Farming Simulator 25 Review (PC): A Unique and Magical Experience With the Right Equipment

There's no need to go into detail and pedantically explain what a Farming Simulator experience is about. The gist is pretty straightforward, whether you're tackling it solo or in multiplayer mode.

Farming Sim 25's gameplay involves everything from agriculture to forestry work, tending to farm animals, and more. Not to mention economics, where you study market prices to see what's most profitable to grow and sell.

The graphics are nice, although they're not what you'd call "next-gen." The attention to detail is impressive, especially on heavy equipment with hundreds of moving parts. Ground deformation is another immersive element because it affects how you operate heavy machinery, especially during bad weather.

I mostly carry out contracts that involve fertilizing, hoeing, spraying, rock removal, stone picking, teddering grass, or wood transport (my favorite). I enjoy doing some of the work manually, while leaving other tasks to my trusty AI worker.

The AI gameplay system is nice and pretty self-explanatory. It works 95% of the time, with some weird refusals here and there. The AI worker can only do so much, so baling hay, for example, is yours to handle.

It Ain't Much, But It's Honest Work

Until I got my hands on FS 25, I had never played a sim game like this. That's why I didn't expect it to be such a fulfilling, calming, and wonderful experience. It's far from perfect, plagued by obtuse instructions, command inputs that sometimes don't work, and gameplay bugs that don't do it justice.

However, when everything works just right, and you're driving your tractor while blasting Country FM with songs like "Achy Breaky Heart," Farming Simulator 25 can truly be an enchanting and enrapturing experience.

I played it on PC using a dedicated wheel and control system that turned the immersion dial all the way up to 11. It was like nothing I'd experienced before. I played it daily for about two weeks, and each morning I got up, I felt the urge to hop in a tractor or farming machine and simply work the fields until the sun came down.

Some of my favorite vehicles are tractors, especially those with rear-wheel steering. Volvo trucks are awesome, too, because they're extremely responsive. Driving a good old-fashioned Mack truck feels fantastic because it has the unique ability to make me feel like Sylvester Stallone as Lincoln Hawk in 1987's "Over the Top."

I could go on and on about how every vehicle category feels. Still, from my experience, almost every single one is a joy to drive if you have a dedicated gaming wheel and control system.

Immersive Control Systems

I used the $400 Hori "Farming Vehicle Control System for Windows 11/10" with 76 buttons. The main drawback is that it doesn't have forced feedback, but it was no hindrance for me. I enjoyed the 900-degree wheel, the three-pedal unit, and even the control panel, although the latter has some quality issues.

The rubberized steering wheel feels great to handle. It's positioned at a 40-degree angle, perfect for driving tractors and trucks. It measures 13.4 inches or 34 cm in diameter, making the immersion even better because you don't feel like you're playing with a child's toy.

It has a great deal of functions, including turn signaling, high beams, etc. The downside is that you must manually assign some of the inputs because the game doesn't do a great job in this department. The attachable wheel spinner is a nice touch, too.

The twist-axis joystick feels great, but I found no real use for the throttle lever, even when I programmed various functions. It was simply unnecessary and took up more space. Also, the buttons on the console sound and feel cheap, although they function properly.

Thrustmaster also has a few gadgets for Farming Simulator, like the ~$279 Thrustmaster T128 SimTask Pack with force feedback and the separate $99 SimTask FarmStick, which takes up little space and has a cozy palm rest.

Using such gaming equipment can be a unique experience, but I don't recommend getting one unless you stack up at least a few hundred hours in FS 25. They're really fun, and the experience feels lifelike, but they don't come cheap.

Buy Now or Wait?

This game can last you for tens, hundreds, and even thousands of hours, so as a hobby, it's quite a good investment when you compare it to some $70 AAA games that end quickly and don't even offer anything remotely as special.

On the one hand, buying it at full price is great if you want to support the Giants Software team for their hard work. They did such an amazing job with Farming Simulator 25. On the other hand, I'd still advise waiting for a major update or two so they can work out the kinks.

However, if you can't wait, and I completely understand why, you can find it on PC for $50 and on new-gen consoles like PlayStation 5 (PS5 Pro included) and Xbox Series X|S for $60. If you own a last-gen console like PS4, Xbox One, or Xbox One X, you can find Farming Simulator 22 at 40 bucks.

Conclusion

While it took me over 10 hours to master the game's steep learning curve and obtuse instruction system, Farming Simulator 25 climbed into my top three games list of 2024 for good reasons.

When everything falls into place, and you achieve what you set out to do, whether it's fulfilling honest contracts or cultivating your own land, the hours simply melt away with that special "Sometimes, life is good" feeling. And I can't stress enough how the Country FM radio station emphasizes that.

I recommend Farming Sim 25 to every type of gamer, especially those like me who have never dabbled before and are searching for something completely unfamiliar and filled with new emotions.

Rating 90/100