Wild Indigo Ranch is built on two great concepts: a chill, Stardew Valley-esque ranch simulator, and the core gameplay loop of survival sandbox games. The player arrives on the Western frontier to claim an inheritance from a mysteriously deceased uncle. It turns out that inheritance is Wild Indigo Ranch, a dilapidated shack on a patch of dirt surrounded by bandits, coyotes, and the shadowy Grit Corp.
This game has co-op for up to four players, and while I played it solo, I can see myself returning with my husband or a good friend in tow. Thankfully, this town is big enough for both of us. The beginning of the game will be very familiar to anyone who’s played a crafting game; I’ll be punching trees and picking up rocks to build basic tools, which will allow me to build a workbench and start fixing up the ranch. The graphics are super stylized, with an isometric angle. Each character looks like a little egg, and the animation for my rancher’s run cycle made me giggle constantly.
Unfortunately for me, I’m a city dweller who doesn’t know how to craft all the tools and supplies I need to survive in my new home, so I have to venture out and brave the hostile border to meet my neighbors and get their help. This game was originally titled Don’t die in the Westwhich is good advice, but easier said than done.
It takes me a while to master my slingshot skills, and eventually I have to build some firearms on the ranch. But it’s not all guts and gunfire in this game; after chatting with a few neighbors nearby, I’m given the ability to lasso animals and build structures like a modest chicken coop. By building garden boxes, I can plant my own crops, which I can then turn into meals. Wild Indigo Ranch has a similar food system as Valheimanother excellent survival crafter. I can eat up to three meals at once which give various bonuses, like increasing my health bar or giving extra damage against bandits. If I don’t eat I don’t get hungry; I’m just a weak little guy with a small health pool, easy game for robbers and rattlesnakes.
My neighbors give me quests, which I record in a journal. The game doesn’t mark quests for me; I have to remember the location of things in each subzone. This encourages exploration, and I enjoyed keeping a little journal of the people I met and what they needed. On the other hand, I found it frustrating when I needed something from a neighbor—a new recipe, for example—and they wandered off from their regular spot.
Wild Indigo Ranch Originally released in November 2023, it has been in early access since then. Today’s update marks the 1.0 release of the game. As someone who Star Dew to death but finds games like Project Zomboid to be a little too in-depth, this co-op experience seems to scratch a satisfying itch. It’s still plenty of fun solo, and I’m looking forward to executing the ambitious HGTV vision of a residential ranch I’ve been dreaming up in my head while clearing out bandit camps and investigating the mysterious Grit Corp.
Wild Indigo Ranch was released in early access on November 9, 2023, on Windows PC. The 1.0 version of the game was reviewed on PC using a pre-release download code provided by Funday Games. Vox Media has affiliate partnerships. These do not influence editorial content, though Vox Media may earn commissions for products purchased via affiliate links. You can find additional information about Polygon’s ethics policy here.