At first glance, Echoes of the Plum Grove looks like a cozy farming sim. But spend a little more time in Honeywood, and you’ll quickly discover that this isn’t your typical slice-of-life adventure. Survival, generational storytelling, and even a little chaos all play a part in shaping your legacy.
Behind this quirky mix of wholesome charm and dark humor is Unwound Games, a husband-and-wife duo who’ve put a fresh spin on the farming sim genre, creating a world that feels warm and inviting while still full of surprises.
In our interview with Unwound Games, we talk about the origins of Echoes of the Plum Grove, the balance between cozy and survival mechanics, and what it’s like to build such a unique world as a small indie team.
But before we dive into the interview, let’s take a closer look at their game.
Echoes of the Plum Grove – Cozy Farming With a Dark Twist
If you’ve ever dreamed of starting fresh in a cozy small town, Echoes of the Plum Grove lets you do just that, though it might not always be the peaceful life you envision. You begin as a shipwreck survivor washed ashore in Honeywood with only a small piece of land and the hope of building a new life. From planting crops and cooking hearty meals to crafting, fishing, and foraging, the daily routine feels familiar if you enjoy farming sims.
But, unlike other games in the genre, Echoes of the Plum Grove doesn’t just have you building a farm but creating a legacy that spans generations. When your character passes away, you’ll continue the story as their children, inheriting knowledge, skills, and the bonds you’ve built. The generational aspect makes Honeywood feel alive in a way most farming games don’t. Your neighbors have their own jobs, schedules, and quirks, and your relationships with them can influence the future of the town.
Images: Unwound Games
You can befriend them, marry them, or start a family together, but you also have the option to take a darker path if someone gets on your nerves. No one is stopping you from giving out “death cakes” to irritating villagers or spouses who’ve grown too old. It’s chaotic, dramatic, and wildly entertaining. The art style is unique and charming, but don’t let that fool you. Survival is crucial, and winters are harsh. You’ll need to plan ahead, stockpile food, and ensure your family is ready for the cold months, or risk ending your entire lineage abruptly.
If survival mechanics aren’t your thing, you can adjust the settings to turn off disease or slow down aging, making the experience as relaxing or challenging as you want. The game gives you the freedom to craft your own story. You can dive into building the most beautiful farm, focus on raising a lively family, uncover the island’s mysteries, or stir up drama with the townsfolk just for fun. Add seasonal festivals, quirky NPCs, and the charm of a handcrafted world, and you have a farming sim that feels both cozy and wonderfully unpredictable.
Interview with Unwound Games
Echoes of the Plum Grove began as an idea during a hike. Can you walk us through how that initial spark of inspiration turned into a fully realized game?
We both agreed that going indie was something we wanted to attempt before we got too old and had more responsibilities. So, we started talking about things we both wanted to see in a game. I wanted to make a farming game based on Stardew Valley, as I had always wanted to branch into cozy games, and Erik agreed.
The only thing I wanted to add was making the game have higher stakes, which included feeding yourself and getting a disease. With death as a consequence, Erik surmised we needed aging as well to retain a working village. With those main mechanics of focus in mind, Echoes of the Plum Grove started to take shape.
The game features both cozy and survival mechanics. How did you balance these two tones without letting one overshadow the other?
Sarah: Very carefully. I also believe the style helped with keeping the game more light-hearted, like Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door, which was our primary style reference. That game has a lot of dark undertones to it, especially in the writing, but still comes off carefree because they’re all paper people. If we had gone with a realistic look, the cozy elements wouldn’t have been as apparent, and it would’ve felt much darker.
The art style of Echoes of the Plum Grove is really unique. It feels warm and inviting but also has a quirky touch that hints at the island’s mystery. What inspired that look and feel?
Sarah: 100% Paper Mario 64 and Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door. When I was a kid, I primarily played these games on the N64 and GameCube. I loved them both and played them more than once. For our game, I knew from the very beginning I had no intention of hiring help for any of the art; I wanted to do it all on my own.
Since I chose that path, I had to pick a style I could accomplish on my own, but more specifically, on time. I originally tried a League of Legends approach with a painted style and lots of detail. In the end, I found myself drawing a cabbage for over 2 hours. I knew I had to adjust and go simpler if we were to ever finish the game, so I pivoted very early on to the paper 2.5 style.
