I know some children who might think like that.

I don't know any men who think like that.

tOuCh GrAsS in a dumb video game argument on a forum, gj

I mean, they're entitled to that opinion. If you said an FPS was boring because it's just shooting people, I wouldn't be mad, they're entitled to that opinion too. Although I think you could make a pretty objective argument that a game like Call of Duty is at the very least more stimulating than a game like stardew valley.

How DARE you!

The original posts implies a large majority is doing a thing. The reply isn't saying "nobody is doing this" it's saying "it's not nearly as common as they are implying". In which case "I haven't seen it so it's not that common" is valid.

SDV is all autonomy and choice. You personally might not enjoy the choices you have available, but the game does not force you in any direction.

Choices you have:
What crops to purchase
How many to purchase
Where you plant them
Do you want to build a bunch of sprinklers
At what quality of sprinklers do you want to start using them
When to upgrade your tools
Do you want to go foraging Do you want to go fishing
Do you want to go increase friendship levels with villagers
Are you focusing on any specific villagers
Do you want to do this random quest
Community center or joja mart
Do you want to go to the mine today
Progress deeper into the mind or stay at levels you've explored for the resources they have
What farm buildings to purchase
When to purchase them
Sell this crop or use it as an ingredient
Which of the 20 perks do you want
What is your goal for this specific day
What is your goal for this specific season

Yes, it's a game that doesn't require a lot of focus but that doesn't mean it's mindless (it's not a clicker) or that it lacks autonomy. There's more autonomy in SDV than there is in say Expedition 33 where your choices are: Kill the paintress (not optional), your character build, and do you go to this side area now or come back later?

Stardew is pretty devoid of meaningful choice because it's devoid of meaningful challenge. Other games in the genre, like Harvest Moon 64 or Rune Factory 4 (no particular reason for those examples, they're just my favorites in the genre) are defined by taxing time limits, complicated schedules to remember, and so on. Rune Factory 4 even has very challenging dungeons which reward understanding the crafting system and the various skills.

The take i remember (just one i read on the internet) for animal crossing was that it was too close to home (ie real life) for the real poster. first thing that happens is you get saddled with a huge mortgage/ loan that you have to pay off by doing repetitive tasks, etc, thats its essentialy a participating in capitalism sim, which matches most people's real life. I think the conclusion was

'instead of playing the game and working off my in game debt, I felt like I should be finding a moderately enjoyable craft/hobby that I can monetize as a side hustle to pay off my IRL debt, like student loans. '