Sakuna: of Rice and Ruin is such a massive hit in Japan that its publisher Marvelous had its stock halted because its price rose too high in too quick a time. Compared to titles like Act Raiser, Sakuna alternates between phases of side-scrolling action, and simulation, where you are planting and growing rice which impacts how strong your abilities in other facets are.
Developed by a two-man team called Edelweiss, the title is apparently so detailed that the recommendation for people looking for help is to use the government agriculture website FAQ as a strategy guide, which is pretty cool. It's just strange to think that a game about growing rice has a company's stock temporarily halted. I guess it grew as fast as rice, eh?
Sakuna: Of Rice and Ruin is trending on JP twitter atm, super cool to see this 2-man doujin game blowing up
— GSK | https://secure.actblue.com/donate/ab_mn (@gosokkyu) November 12, 2020
apparently people are marveling at the attention to detail of the farming systems, it's "use the FAQ on the government agriculture website as a strategy guide"-level deep
The game has players taking the role of Sakuna, a spoiled harvest goddess who is banished from her "opulent celestial home to an island overrun by demons." As the daughter of a warrior god and a harvest goddess, players must fight monsters and cultivate rice in this side-scrolling platformer and 3D simulator. The game has done pretty well for itself critically as well, with a 80 percent average on OpenCritic, with 83% of reviewers recommending the title.
The game is currently the #1 game on the Switch shop in Japan, overtaking games such as Animal Crossing and newer games such as Pikmin 3 DX, Hyrule Warriors, and Mometetsu. It's also the #1 game on Steam and Japan, with physical copies sold out everywhere.
Sakuna's the #1 game on the Japanese Switch eShop atm (overtaking evergreen games like Animal Crossing, new games like Pikmin 3 DX & soon-to-be-released Hyrule Warriors and Momotetsu) and is also the #1 Steam game in Japan, and the physical version's sold out all over the place
— GSK | https://secure.actblue.com/donate/ab_mn (@gosokkyu) November 16, 2020
If you would like to check out Sakuna: of Rice and Ruin, be sure to go on Steam or the Nintendo Switch eShop, where the game is currently available for $39.99.