I’ve played several Harvest Moon games. One of them always
blows me away. After finishing that game I often turn to a later title which is
always a disappointment
Harvest Moon 64 is a classic and probably one of the most
memorable games of the series. This old cartridge for the N64 is
full of secrets, simple charm, interesting characters, and replay value. You
are drawn into the rural simplicity of Flower Bud Village, the rustic charm of
the farm and Vineyard, and the magic of Moon Mountain. All around there are
opportunities to make friends, make money, find hidden events, and even start a
family. You can also get drunk at the tavern. You can get drunk in a game for
Nintendo. Let that sink in. all the while you grow attached to the game world
in a profound way.
I bought Harvest Moon decades ago, when I was still in
middle school. I’ve never sold it and
its one of the few N64 games I still own. I’ve played it within the last year
and it was a pleasure. There are still things in the game I haven’t seen after
nearly two decades. The writing might not be as deep as I remembered as a kid
but it still has compelling and moving moments.
Harvest Moon DS looks very similar to the N64 title. The
graphics are simpler but it has more content, more characters, more ways to make
money, and more story elements. But
compared to the masterful balance of game play and storytelling found in Harvest
Moon 64, the DS title is a confused mess, complete with a contrived and
unnecessary plot. You will spend most of your time trying to make money and
gather raw materials. The family building feature is locked until you rescue a
bunch of harvest sprites by completing meaningless, repetitive tasks. This will take you years in game and hours
upon hours in real time. As the days blur together you will lose any sense of
wonder or fun you might have felt when the game began. Indeed, almost everything
about the game is tedious.
Beyond the terrible game design there are more fundamental
problems with Harvest Moon DS. Several versions of the game are horribly
bugged. Many Harvest Moon games are famous for their glitches but DS is
particularly bad. Game files can become corrupted, and its impossible to obtain
many of the “special” wives such as the Harvest Goddess and the Witch Princess
in many versions. Though, even if you have one of the less bugged versions good
luck jumping through the endless hoops needed to get one of the special wives.
It’s amazing how Harvest Moon DS manages to suck the fun out
of what should be a great game. The developers lost sight of what made previous
Harvest Moon titles so great. You didn't have to perform a lot of endless tasks
to enjoy Harvest Moon 64. Those long term tasks that did exist were fewer and
took less time and effort. It’s nice to have a few high bars to top off an
otherwise great game, but making a wall of tasks to block off so many enjoyable
features is bad game design. Game play should draw the player in. It shouldn’t
be tedious, it should be fun.
In a way Harvest Moon DS does have a slight charm, but I
always got bored and frustrated before I accomplished anything story wise. That
was after playing for years in game. But the underlying charm is why Harvest
Moon has endured as a franchise. But these two games should serve as a guide to
the difference between a game with depth and a game that is overdeveloped.
No comments:
Post a Comment