Although the name is different, this is a Harvest Moon game. Fans of the series know exactly what they’re getting into, while others may scratch their heads at this curious farming simulator from Japan. I love the series, although explaining why is always difficult. On paper, it sounds insanely boring. You have to do a variety of repetitive tasks over and over to grow your farm. But somewhere along the way, you find yourself falling into a rhythm, and before you know it, you’ve got a real farm on your hands. A field full of ripened vegetables! A barn full of animals that love you! And if you play your cards right, a suitor! But it doesn’t come quick…

You pretty much start with an old shack and a field. With some work, you’ll have your field hoed and ready to plant seeds. From there, it’s a grind. Wake up, water your vegetables and run around the land looking for stuff to sell or materials to build with. You can chop logs to gain lumber, hammer rocks to get stones and pick flowers, mushrooms and other things nature provides. And then it’s time to jump in the river to catch fish…with your bare hands! You will get a fishing pole, but swimming also nets iron and other materials used for building or selling. It’s kind of surprising how much time I spent swimming around in this game, I don’t remember doing that in the other ones. You’ll definitely develop a daily pattern as the game progresses. 

And as your farm grows, your pattern changes as you get more tasks to accomplish. Chickens must be tended to, cows must be brushed and milked, and don’t forget to brush and ride your horse as well. And if you get a sheep, add another chore to the list. Once your home chores are done, it’s off to scour the land for stuff to sell and the river as well. And everything you do takes off a little stamina, so oftentimes you’ll find yourself going to bed quite early. Just like a real farmer! Eventually, you can build a kitchen and cook meals to give you back stamina and extend your days.

But it’s not all farming, there’s the social aspect as well. There are plenty of townsfolk to talk to and befriend with gifts. And there are town events like livestock and produce contests, concerts, firework festivals and more. And of course, courting! No “Harvest Moon” game is complete without the ability to fall in love and get married! There is just enough stuff to do each month to break up the monotony of farming.

You can play a boy or a girl in this game and customize your character quite a bit. Even in the middle of the game, you can completely change your face, skin tone and hair. I ran around as a bald samurai girl for about half the game. You can also customize your farm as a well as areas of the town.

A new addition to the game is the ability to lease land and grow out-of-season vegetables on specific plots. Not only that, you can join contests against the other townsfolk to see who gets to grow on certain parcels of land. It’s a fun addition that lets you grow even more produce without chopping down all the trees on your farm.

One of the biggest differences in the game is how you sell stuff. The only way to unload goods is to deal with traders who come to your town on specific days. There’s the usual general store to buy stuff, but you can’t sell there. And as the game progresses you’ll get access to new traders who sell different things. This is good because you can get higher or lower prices on produce depending on who is buying. But the downside is, you can’t sell stuff everyday and your bag will definitely fill up fast between visits.

This series continues to evolve over the course of the near twenty years its been chugging along. Each game adds new tweaks—some for the better, some for the worse. And of the many different Harvest Moons I’ve played going back to the N64 one, I’d say this game has that old magic that will keep farmers coming back for more. There’s nothing truly revolutionary about it, but it doesn’t mess anything up either. Now, if I could just get that black-haired dandy in town to look my way. How much wool do I have to give this guy before he falls in love with me?!

by Urian Brown