Throw in a spoiler and a diseased flame decal at the leisurely pastoral work of most farm sims and you’ve got yourself a farming simulator league. This is an e-sport where country machinery comes to life, torpedoes haul hay bales across barns, and timers tick to the last few seconds. It’s not a smooth hunk of steel, but it’s capable of zipping through tight bridges, executing tightly-tuned powerslides, and executing the aforementioned elegant hay bale slam dunks. Top floor of their hut.
The latest season of the Farming Simulator League has teams reaping golden crops while piloting stubby vehicles with the kind of sophistication you’d expect to see at a Grand Prix. In agricultural esports, major brands such as Trelleborg, Corteva and Bednar have sponsored events or joined their own teams such as two-time defending champion Team Trelleborg.in the league Take off in Europe (opens in new tab), with live tournaments taking place across the continent, this season’s World Championships just ended on the weekend of November 19-20. And after a hard-fought five-match showdown with French team New Holland (previously known as The Fermiers Flamboyants), a team that threatened dominance in a string of six online tournaments leading up to the World Championship, Team Trelleborg eventually emerged as the season’s champion, taking home €20,000 in prize money.
This fuss might surprise even those familiar with Farming Simulator. Farming Simulator is known for its realistic but perhaps mundane pastoral tasks of growing crops, raising livestock, and harvesting trees. But in the Farming Simulator League, athletes compete in his groups of three to harvest wheat, compact bales, and deliver as much as possible in a tight 15-minute period. Aside from the mechanical challenges of operating these heavy machines, drive the harvester straight (opens in new tab) There is a bit of a learning curve. A sharp strategy is also required.
Like any hay-worthy esports, Farming Simulator League has a “pick and ban” phase. Team captains can choose which vehicles to use during the match. For those who rely heavily on their favorite combine harvester and baler, it throws a spanner into the job. Trelleborg, for example, will have to use his cumbersome JCB Fastrac 4220 in a showdown with New Holland because French teams have banned more efficient front-loaders his tractors such as the Massey Ferguson 7726.
Some perks can be selected before a match, others are scattered around the map and can turn the tide of the competition. Alternatively, you can switch his score multiplier to that of the other team. This turned the tide for New Holland in one of the tournaments this season, allowing the team to score more points for each bale delivered.
These wild cards make the farming simulator league an exhilarating experience. Especially when both teams are equally skilled. “He thinks a game that is decided by the second is a good game at the end,” says Hanno “Beatmaster” Meier, his one-fifth for Swedish team Trelleborg. Watching Trelleborg and New Holland deliver bales after bales in the previous tournament was like watching pirouettes executed to perfection. Their machines slid gusts of tire smoke, swerved toward the hut, threw the veil at exactly the right time, and then seamlessly returned to the field.
Both teams adopted similar tactics in the first round of this season’s sixth online tournament. We slowed each other down by raising a bridge that provided a direct route to each barn. The usually unflappable Team Trelleborg made a few mistakes as the score difference was only a few points until the final seconds of the round. However, Trelleborg quickly bounced back from their losses to take two more wins.
Describing the actions alone does not provide sufficient justification for the incident. See for yourself the thrilling match between the two teams.
Team Trelleborg athletes were looking forward to finally playing on a physical stage in front of an audience. This is the quintessential esports experience that has taken me in the backseat since the start of the pandemic. Last weekend was his second time at the World Championships with Team Trelleborg’s current line-up (those players from the previous line-up were Corteva Agriscience (opens in new tab) When John Deere (opens in new tab)).
The Farming Simulator League hasn’t achieved the popularity of other esports such as Dota, League of Legends, and Street Fighter, but its fans are very enthusiastic. started as a simple bale stacking competition. “First, the organizers of Agritechnica, the world’s largest agricultural trade fair, approached us and asked if we could create a booth that could offer something to the young audience there.” Giants, developer of farming simulators his software.
As the contest grew in popularity, Giants Software decided to tweak it to make it a more team-based event. “It was super niche [at first] Because at that time you could only play in Agritechnica. At that point, a lot of other players said, ‘I want to play a competitive style game,'” he says.
Highlights from last year’s FSL Season 3.
Farming simulators have tried to replicate the real-world labor and effort of farming as closely as possible, but it’s clear that the Farming Simulator League spectacle pretty much replicates real life farming. caber throw (opens in new tab) being a lumberjack.
After you harvest a field, real crops tend not to materialize quickly. You’ll have to wait a year or so to sow again and harvest again.However, the machines used in the competition are faithful to the real machines, and some teams lean towards one or the other depending on their strategy. “There are differences, for example, in the case of a combine, the type of capacity,” says Rabl. “Some balers are very popular because they can hold more bales than others, so you can collect more bales at the same time. There are several strategies for choosing them. ,sometimes there is also a drawback.It can be.More capacity but slower.But at least you should unload less frequently.Your strategy should revolve around that .”
Team Trelleborg often puts speed first. “At least in tournaments, I always watch the live feed and know what my opponent is doing. [at] that moment. We’re ready for what they’re doing… but sometimes this season, [about being] Jendrik “JayKay” Kluge of Team Trelleborg said:
Rather than advocate for a particular tactic (“We have a lot of strategies,” says Meier), he prefers to fine-tune his playstyle based on what the opposing team is doing. This is how Trelleborg beat the cutest competition this season. New Holland’s tactic was to have as high a score multiplier as possible, which is affected by the amount of grain that must first be harvested from the fields and then delivered to the silo. delivered the veil to the hut. This allowed him to win his first match against Trelleborg at the World Championships, but it was a strategy Trelleborg used in subsequent rounds that allowed the defending champions to once again take a commanding victory.
If you want to become a competitive farmer, just download the free Farming Simulator League Arena DLC (if you have a copy of Farming Simulator 19). Dedicated servers running DLC for a small fee (opens in new tab)If you want a teammate, perhaps Farming Simulator League Discord (opens in new tab)Practice sessions, known as scrims, give players the experience of competing against novices and experienced players alike.Rabl said this accessibility sets the league apart from other esports competitions. increase.
Well, and a tractor.
“When I watch FSL matches, I know I can’t do that,” says Rabl. “It looks easy, but it’s like driving in F1.”
Given the team’s track record, it’s no surprise that Trelleborg has been victorious this season. Still, the unexpected arrival of underdog New Holland ensured that the league’s upcoming season would be very exciting to watch, especially as in-person esports events gradually return. The World Championship is over and the next season of the Farming Simulator League is just months away, but it’s never too late to catch up on the Farming Simulator League frenzy. You can watch all the crazy action in Farming Simulator League Season 4 at: convulsions (opens in new tab)or just skip to Farming Simulator League season highlights youtube channel (opens in new tab).