The dynastic gameplay is fascinating. When your character dies, you continue as their children. What made you decide to take the game in that direction?
We wanted the game to have a loop that never ended, and found that if you could live on as your children, it allowed you and the village to never have the same game twice. It also made sense to add it in because we already had diseases and hunger as mechanics in the game. Without death, there would have been little point in adding these otherwise.
We also wanted to try to stand out a bit from others in the cozy genre, and wanted to combine elements from other games, such as Oregon Trail and Rimworld. It paid off, as many people found it refreshing to have these mechanics added in. We do love adding in options, though, and still made sure people had the choice to play as cozy as they wanted to by turning off certain mechanics in the settings.
Villagers can get married, have children, and even pass away. How do you hope this affects the way players emotionally connect with the town of Honeywood?
We hoped that since every player’s gameplay is different and random, they would get to invent and theorize their own stories. I believe that because villagers live their own lives and can pass away, either young or old, that time is precious, making those emotional connections stronger with the player. We’ve noticed players either get very connected with the village or take a less-attached approach and focus on themselves. There’s honestly no right way to play; everyone gets to play however they wish.
Which feature are you most proud of, or do you think players will be most surprised or excited to discover?
Sarah: My favorite addition was adding the witch coven event. We even travelled to Salem, Massachusetts, to learn about witchcraft from Wiccans and other spiritual people there. The town’s long connection to witches was very helpful in developing the event, and I tied as many mythologies to it as possible. One being that witches originally were thought to ride goats rather than broomsticks.
I made sure to add that along with the cutscene dialog that I learned from a ceremony. Artistically, it was also my favorite as I got to light the night with moonlight, which I hadn’t been able to do with the rest of the game, the way we originally set it up. Also, the idea that you can curse someone, I assumed, would excite a lot of people.
Erik: The villager scheduler – it took and continues to take the most time to implement and maintain, but is the heart of our procedural society. When players notice and admire parents walking their children to school, getting some clothes tailored together, or having a social visit, I know my time working on it was worth it.
If you had to live in Honeywood yourselves, what role or job would each of you take on?
Sarah: In terms of the profession, including income, work hours, and family benefits, I’d choose being a doctor. But my favorite place I made to work would definitely be the beekeeper. I loved designing both the interior and exterior of the home and added as many little bee details as possible. The bees I made are aesthetically pleasing, as they can never harm you and are there for ambience. It just always seemed like the best place to live in Honeywood.
Erik: I think I’d love to be a baker or innkeeper. Making delicious bread or meals that feed the village and make them happy seems like an all-around fulfilling time. I might change my mind if I have to do it every day, though.
You’re a small husband-and-wife team working closely with different freelancers. How does this dynamic influence your creative process?
Sarah: We made sure to hire for parts of the game we have little experience in or have no talent for. All the programming was done entirely by my husband, Erik, and likewise with me, and all the art. As a result, we didn’t have much overlap with freelancers during our personal creative process.
I found managing our very gifted freelancers easy, as each of them had passion, good work ethics, and was easy to work with. I also found they needed very little guidance, and I let them creatively get into the work and make it their own. I found letting them have the freedom to create without much managing improved the game immensely.
Erik: Neither of us was a game designer professionally, so we split up features by whether they were more technical or artistic, and we worked together when we made harder decisions. Usually, this worked out well, though the fishing minigame stressed us out the most since it was a harsh combination of the two.
What are your favorite cozy games?
Sarah: Because making games takes up so much of my time, I tend to step away from the computer and go for a hike, garden, or tend to our home. Though if it’s late at night, I sometimes do play. At the moment, my favorite cozy game is Out and About by Yaldi Games. Sometimes Erik and I play with friends, and recently we’ve been playing Peak (though it’s not an entirely cozy game).
Erik: Cozy as a genre has shifted for me over the making of our game, and I think in the industry in general, but I’ve found the best relaxation in mystery games recently, where you can take your time. I loved Return of the Obra Dinn, the Golden Idol series, and The Roottrees are Dead.
Which cheat code would you like to have in real life?
More time.
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