Amazing, and thank you. I've noted all of this down and so far you and I have a lot of interests in common so this is working out very well. I won't comment on everything for the sake of spoiling things and creating a small novel, but I have some responses to this incredible insight.
Before I say anything, I love Stardew, and it's amazing that a solo dev made that game, but I'm going to learn from it's shortcomings and make sure each piece of this game is fulfilling as the base building aspect. One thing, especially, is the ability to base up ANYWHERE. I'm working on a "plots" system where there's a ton of building locations and you can claim them and expand by doing certain things. More base, plus you can choose a location that just fits YOU.
Speaking of Vanity/Decor, that's a HUGE piece of A Forest Tail. Customization and being unique is something I adore in games. I want to be different, as different as possible so no screenshot on the internet could ever be "me"
Having something to show for is huge for me, too. Goes back to Payday 2, having that mass of money just because feels fun. In games like A Forest Tail, you'll have your choice of Legendary and Mythic Monsters to tame with some HEAVY requirements. (Rarities go from Uncommon, Common, Rare, Epic, Legendary, to Mythic) and the classes of monsters goes all the way to Catastrophe Level :))
You'll also have your base to deck out with items, fish, cosmetics, furniture, etc. TONS of options in weapons since you'll be able to forge your own tools and weapons. So, you WILL have the ability to show your adventures up front to anyone who comes by. One more reason we're making this a game you can server host with up to 48 players.
Also Achievements and guidance for what things to do, very yes. We've talked about this endlessly in past games. It becomes really dry when you just don't have anything to really do. It's all done, and now you're just sort of existing looking for the next thing to do.
No stress, Players will be regularly updated with new side quests, the Adventurer's guild will have quests, the Fisherman's Guild will have quests, the NPC's will ALL have random quests, the over arching story will also be a massive undertaking, there's more but those are secrets to find in game.
As for changing the way the game plays, as I'm coding I'm doing everything in a way that SHOULD make it possible to have a built in randomizer. Every item, enemy, boss, fish, NPC, etc should be able to swap with other's of their type to make the game more interesting. Some things, such as Vampires in the Haunted Forest, probably won't leave that place due to logic reasons, but with this you can turn it on and potentially fish up a mythic sword while an endgame chest might house a boot. :)
I wish I had the dev skill to be like elden ring, but I'll be honest, those aren't people making games, they are beyond people at this point. Legends all of them. The created ideas I never even knew we could think of. Same for BG3, no matter what, it's like the devs knew you'd try it. I love it. THAT sort of thing I'm trying to do, but it's gonna take time.
Learning curves are the death of a good game. You're right about Terraria being a LOT to take in without prior knowledge and Stardew VERY gently guiding you into the next thing until you can really stand on your own. There's a balance here, and I'm hoping to strike at that. Not enough to overwhelm, but enough so that you're never left with less that a few things to do. In game fundementals class, we refer to it as "agency." Giving players CHOICE in a game rather than 1 object to do in order to progress. Breath of the wild has incredible Agency. You can take on the final boss RIGHT AWAY, you nut. A Forest Tail is open world as well, so, you can also do that here, but it's not gonna go well for ya.
Evoland sounds like a game I need to try. Just from the little search I did, just now, it looks wild. Looks like multiple games in one and I reallllly like that idea.
As for cozy farm game, perhaps A Forest Tail seems like that, but it's rated Mature and not for NSFW. It's got themes to it that deserve a Mature rating. It's super cute up front and it can stay that way, but if you go looking, just like anywhere else, you're going to find some dark places.
You don't have to, and you could play the entire game never knowing about that stuff, but you can also find out :))
Overall, again, thank you! I'm fully inspired and I'm more certain than I was before that this is a game that I'll enjoy with at least a few other people, not just myself. Though I really can't wait to play it at it's full capacity.
Right now I'm working on making a NavMesh to give NPCs and Enemies more LIFE, so when you go hiding, they roll to see where you might be rather than giving up or just always knowing where the player is. That and NPC schedules are going to require this for sure. I could avoid it and just let them freeze up when their path is blocked, but that's so lame. I CAN make it amazing, so why wouldn't I? Right?
Heh, weekend plans, set.
One of these days maybe I'll make a discord server for A Forest Tail.