Developer: Skyhook Games
Publisher: Curve Digital
Platform: PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox Series X|S, Switch
Tested on: Switch
Lawn Mowing Simulator (Switch) – Review
Ever since Lawn Mowing Simulator first graced our screens back in 2021, it established itself as one of the more unique sim games out there. Enthusiastic PC and Xbox gardeners soon found themselves cutting grass around dinosaur statues as new DLC arrived for the game. It didn’t take long for PlayStation gamers to scratch their landscaping itch either, as PS4 and PS5 ports of Lawn Mowing Simulator arrived in 2022. Switch owners were left out in the cold, but alongside spring comes the soothing hum of the Tornado 610B HW, and thus Lawn Mowing Simulator has arrived on Nintendo’s hybrid console. If you’ve been able to contain your excitement until now and have been holding out on picking up Lawn Mowing Simulator, you might want to know whether you were right to wait. Read on to find out.
Story
The closest thing to a story that Lawn Mowing Simulator has to offer comes in the game’s aptly-titled career mode. The general idea is that you’ve set up your very own landscaping company and that you’re offering your lawn-mowing services to the general public. Beyond that, there’s nothing of the narrative sort to be found here, but this is fine for as straightforward of a sim as this one is.
Graphics
One of the most enjoyable aspects of Lawn Mowing Simulator is the wide range of scenic gardens that you get to explore from the back of your mower. Unfortunately, the Switch port takes a significant hit here, especially compared to the PC or PS5 versions that we’ve reviewed previously: just take a look at this screenshot from our reviews of those and compare it to the similar one below. This is mostly because of the Switch’s lesser graphical processing power compared to its competitors, of course, but the lack of visual fidelity really hurts the appeal of the game. The obvious visual downgrade doesn’t necessarily have a positive effect on performance either. Lawn Mowing Simulator on the Switch also suffers from lengthy load times and is prone to frame drops and stuttering.
Sound
There isn’t anything particularly memorable about Lawn Mowing Simulator’s audio. This makes sense as you wouldn’t exactly expect a game like this to overwhelm you with epic music. Apart from the upbeat rock tunes that you can hear in the menus, most of the soundscape simply comprises ambient sound effects, like the noise made by your own equipment as well as the sounds of nature such as whistling birds and rustling leaves.
Gameplay
There are two versions of Lawn Mowing Simulator available on the Switch. If you opt for the so-called Landmark Edition, you’ll get both the Dino Safari DLC and the Ancient Britain DLC. We’re taking a look at the base game in our review, so we won’t be covering either DLC here. Just know that neither DLC is exclusive and that you can pick these up separately if you wish. The only benefit to the Landmark Edition is that it’s slightly cheaper than picking everything up separately. The Switch port of Lawn Mowing Simulator doesn’t bring any new content to the table either. This is the exact same game available elsewhere: it just trades visual fidelity for portability. The bulk of the game is in career mode, of course, but if you just feel like mowing any lawn, you can do so by taking on random contracts or entering free mowing mode. And if you’re looking for a hardcore lawn mowing experience, there are unlockable challenges as well.
By this point, it almost feels superfluous to explain Lawn Mowing Simulator’s gameplay, because the concept is so straightforward: you mow lawns, both from the back of a riding mower or by using a hand mower. To be more specific: as the owner/head employee of your bespoke lawn mowing company, you take on assignments to earn money, which can subsequently be spent on better lawn mowing equipment. Various real-life brands like Toro and STIGA have licensed virtual versions of their real-life mowers, so if you’re a die-hard lawnhead, there is a lot to love here. Different machines are more suited to various terrains, so having an expanding arsenal isn’t just satisfying to scroll through but it also means you’ll be more efficient in completing contracts. There is a business management aspect to the game’s career mode, but ultimately, you’ll be spending most of your time in the backyards of customers.
For the most part, Lawn Mowing Simulator offers a cathartic experience. There is something zen-like to spending an hour carefully tending to the lawn, although we’d suggest not getting too comfortable. The backyards that you’re assigned to may hold some challenges or obstacles, such as rocks or flowers, that you’ll need to avoid. Certain objects may damage your equipment, whereas accidentally cutting others down might just result in an unhappy client. Before you start mowing, you’re able to scour the garden for any objects, and you should do this, but there is a time limit for this as well. In career mode, you can skip this pre-check phase altogether, although you’ll forego your earnings if you opt for this. Terrain awareness and picking the right mower for the job is about the extent of the depth that Lawn Mowing Simulator has to offer, with the poor pacing issues and repetitiveness we’ve remarked in our original review still as present as ever. Lawn Mowing Simulator has always been a niche title for a niche audience, and said audience can now mow virtual lawns anywhere. There must be someone out there who can scratch “play Lawn Mowing Simulator from the back of an actual lawnmower” from their bucket list now. We do recommend waiting for a sale, because although the RRP of the game is the same on the Switch as elsewhere, the game goes on sale often on those other platforms.
Conclusion
If you really want to be able to play Lawn Mowing Simulator whenever and wherever, then picking up the Switch port is a logical move, but otherwise, the visual downgrades and lack of new content make this port feel inferior to previous releases. Lawn Mowing Simulator is one of the most straightforward titles out there: everything you can expect is right in the title, and aside from the time it takes to unlock everything, there’s nothing unexpected about the game’s mechanics. Just like a good lawnmower, the game does exactly what it needs to do. By this point, you should already know whether that is what you want from a game. If it is, you’ve probably picked up Lawn Mowing Simulator already, and if it isn’t, then you can rest in the knowledge that you’re not missing out on anything.
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