Players control a character who has become disenchanted with city life. After moving to a small farming community on a tropical island, they are given an overrun farm to work. Besides fixing up the farm and planting crops, players can explore a nearby mine, where they can find rare resources guarded by monsters; talk to and romance the non-player characters (ocean NPC relationships are not fully released); donate rare items to a local museum;[3] and clean up a toxic oil spill in the ocean, which is functionally similar to exploring the mine and includes ocean shops and NPCs. Players can also recycle trash to gain resources, such as scrap.[4] Planned release of ocean NPC relationships is May 20, 2024.
The developer, Stairway Games, is in Indonesia,[5] which inspired the setting.[3] Its 3D art style is influenced by Disney animation.[2]Coral Island had one of the most successful video game crowd-funding campaigns of 2021.[6] After it entered early access in October 2022, Humble Games released Coral Island for Windows, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X/S on November 14, 2023.[7] Shortly after its release, an imposter account on social media targeted fans with NFT scams. Coral Island does not feature any NFT content.[8]
Coral Island is often compared to Stardew Valley and has been called one of the best Stardew Valley clones by multiple gaming publications.[3][5][9][10]
Rock Paper Shotgun said the early access release was a little buggy in October 2022 but was overall mature. They recommended it to players looking for a game similar to Stardew that has quicker rewards and less grinding.[4]GamesRadar said that although the gameplay was similar to other farm sims, especially Stardew Valley, Coral Island implemented it well and added their own unique twists.[3] Reviewing the game in May 2023, TechRadar said they were "thoroughly excited" by its roadmap and said Coral Island proved to them that there was room for more farm sims.[5]
On release, Coral Island received positive reviews on Metacritic.[11]Siliconera said that, although not innovative, it builds upon its influences and add quality of life improvements. Although they called it essential for farm sim fans, they suggested that people hold off for bug fixes on the PlayStation 5 version.[12]TouchArcade said it "feels unfinished in parts" and may have left early access too soon. However, they said it has "a fantastic base to build on" and is a "joy to play" on the Steam Deck despite some technical issues.[13]GameSpot included it in a list of hidden gems released in 2023 and called it "a breath of fresh air" for the genre for its tropical setting, large and diverse cast, large map, and compelling story.[14] At the 2023 Steam Awards, Coral Island was nominated for the Sit Back And Relax award.[15]
