off the bat: I own three fields and can already harvest wheat and barley from them. Lastly, I also own a trailer for the grain, matching cutting tools and a cultivator.
Source: Michelle Brändle
From wheat to the haystack, confusion abounds
Culti-what? Without a clue, I cling to the tips and help section (as well as reminders for the controls). I find out that ploughing works better against weeds than cultivating. But one thing at a time: I’ll harvest the wheat first and look forward to ploughing everything afterwards.
Source: Michelle Brändle
Or maybe not? After harvesting and selling the wheat, there’s still hay in my field – and I have no clue how to get it out of there. My trailer doesn’t seem to work. Thanks to YouTube videos on LS 22, I find out that I need a bigger trailer to sell the stuff right away. With the right machine, I could also make hay bales out of it.
Source: Michelle Brändle
But as I’ve hardly earned any money so far, I can’t buy a suitable vehicle. Renting also isn’t an option in LS 23. So I sell one of my two Massey Fergusons and get a big trailer.
Sounds simple. However, I’m too hasty. I drive to the dealer, sell the vehicle I drove there and buy a trailer. My mistake? I need to turn right back, as I don’t have the right vehicle to return my newly bought trailer to the farm. At least now I know that I can sell vehicles without going there. And I still have to get the hang of coupling things to vehicles. I’d have never got my driver’s licence this way…
Initial earnings thanks to YouTube and outside help
I’m slowly feeling my way into farming, reading the tips and descriptions of the equipment, both on the Switch and the official website. Occasionally, I watch a YouTube tutorial. Oma Tana is my favourite companion when it comes to explainer videos (video in German).
For a beginner, it’s quite the process. I didn’t think that the game would be so complex, despite its simple structure, and that I’d have to pay attention to so many things. Here’s everything I can optimise. Ploughing instead of cultivating, proper fertilising before sowing, efficient harvesting and collecting hay for sale or as fodder. I also always need to ensure the best prices. And then there’s also oncoming traffic on the roads! I switch off the latter for the protection of all involved.
Even with 190 horsepower provided by the John Deere, I have my work cut out for me when I want to drive up the hill with a trailer full of hay.
Source: Michelle Brändle
At least I have helpers who’ll take on various tasks to start out with, such as loading and shipping, and I can also send them to specific locations on the map. The Switch controls still irritate me initially with its many button combinations, and inputs for the helpers only work sometimes – you have to find an exact, isolated point, direction included, before the helper can reach it.
Source: Michelle Brändle
When opening the map and after entering targets for my helpers, the Switch has to load every time. Still, it’s quite fast and saves the game too.
Many possibilities: every dog (or chicken) has its day
The in-game clock can be adjusted from real time to 90x time-lapse. I take it slow at 10x speed to start off. Later, I switch it up to 60x. 24 hours in the game equals one month. So, once I get a day over with, a new month starts. This way I get through the year quite quickly and don’t have to wait forever until the fields are ready for harvest.
Shame I can’t actually enter my farmhouse. It’s purely a place to rest. I usually head for it as soon as it gets dark. Work quickly becomes tedious without daylight.
Source: Michelle Brändle
After getting used to field work with joysticks, I can open up new business areas besides pure agriculture. I need enough dosh to do so, but that motivates me to keep at it. I can continue with forestry and woodcutting. Or dabbling in animal husbandry. For this I can buy stables for cows, sheep, pigs and horses. Chickens are newly available too.
The nice thing about chickens is that if I don’t take care of them, all they do is stop yielding. I buy a few right away, for good reason. They cluck around adorably, aren’t expensive, and their coop is right next to my farmhouse. Here, their eggs also immediately get put on a pallet.
Source: Michelle Brändle
Now I need a forklift to load the pallets. According to my inner farmer’s calendar, I’ll probably only have enough for it in three more harvest years. Or wait… five.
Realistic: harvesting grain in rainy weather and winter isn’t recommended
The weather and seasons are also represented. There’s also a weather forecast to better plan my harvests. In bad weather, yields are reduced by half. The seasons bring visual variety to the game. Besides the weather and seasons, you can also play with prices. You’ll receive a notification telling you what is currently in high demand.
Source: Michelle Brändle
Not everything in the game makes sense. Even in wet weather, I can drive across the fields without ruining my crops. And that’s saying something, just look at my driving. However, I’m definitely learning to manoeuvre my equipment and vehicles better.
Until then, I sometimes also roam my fields on foot at sunset, lie down to sleep in the farmhouse and start loading straw and sowing rapeseed the morning after. Maybe next harvest year I’ll try potatoes – or olives. All in the simplistic Switch fashion.
Source: Michelle Brändle
Verdict: I won’t become a farmer, but I’ve learned a lot
Farming Simulator 23 is quite tricky for beginners. The fact that I’m provided with a few tools and vehicles at the beginning and can start working the fields right away helps me get into the game.
The initial tutorial and in-game descriptions are a godsend. Still, I rely on additional info from the internet. Farming Simulator 23 is pretty realistic, but some things are left out to improve gameplay. So you won’t destroy your crops or accidentally starve your chickens while driving across the fields. Perfect for a newcomer.
If you’re familiar with the genre or LS titles from years past, you should find your way quickly. You’ll get a comprehensive game for when you’re on the go that requires skill and economic thinking, but also has something meditative. However, it isn’t intended as a follow-up for LS 22, which is also playable on PC and other consoles, but rather as a light version for casual gaming.
Price and availability – cheaper than a tractor, more expensive than a chicken
Farming Simulator 23 is available now for Nintendo Switch, iPad, iOS and Android at a price of just under 50 francs or euros. Meanwhile, gamers on PC, PlayStation and Xbox are currently starting off the second year of Farming Simulator 22 with the Göweil Pack.
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In my world, Super Mario chases Stormtroopers with a unicorn and Harley Quinn mixes cocktails for Eddie and Peter at the beach bar. Wherever I can live out my creativity, my fingers tingle. Or maybe it's because nothing flows through my veins but chocolate, glitter and coffee.
