Farming Simulator fans are in for great fun this July. The FarmCon 21 will stream from July 21st to July 23rd on the official Twitch channel of GIANTS Software for free. Players and Farming Simulator enthusiasts will get to know more about the latest installment of the Farming Simulator franchise: Farming Simulator 22, due to release in the Fall of 2021. FarmCon will witness the behind-the-scenes action of Farming Simulator 22, the new and improved features of the game, like production chains, new crops, new maps, modding information and more.
What is FarmCon?
FarmCon is a two-day event conducted by GIANTS Software whereby players and Farming Simulator enthusiasts get to see the men and women behind Farming Simulator work and interact with each other.
Like the fans, the organizers are highly disappointed to conduct the FarmCon virtually for the second straight year. The organizers hope that the next FarmCon can be organized live, possibly in the Deutz-Fahr Arena, next year. Though these hopes were kept alive, the organizers opted against it due to the constantly changing rules of opening up and safety reasons.
Participants get to win prizes, listen to the men and women behind Farming Simulator 22, and post questions. The three days of FarmCon 21 are filled with information sessions about Farming Simulator 22 and exciting surprises for the participants. Participants can log in to special FarmCon channels in the official Discord server of GIANTS Software and chat with the members of GIANTS Software and ask the developers questions about the game. The entire event lasts five days: three days of FarmCon and two days of Farming Simulator League (FSL).
Though FarmCon is generally hosted in Germany, there have been people outside Germany who have attended FarmCon. For example, FarmCon 19 saw participants from Austria, the Czech Republic, the Netherlands, and a participant from Japan.
FarmCon 2016: The First-Ever FarmCon
The first FarmCon—FarmCon 2016—was hosted in Kernmühle, Bavaria, where Farming Simulator 2017 was introduced to the Farming Simulator community. The location of FarmCon 2016 was set to resemble an actual farm, filled with tractors and other machinery but with no cows. Nevertheless, fans were ecstatic about the FarmCon. FarmCon 2016 saw 250 participants, and the team of GIANTS Software took their time to answer as many questions as possible.
FarmCon started with a few insightful lectures about the gaming industry. The evening presentation was the most anticipated event of FarmCon 2016- the presentation about Farming Simulator 2017. The presentation introduced participants to a new feature that female players loved: the introduction of female farmers. Players of Farming Simulator 2017 could choose to play as a male or female farmer. A new map with North American flair containing some areas for forest operations was the big innovation at the FarmCon. Participants got to see the changes in the game’s settings. Players of Farming Simulator 2017 could adjust the lightings and shadow systems, a lifesaver for players with a weak system. Participants agree that the minor tweaks introduced in Farming Simulator 2017 and shown to them at the FarmCon would go a long way in making the game more dynamic.
The new light engine introduced in Farming Simulator 2017 added more graphical details to the game’s trees which would no longer be hexagonal.
FarmCon 2020: The First Virtual FarmCon
In 2020, FarmCon could not be conducted in a physical venue due to the pandemic. Therefore, they had to go digital. FarmCon 2020 was live-streamed on the official GIANTS Software Twitch channel from July 14th, 2020. FarmCon 2020 became FarmCon Digital. However, the events of FarmCon Digital were stellar: presentations, Q&As, raffles, and more.
The line-up of presentations was fantastic: Kenneth Burgess talked about the QA for non-linear games like Farming Simulator and an Introduction on ModHub, and Stefan Geiger dealt with the sound design for the next Farming Simulator game, i.e., Farming Simulator 22. Stefan Maurus discussed the Modifying XMLs as a part of the Modding for Beginners presentation, and Marius Hofmann dealt with LUA Scripting. The presentations lasted 30 minutes, and raffles with prizes were organized to keep participants excited.
The presentation on Sound Design for the next Farming Simulator game by Stefan Geiger presented an acoustic preview of the game and explained what was in store in the sound design department for Farming Simulator 22. The sound experts at GIANT Software have been eager to carry out an acoustic optimization, which plays a vital role in the overall gaming experience. This would extend from the sound design of the machines to the atmospheric sounds.
