UPDATE: The Garden of Alchemy freebie via Fanatical has ended. The game is currently available via Steam for $12.99. The original story follows.
Alchemy Gardens is a life sim that should appeal to fans of games like ConcernedApe’s Stardew Valley, and it’s free when it’s capped on Steam. Stardew Valley’s enduring success has seen many other games emulate the formula, but with their own twist on the concept.
Alchemy Garden is one such game. In Alchemcy Garden, players run their own alchemy shop, manage gardens, and interact with local villagers. One of the key game features is the ability to craft potions to sell, encouraging players to experiment with different ingredients. The alchemy and potion shop angle helped Garden of Alchemy firmly establish itself outside of Stardew Valley, but it still has enough in common with the super-hit game that it should still appeal to its fans.
Now, Stardew Valley fans looking for a new The Sims game can claim Alchemy Garden and try it out completely for free. All they need to do is visit the Fanatical website and subscribe to their email newsletter to receive the freebie. Interested players are running out of time to do so, so they should make sure to get Alchemy Garden for their digital library as soon as possible.
Garden of Alchemy doesn’t have many professional reviews, but Steam users who have played the game have voiced their opinions. Alchemy Garden has received 379 user reviews so far, falling firmly in the “mostly positive” review range. With that in mind, even PC gamers who don’t consider themselves fans of The Sims might still want to take a look.
Looking at Steam user reviews of Alchemy Gardens, it appears that many gamers are praising it for being relaxing and “comfortable,” although some users dismiss it as lackluster compared to similar titles. Finally, with Garden of Alchemy free for a limited time, fans of the life sim genre can decide for themselves if they have anything to lose by signing up for the Fanatical newsletter, picking up the game.
Those who are still hungry for more Stardew Valley-like games are in luck, because there are plenty of them available. Two recent titles include the Stardew Valley Stone Age-like Roots of Pacha and the 8-player co-op Sun Haven, but there are plenty of others for fans to try out, not to mention the upcoming Stardew Valley 1.6 update Looking forward as well.