Building a wholesome gaming community, one plowed field at a time in Farming Simulator 25

It's 2 AM, and I'm watching a farmer plow a field. The farmer's name is Scroft, and he's been through many highs and lows since the height of the COVID pandemic, but I've been rooting for him the whole time.

While he's plowing the field, he gets a call from a friend, Beanie, which causes him to slightly mess up the field's alignment. (Don't worry—he quickly fixes it.) Beanie hops into the tractor, and they discuss the happenings in their local community, what their neighbors are up to, and their plans for the future. The overall effect is altogether heartwarming. It makes you feel like you're a part of that community, too.

In a way, I am part of that community. As one of Scroft's 40,000 YouTube subscribers, I've witnessed his struggles and triumphs, the sweat of his virtual brow, over the course of more than 200 episodes in a five-year span.

But Scroft's farm is not a physical place. It’s a custom UK-themed map in the video game Farming Simulator 25. Scroft belongs to the niche (but growing) roleplay genre of Farming Simulator videos, where YouTubers painstakingly create the illusion of a real farm populated by actual personalities.

Scroft's videos are part of the greater (and bafflingly wholesome) Farming Simulator community, which brings players together in a variety of ways, from challenge videos to mod reviews. To celebrate the upcoming launch of Farming Simulator 25's next major DLC, we talked to some of these community members as well as developer GIANTS Software to determine how exactly this enthusiastic scene first developed around the series, which continues to grow in popularity with every installment.

"The Farming Simulator community has grown both in size and diversity over the years," says Martin Rabl, Head of Marketing at GIANTS Software. "Fans have become more engaged and vocal about their expectations, which has helped us shape the series in meaningful ways. The large fanbase naturally helped us in discussions with additional brands and grew the whole development team alike."

Simulation games are perhaps the most misunderstood genre within the great firmament of gaming. Methodically plowing a field with a painstakingly accurate John Deere tractor in your spare time might not be your idea of fun (at least at first) but regardless of how you feel about them, the simulation genre's reputation as byzantine and inaccessible couldn't be further from the truth.

I learned this firsthand when I tried out Farming Simulator 22 a few years ago, along with another popular breakout sim, American Truck Simulator. I expected an exacting experience with a steep learning curve, but quickly found that learning the ropes was as simple as playing through the short in-game tutorial and watching a few introductory YouTube videos. Before I knew it, I had plowed a large field, sown it with barley, and sold it a tidy profit. The sim's hooks were deep in me, and soon I was researching how to set up more advanced crops like corn and grasp the basics of animal husbandry.

In retrospect, it's no surprise that I enjoy Farming Simulator, as I've been a fan of supposedly more "casual" farming games like Harvest Moon and Stardew Valley since I was a kid, often mapping my perfect rows and planning my crop alignments until the wee hours of the morning in Harvest Moon 64. Like Stardew Valley and other simulation games, Farming Simulator has the uncanny ability to appeal to those who don't spend a lot of their time playing traditional video games—and that's a large part of the series' draw.

Scroft's videos feature a cast of recurring and convincingly voice-acted characters like Beanie and George. When they're not accompanying him, he whistles to himself, listens to the radio, and soliloquizes over the state of his and his neighbors' farms. The effect is pleasant and often hypnotic—it's the sort of feel-good content that you could easily put on in the background while you do mindless chores, and I often do.

"My channel is all about entertaining and connecting with like-minded players who love Farming Simulator or just want a relaxing gaming experience," Scroft (who requested we not use his real name) says. "For me, Farming Simulator is like therapy. It’s not competitive or stressful. You can put your feet up, have a brew, and enjoy the game."

"My approach to content is simple: do what I love and let that passion shine through," Scroft continued. "It’s not about chasing numbers—it’s about building a community. I focus on creativity, especially in my roleplay series, which lets me tell stories and connect with viewers on a deeper level. It’s amazing knowing that people look forward to my episodes and make them part of their week."

Scroft's channel began during the COVID-19 pandemic, when he was furloughed from his job and had a bit of free time on his hands. Already a hardcore Farming Simulator player who first cut his teeth on the series with Farming Simulator 17, he saw the growth of the roleplay side of the video-making scene and decided to try his hand at it.

