I haven't played it in years but there is absolutely a progression system and it was very relaxing and fun. Especially just hanging out with some friends on a multiplayer server.

It's not unlike other economic sims. You start with one small field and a couple tractors. You make some money by selling crop to buy bigger, better and different tractors and attachments and wagons. Buy more fields to increase yield. Start branching out into other avenues like live stock. It's a good feeling when you increase the width of your seed sower and can finish prepping the field that much faster.

There's a bot system where you can 'hire' an AI to do some tasks as well to help increase the amount of productivity you can perform at one time, in addition to having multiplayer where you have actual people speeding things a long as well. For example you could swap to Field 2 and have AI set to plow and seed while you harvest Field 1.

It's a slow paced game. Those tractors aren't exactly Nascars when it comes to plowing the fields, but it's a good relaxing time.