Eddie, the main character in 'Farmer' by Tom Larcombe, embarks on a journey as an average joe trying to make money in a virtual game world. The story follows Eddie's transition from RPG farming to actual farming, leading to unexpected adventures and changes in his life. The book combines elements of adventuring and crafting, providing a balance that keeps the story engaging without overwhelming the reader with technicalities. Despite some minor flaws, such as abrupt scenes and occasional slow pacing, the novel offers a refreshing take on the LitRPG genre by focusing on the love of gaming rather than high-stakes world-saving missions.

Characters:

Characters are generally relatable, particularly Eddie, though some lack depth and distinctiveness.

Writing/Prose:

The writing style transitions from engaging and edited prose to a more simplistic and overly explanatory tone as the story progresses.

Plot/Storyline:

The plot centers around Eddie, who enters a virtual farming job but discovers a deeper, more complex world of economics and community building.

Setting:

The setting features a virtual reality game world focused on farming and community development, with an unexplained broader context.

Pacing:

Pacing is mixed; it starts well but slows down significantly during detailed sections, leading to some reader frustration.

“That's what we're trying to fix. We've got everything covered, players should be able to go for a lot longer than that with our system. The problem was overloading of the brain. They didn't constantl...

Notes:

The series starts with a character named Eddie who unexpectedly transitions from real-world problems to virtual farming in a game.

Eddie's farming job involves actual land cultivation rather than typical RPG activities.

The book includes themes of economic strategy and town building, focusing on crafting and community development rather than just combat.

The writing quality is noted to be above average for the LitRPG genre, with good editing and minimal typos.

The main character is relatable and not overly powerful, appealing to casual gamers.

Sexual content is handled subtly, as it is only alluded to rather than explicitly described, making it more family-friendly than some other genres.

The story avoids common tropes like death games or evil corporations, focusing instead on the enjoyment of gaming itself.

There are critiques about the character's introspection and dialogue becoming overly simplistic and juvenile in later parts of the series.

Overall, the series emphasizes the mix of crafting, personal relationships, and gradual character development as its main draws.

Sensitive Topics/Content Warnings

There are mentions of darker themes such as violence and potential players being subjected to harm, which may not be suitable for all readers.

From The Publisher:

Eddie Hunter is about at the end of his rope, so when he stumbles across an ad looking for people to farm in Long Term Immersion in the game Light Online, he can't believe his luck. Once hired he enters the game as soon as he can. Unbeknownst to him, though, the person that hired him is also doing illicit research on the pods that he and the other farmers are using.

The research is rapidly discovered by the AIs that monitor the game and shut down, forcefully, by the company that runs Light Online. But the code that runs those pods has been altered, and until it's fixed Eddie and the others can't log out. Although the devs assure him that it won't take long to fix, Eddie's not so sure of that himself.

Eddie entered the game to make money in real life, and as he tries to do that he finds himself getting entangled deeper and deeper in the game and with the people he meets there. But when he discovers a side of the game that the previous players had apparently never even considered, he knows he has to find a way to stay in the game.

This story is approximately 120,000 words long and DRM free.

Ratings (6)

Incredible (3)
Liked It (2)
It Was OK (1)

Reader Stats (12):

Read It (6)
Want To Read (4)
Not Interested (2)

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Farmer

Tom Larcombe

Book 1 in the series:Light Online