"I’d been watching creators like Daggerwin and MrSealyP and thought, 'I could give this a try,'" he explains. "At first, I was nervous and unsure, but I learned as I went along. I’ve always been into tech, so teaching myself video editing and improving my setup was something I enjoyed."

The release of Farming Simulator 25 last year brought a whole new set of eyes to the series, as well as its presence on YouTube. I personally found it to be a major step forward, especially its new GPS and improved AI helper behavior—thanks to the latter, I can still get some work done while holding my infant daughter in both hands. Scroft and other creators are quick to praise this latest entry, especially the improved visuals, and they're excited to see how GIANTS will continue to improve the game through DLC.

"Farming Simulator 25 is a standout for me," Scroft says. "Visually, it’s a huge leap forward. It’s like going from blurry vision to wearing glasses, you suddenly see everything in crisp detail. The seasons look incredible, and the ground deformation adds a lot to immersion. The sound design and little details, like driving over gravel or watching the trailer bounce on uneven ground, really bring the game to life. For console players, features like GPS and improved AI workers are game-changers. While the core gameplay hasn’t changed dramatically from Farming Simulator 22, the feel of the game and the environment is a huge step forward."

Fellow YouTuber Robert Sythe agrees with Scroft's assessment. Focusing on realistic roleplay videos and mechanical explorations of the series with a comedic twist, Sythe was a real-life farmer who spent his spare hours caring for his five horses. Watching the process of getting hay bales for his horses piqued Sythe's curiosity, which caused him to look more into the specifics of farming and eventually led him to Farming Simulator 19. However, he also acknowledges that there are some features that he's hoping to see in the game's upcoming DLC.

"Farming Simulator 25 is a huge step forward for the game's realism—the additions of ground deformation and the more realistic animals really add to the game immersion," he says. "That being said, there are a few things that I would like to see return in Farming Simulator 25. Precision Farming was a huge DLC that transformed Farming Simulator 22 and I would love to see that return in this game."

(Precision Farming is a beloved DLC for Farming Simulator 22 that added complex new gameplay mechanics to the game, including four different soil types, soil sampling, and an environmental score for your farm.)

Sythe freely admits that the idea of a farming simulator might sound like an acquired taste to some, and that he found the premise downright boring. However, once he played the game for himself, he quickly changed his tune. He points to the game's spiralling complexity as one of its major assets.

"I think that before I started getting into farming I would have thought of a simulator for farming as quite a boring concept, but there is so much more to the game than just planting/seeding and harvesting," he says. "With the introduction of productions, animals, construction projects, forestry work—the list goes on—there are so many different things to keep you entertained and so many different ways of completing each thing that you could spend many hundreds of hours playing without doing the same thing twice."

GIANTS’ Rabl notes that Farming Simulator 25's positive reception has been encouraging for the studio.

"The reception to Farming Simulator 25 has been particularly exciting, with players praising its innovative features like GPS steering assistance, all the graphical progress and the improved immersion, as well as rice farming and the first Asian-inspired map," he says. "Newcomers enjoyed the various possibilities for getting help—from the newly-added NPCs, via the in-game tutorials, and from our Academy on our website."

Like the game itself, the relaxed pace and low-key nature of most Farming Simulator videos stand in firm contrast with most viral gaming content out there. Farming Simulator 25 doesn't hit you over the head with intense boss fights or head-to-head challenges with your friends (though challenges of a sort certainly exist). True to the simulator mold, Farming Simulator 25 is a wide-open experience that encourages you to find your own fun—whether that's through paying your farm off through hours of careful planning and hard work, plotting your ideal crop rotation over the course of a year, or simply picking up a few odd jobs to do while you relax to your favorite podcast or jazz album.

When I'm plowing a field in Farming Simulator 25 or making a late-night delivery in American Truck Simulator, I'm reminded of the subtle feeling of satisfaction I get when I finish a mundane household task, such as doing the dishes or mopping the floor. It's a version of the classic video game dopamine hit that isn't quite as arresting as your sweatiest Delta Force sessions, but it's no less compelling in the long run.

"The open-ended, creative gameplay of Farming Simulator lends itself perfectly to streaming and content creation," says Rabl. "The ability to customize farms, experiment with mods, and enjoy cooperative gameplay makes it engaging for creators and their audiences."

