Even when it works on a technical level, Stranded Sails does next to nothing to earn its widespread comparisons to the far superior Stardew Valley.

For those who yearn to vicariously live out their fantasies of being stranded on a desert island, Stranded Sails seemingly has it all. Crafting, farming, cooking, and high seas exploration are the name of the game here, and the adventure-meets-simulation action is wrapped up in a very charming audiovisual package. It has all the essential ingredients to provide something for every kind of player, but the overall experience has head its held underwater by half-baked mechanics and a plodding, hand-holding pace, the latter of which makes the whole thing feel like an extended tutorial. If that weren't enough to fully take the wind out of its sails, the game is also plagued by game-breaking bugs that are liable to destroy a save and force players to start their voyage afresh.

Presentation-wise, though, Stranded Sails is a joy to behold, with its art style resting comfortably between sharp detail and low-poly minimalism. Characters - whose roster includes a girl or boy protagonist, their ship captain father, and a cast of stranded crewmates - and the game's handful of island environments have the visual coziness of PS2-era polygons that have been prettied up with modern sensibilities and lighting. A reasonably measured day-night cycle bathes Stranded Sails's simple world in a variety of pleasant hues (with the rising and setting of the offscreen sun being particular standouts), while a well-produced soundscape works to accentuate areas and make some mundane actions like crop harvesting or sleep feel satisfying.

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Early on, these superficial elements define players' time with Stranded Sails, but they don't hide the regrettable realities of its gameplay for long. Leading up to release, the game was lauded as a pirate-themed reimagining of Stardew Valley, gaming's premier indie darling when it comes to relaxing farm simulation. While that charming classic has some of the most addictive gameplay hooks around, Stranded Sails sole meaningful focus is to progress through its slow story via a gauntlet of fetch quests and tutorial-like busywork. There is farming, fishing, and a few other survival activities to be done, but those activities are either optional or can be done at the barest minimum to keep the player going on their slog of a hero's journey. Role-players can live as simple island farmers or fishermen if they really want to, but, unlike in games like Stardew Valley, the game will sit dead in the water as a constant reminder that there's only one correct way to play.

Stranded Sails Camp

Although it's limiting and repetitive, Stranded Sails's core gameplay loop isn't horrible, but it isn't fun either. The story unfolds across four main islands that can be reached by rowboat, and scripted adventures will see players reunite their disparate crew, build a lifeless village to house them, and uncover the secrets of the cursed island chain that ground their seaborne to a halt. There are a variety of activities that need to be done to complete missions (trees need chopping, treasure needs digging up, ancient skeletons need... killing?) and waypoints are thankfully never thrown up onscreen to be followed, but it almost always boils to traveling to point A to collect an item before returning to camp or moving onto point B to wash, rinse, and repeat. Accompanying a sundial at the top of the HUD is a stamina meter that will prematurely kick players back to camp when emptied, but a meager amount of farming (no, not that kind) and cooking can ensure that the player character soldiers on like a tireless automaton.

That doesn't paint the prettiest of pictures, but unlucky players who stick with Stranded Sails long enough are in for far, far worse. Until things hit the fan, the game seems impressively polished and bug-free for an indie of moderate scope, with dynamic lighting, shadows, and pretty water effects never causing so much a drop in frame rate. However, as was the case for this review and in numerous self-reporting user reviews, there may come a point in Stranded Sails playthroughs where things get screwy beyond repair; the game may perpetually crash when loading a save, whole islands may disappear beneath players' feet and send them falling into infinite oblivion, and even the all-important rowboat may permanently vanish, making further progress impossible. Hitting some of these points of no return can spell the essential end of a save, and starting another to reach former progress can be a tall order after putting in potentially a dozen or more hours into an already boring game.

Stranded Sails Exploration

Bugs, even on the massive scale of Stranded Sails's, can be fixed post-launch, but no small patch or bug fix can reach far enough into the game's waterlogged soul to make this experience seaworthy. As it is, it's the sort of pretty, mindless experience that players can throw on a podcast to listen to while ticking off objective boxes and occasionally engaging in largely pointless side tasks, but it's no spiritual successor to Stardew Valley on any conceivable level. Had this reviewer even been able to see Stranded Sails's mildly engaging story through to its conclusion, it's doubtful that it could offer anything to make trudging through such shallow waters all over again worth it.

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Stranded Sails is available for PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch. Screen Rant was provided an Xbox One code for this review.