QuickBlog: Harvest Moon: Friends of Mineral Town

7.0 [Great]

Gameplay: 7

Graphics: 6

Music: 6

Sound: 5

Value: 8

Publisher: Natsume

Developer: TOSE

Multiplayer: N/A

Console(s): Game Boy Advance

Reviewed on: Game Boy Advance

ESRB rating: E (Use of Alchohol)

BMR rating: E (Use of Alchohol)

Good Points:

Lots and lots to do - Adorable livestock - The in-game clock keeps the flow at a brisk pace - Making your own routines and schedules is fun - A boring concept becomes fun

Not So Good Points:

Graphics are a bit washed out and bland - Sound design is extremely simple - Can be confusing, especially at first

The Harvest Moon series holds a special place in my heart. I've played A Wonderful Life, Save the Homeland, Magical Melody, the original Harvest Moon, and of course Friends of Mineral Town, and enjoyed every one of them. Friends of Mineral Town isn't exactly my favorite of the bunch, but it still holds the catchy gameplay and likable charm that Harvest Moon games (usually) have. You play as a farmer just starting his farm, ready to go plow those fields, water those crops, and feed those chickens. The game starts out slow, and I found it hard to get into the swing of things as I floundered my through the days wasting my time. However, after a while, I got the hang of it, and enjoyed myself a lot. While the concecpt of being a farmer isn't exactly an exciting idea for a video game, Friends of Mineral town manages to make it addicting and fun. As all Harvest Moon games work, you go about your daily chores, talk to the locals (and later marry one of the girls if you so desire), shop in town, and tons of other stuff as the accelerated time of day moves from sun up to sun down. There's always plenty to do, with all kinds of goals to work for and items to unlock for your house. You can watch different TV shows that air on different days of the week, stop by the local inn and have a drink, work on growing many types of crops, upgrade your home, cook lots of different varieties of food, and way more on top of that. The graphics aren't much to look at, as they can be rather bland, and the music isn't anything special, but the excellent replay value, gameplay, and depth are to be commended. Another successful Harvest Moon!