"We actively support content creators through our own partner program, various levels of information sharing and early access to new features, and events like our own FarmCon," Rabl continues. "Community work was and is always at the top of our agenda, and while the channel focus changed from forums to social platforms, we remain open to all communities and content creators. Their enthusiasm helps spread the joy of farming simulation to a broader audience."

While you have the freedom to chill out in Farming Simulator, some content creators nevertheless prefer to approach the game in a more competitive way.

One such creator is Farmer Cop, a YouTuber with over 170,000 subscribers who posts a variety of Farming Simulator 25 challenges, often starting a new farm from nothing and limiting himself to only certain tactics or tools. His videos have a MacGyver-esque feel beneath the laid-back farming, as he tries his best to navigate his way out of crushing debt or earn money via unusual tactics.

True to his handle, Farmer Cop (who requested we not use his real name) is indeed a real-life police officer who first got into the series as a kid with Farming Simulator 2011. While some children would've been confused to receive a complex farming simulation game rather than the latest and greatest Mario or the like, Farmer Cop quickly took to the field, falling in love with its detailed world and especially its business sim elements.

"My favorite style of gameplay is a start-from-scratch sort of gameplay," Farmer Cop explains. "I love the business management aspect of Farming Simulator, so if I can start with essentially nothing and slowly build up a successful farm from that—I love doing that and love the challenge of it. I change it up by adding different goals, challenges, or even restrictions to the game to make it more challenging.  For example, maybe I play on a map that has no predefined fields so there isn’t any contract work to be done. This forces me to make money outside of just earning my first few thousand dollars from contracts."

Farmer Cop's challenge videos make for lively viewing, but he's also quite well-known for his in-depth tutorial videos—in fact, I first discovered his channel while trying to figure out the most profitable crop in the game. His channel features a frankly impressive variety of guides for almost every imaginable aspect of Farming Simulator 25, from rock breaking to starting your own cement factory.

"Everyone plays the game a little differently and I think my main viewership comes from people watching my guides," Farmer Cop says. "I simply have created a recipe of making helpful videos in a succinct fashion to get the information across as quickly and effectively as possible. People are busy, and I respect their time. I want them to know that if they watch my video it will be as short as it possibly could be for the topic while still conveying all the important information."

Getting started in Farming Simulator 25 is easier than ever before, but these tutorials definitely help new players find their way through the intermediate and advanced stages of the game, especially in the ever-popular mod scene where things tend to be less-explained.

Mods are a massive aspect of the Farming Simulator experience, and something that many players regard as absolutely essential to fully enjoying your time with the game. For their part, GIANTS Software has encouraged the development of the modding scene from early in the series' lifespan, officially distributing mods through their ModHub, offering safe and secure downloads, and even using their QA team to review for major bugs.

Even by the mod-friendly standards of modern-day gaming, GIANTS offers an unusually in-depth level of support to the fan-developers who toil to create these custom experiences, offering detailed tutorials and the GIANTS Editor, which is the same tool that the internal developers use to create Farming Simulator assets themselves.

"Modders are the backbone of the game," Scroft says. "They take an already great foundation and elevate it with their creativity and hard work. I showcase mods on my channel regularly and have built strong relationships with modders like [Calmsden Farm developer] oxygendavid. It’s important to respect their work and support them however we can. I’d love to see a system where players could donate to modders if they wanted to—it’d be a great way to show appreciation for the hundreds of hours they put into their creations."

"We see modders as an integral part of the Farming Simulator ecosystem and initiated the whole system right from the start," Rabl says. "Our modding community extends the life and creativity of the game by introducing new equipment, maps, and even gameplay, and many developers on our team started as modders and trained their programming skills before they entered our company."

Rabl points out that they even collaborated with certain modders for some of Farming Simulator 22's DLC.

"We’re proud to be one of the few games that support mods even on consoles, ensuring accessibility for all players," Rabl continues.

While modders once had to scramble to add real-life brands to every Farming Simulator entry, the game's rising popularity has changed that.

"When we started, we had to introduce video games and explain the digital experience to possible agricultural manufacturers, an overall long and difficult process to get them onboard. Nowadays, it’s the complete opposite—manufacturers are waiting in line to become partners and get their vehicles and tools featured in the game," says Rabl.

