There are those who twist the land of the "Farming Simulator" into an arcadian paradise, producing endless amounts of food each season like the dreaded Baron Monsanto. Others play the game every day as a way to get away from the monotony of their day jobs, tending to their cows and weeding their corn, cultivating patches of certain happiness.

I am not in either of those camps, but this is an important context in which to review the latest in the series, which bears the delightful Madden-esque title of Farming Simulator 22. At best, I am a filthy casualist. I own three fields and live in a small corner of the agricultural economy. My tiller is an inheritance from the Bronze Age, and my cultivation techniques grow nothing more than the hardiest of grains. And yet, in the midst of this quagmire, the Farming Simulator finally came to my mind. The joy of the struggle is all the greater.

Farming Simulator 22 is somehow the 11th game in this franchise. Unlike the abstract rural fantasies of Stardew Valley or My Time At Portia, Farming Simulator" has always targeted people who are genuinely fascinated by the modern technology used by small farmers around the world. When you begin the campaign in the simplest of settings, you are given a barn, a house, a handful of equipment, and three pastures. From there, it's up to you to decide what kind of farm you want to build. Soybean fields that stretch endlessly. Pastures chock-full of sugarcane. Flocks of sheep." Spread your empire all over the map.

Every day, your farmer wakes up at the crack of dawn and immediately sets about his list of chores. It could be weeding a rape field, harvesting wheat, or sowing cotton seeds. These tasks are done through cruel and grueling labor. They jump on the tractor and drag the tiller back and forth across the fields over and over, leaving piles of freshly aerated soil in their wake. Once that is done, he gets on the seeding machine and repeats the same process. During the day, it burns. As in other simulation games, the player is instructed to find euphoria in the heuristics of a life that is not his own. But that is also the genre's constant deterrent. Once you reach cruising altitude in Microsoft Flight Simulator, it becomes brutally clear that flying is long, tedious, and almost nondescript. Likewise, if you don't harbor some sort of envy for the glitz and glamour of the countryside, you will be left cold by the game.

I had only dabbled in "Farming Simulator" once or twice before taking on this review. The premise intrigued me, but the plastic graphics, methodical controls, and sheer endlessness of options kept me hesitant.

But as I stepped into the latest version, I slowly began to discover the sublime comfort that others have found in this world. Especially compared to the daydreams you and I play in IL-2 Sturmovik. I particularly recall the distant evenings when I sat on my tractor, cutting around my land, listening to podcasts on my phone. It was, oddly enough, one of the most immersive video game experiences I have ever had. If I grew wheat for a living, that's exactly how I would have operated.

The biggest addition to Farming Simulator 22 is the all-new seasonal system. Leaves fall in the fall, snow accumulates in the winter, and farmers must ensure that new crops are planted in the ground only when conditions are right. (Barley must be planted in the fall and can only be harvested the following summer.) This also affects the economy, with some goods selling at higher prices at certain times of the year. Giants Software has also added the ability to clear forest from the land and dig up stones in the fields, adding a faint "Animal Crossing"-like liveliness. I'm new to "Farming Simulator," so it's hard for me to see how these aspects deviate from its predecessor, but from a purely aesthetic standpoint, it's gratifying to see the idyllic little farmhouse shine under the cold weather.

This, of course, is my biggest complaint about Farming Simulator 22. Giants Software has stuck to every detail that might be relevant to a humble farmer, but from a pure gameplay standpoint, the basics remain thickly cloaked in unfinished chaff. Attaching a tractor to towable equipment is difficult. I often had to back into the fertilizer spreader from all angles before the hitch function was prompted. The physical logic sometimes went haywire. I was driving my truck down an idyllic highway, with the wind blowing in my face, when suddenly I tumbled into the woods. The waypoint system is muddy and inaccurate. At one point I had to hold down the Alt-Tab key to watch a video.

My point is that "Farming Simulator" still lacks a certain intuitiveness that could broaden the franchise's appeal considerably. The series has sold over 25 million copies in its lifetime, and this is no longer a rough-hewn indie game. However, there are a number of nagging problems, both in the interface and in the engine, that actively put off new users. If these shortcomings could be remedied, even slightly, "Farming Simulator" would be much easier to recommend.

That said, the "Farming Simulator" community often seems to enjoy playing pranks. The franchise became popular for its macabre, no-nonsense style and dogmatic approach to the source material. I sort of get it. While hauling grain to the mill, I passed some nondescript NPCs on the sidewalk. Amidst the throngs of military shooters and unbeatable open-world adventures, Farming Simulator certainly holds its own in a time-honored line of its own. I found it easy to fall under its magical spell, and I can only hope that others will fall under it more easily.