The Story of Seasons franchise has one of many extra distinctive histories in all of gaming. The games have been initially launched underneath the identify Harvest Moon, however after a break up with writer Natsume, Marvelous and XSEED have been pressured to rename the collection outdoors of Japan. After some actually weird choices have been tossed round (which you can read about here), the corporate settled on Story of Seasons. The newest game within the franchise is Story of Seasons: Friends of Mineral Town, a remake of 2003’s Harvest Moon: Friends of Mineral Town. The state of affairs is a multitude, however fortunately the game itself is something however. In reality, Friends of Mineral Town ought to attraction to a variety of people.
When Friends of Mineral Town begins, gamers discover themselves inheriting a farm and shifting right into a small city. After gamers until the fields, they will plant a variety of completely different crops to develop and promote. Taking care of the vegetation solely requires gamers to water them day by day, however the course of may be time-consuming, initially. Time flies by rapidly whereas engaged on the farm, so gamers must be cautious that they do not chew off greater than they will chew.
As the game goes on, gamers can improve their instruments so as to make issues simpler. Upgrades enable gamers to water a number of vegetation at a time, or until a better space of the map with a single click on. Once gamers have spent a little bit time studying the mechanics, it is simple to get right into a rhythm. That’s not the one means that gamers can improve their expertise, in fact. Players can even make expansions to the farm.
While farming makes up an enormous portion of the game, a part of the attraction of the Story of Seasons franchise is the social side. Mineral Town itself options a variety of distinctive characters, and gamers get to know them over the course of the game. The means that the participant responds to every character has an affect on their relationships, and so they may even discover and marry a major different. In earlier games, this was restricted to characters of the alternative intercourse, however Friends of Mineral Town has added an possibility for same-sex marriage.
Choosing a partner is simply one of many freedoms given to the participant in Friends of Mineral Town. It’s straightforward to seek out and entry data on the general mechanics, however the game throws gamers into the center of issues with out a lot in the best way of handholding. In some games, this may be actually irritating, however in Friends of Mineral Town, it felt like I had a variety of room to do as I happy. There are positively issues I want I had identified forward of time (like the truth that all the crops die on the finish of every season), or issues that I had began to do earlier (like saving up chopped wooden), but when something, it appears like that may encourage me to make a complete new save file once more later.
Story of Seasons: Friends of Mineral Town has a really laid-back ambiance. In a variety of methods, it feels just like Animal Crossing: New Horizons. Sure, gamers can grind and race to finish all the pieces as rapidly as doable, however it feels just like the game is finest loved in smaller doses. After a tough day, booting up the game to spend a little bit time with the inhabitants of Mineral Town actually felt therapeutic. In a time the place social gatherings within the real-world are tough, getting to interact in actions like horse races or cooking competitions simply felt soul-soothing.
Unfortunately, the game does undergo a little bit compared to Animal Crossing. In New Horizons, it hardly ever feels just like the animals are repeating the identical traces over and over, however the townspeople in Friends of Mineral Town are restricted in what you will hear from them and whenever you’ll hear it. Sometimes, I simply wished to take a look at what Ran or Karen could be as much as, similar to I’d test in on Freckles or Mira in New Horizons. Unfortunately, I’d usually discover that the women would reply with the identical sentences they’d repeated to me over the previous few days. RPG followers are used to this form of factor, however it felt all of the extra obvious after spending the previous few months with New Horizons.
The game’s clock will also be a bit irksome. Friends of Mineral Town doesn’t observe real-time. Instead, time goes by rapidly whereas engaged on the farm, or whereas touring round city. However, when indoors or within the mines, time really stops. On one hand, this method provides the participant some freedom over how briskly or gradual time strikes within the game, however then again, it requires some technique round how the participant needs to spend every day. It’s not essentially a nasty factor, however it does take some getting used to, and it could actually make it tough to expertise all of the game has to supply whenever you wish to.
Graphically talking, Story of Seasons: Friends of Mineral Town is not a lot to write down dwelling about. The game’s graphics are charming, however it would not precisely push the Switch to its limits. The title’s Game Boy Advance roots positively present, in that regard. The music, nonetheless, is actually charming, enhancing the relaxed ambiance.
Gamers which have already poured a whole bunch of hours into Animal Crossing: New Horizons would do effectively to take a look at Story of Seasons: Friends of Mineral Town. The game gives a equally laid-back expertise with a variety of choices that enable gamers to tailor it the best way that they see match. It actually will not be for everybody, however the farm RPG gives an exquisite tackle probably the most beloved Harvest Moon entries.
Rating: four out of 5
Story of Seasons: Friends of Mineral Town is about to launch for Nintendo Switch and PC through Steam on July 14th. A retail code was offered by the writer for the aim of this assessment, and it was reviewed on a base mannequin Nintendo Switch.