"I remember when we announced John Deere for Farming Simulator 19—players were very enthusiastic, as they could officially get their hands on machines from the world’s largest agricultural manufacturer. Today, all big names in agriculture are on board already."

Rabl says that today GIANTS has active relationships with real-world manufacturers to make sure that they get every detail right, even sharing technical schematics for the closest accuracy possible. In order to further those relationships and celebrate the game, GIANTS hosted the first FarmCon in 2016, and the event has grown over time into a major annual event for the series.

FarmCon 24 brought 3,500 enthusiastic simulator fans (including Scroft and Farmer Cop) to Fendt Forum, the home of one of the largest agricultural machinery manufacturers in the world. FarmCon 25 is set for July in Austria, and it's sure to bring thousands there, too.

FarmCon includes developer talks from the team at GIANTS Software, as well content creator meetups and opportunities to test-drive real-life agricultural products. Historically, the event has also included competitive Farming Simulator challenges, where teams compete to see who can pile bales of hay faster and the like. FarmCon 25 will also include a guided factory tour of Lindner, one of the leading European agricultural manufacturers.

"[FarmCon] has grown into a major annual event that includes developer panels, gameplay showcases, and modding meetups, happening at the premises of agricultural brands," Rabl says. "FarmCon is also where we connect with fans on a personal level and share our vision for the series’ future. The enthusiasm and feedback we receive at FarmCon continue to inspire and guide us as developers."

The release of Farming Simulator 25 was an unqualified success for both the developers and series fans, and Rabl says there's plenty of new content coming in the form of DLC. The first pack of the Year 1 Season Pass for Farming Simulator 25 will introduce an incredibly advanced new agricultural machine to the series in the form of the NEXAT system, an "all-in-one" machine that will revolutionize how players cultivate fields in-game. The acronym stands for "Next Generation Agriculture Technology," and its strong carrier vehicle can handle tilling, planting, and spraying all in one pass, which is a veritable game-changer.

"The wide-span carrier can cover various interchangeable modules to reduce the total number of required machines to make crop production simpler, faster, more efficient, and more sustainable," Rabl says. "Overall, the NEXAT Pack includes seven brands and 12 machines. In addition to NEXAT and its state-of-the-art carrier system, Einböck, Geringhoff, and Väderstad are also represented, while DAMMANN, Evers Agro, and Wienhoff join the Farming Simulator series for the first time.

"One of the most exciting aspects is the huge size of the carrier vehicle with its wheelbase width of 14 meters. The fully flexible tires are adjustable to cater to different driving directions and the cabin adjusts accordingly to provide the best view. While handling this enormous vehicle can be challenging, the developers added an option to auto-drive for attaching the various implements."

The video makers we spoke to are definitely looking forward to this DLC, but at the end of the day, it's all about the community itself. Each of them has nothing but positive things to say about the hardcore players that surround Farming Simulator, and they liken its fanbase to a strange sort of family—one united only by a passion for plowing and silage.

"The Farming Simulator community is second to none," Farmer Cop says. "I get along with almost every creator and community member I have met. I recently returned from the United Kingdom after I organized a community meetup there with a bunch of other content creators and the event was a huge success. The other content creators that I have gotten to know through Farming Simulator are now some of my closest friends and they feel like a second family. When we see each other and can get together even though we live all across the world, we love it so much and it seems like we never have enough time to hang out with each other."

"It’s like a family," Scroft agrees. "Modders, creators, and players all support each other, and events like FarmCon show just how close-knit it is. Everyone works together to make the game better, whether you’re a player, modder, or content creator. It’s a unique community that I’m proud to be part of."

While some video game players may never understand the deeply satisfying rhythms of manually sowing a field in perfect rows, there's nothing wrong with that. For those who are in the know, the Farming Simulator series will only continue to grow in realism and player-count. In today's fast-paced, unpredictable world, there's something to be said for a game that encourages the methodical and the meditative, and that gives you the freedom to plow your own path. That's exactly what Farming Simulator is all about, and that's why it'll continue to reach towards the sun, one corn stalk at a time.

Farming Simulator 25 is available on Epic Games Store. The NEXAT Pack (the first content of the Year 1 Season Pass) releases on March 11. Pre-purchases of the NEXAT Pack are available now.