If you are a big fan of farming games, then you must have heard of the name Harvest Moon at least once in your life. To me, Harvest Moon games made my childhood, and there are no other games that could be compared to it in my memory.
I first played Harvest Moon games on my first computer when I was in elementary school. We bought a game disk comprising over a hundred Gameboy games. Among them, we found a 2D farming game that offered a little child like me an opportunity to experience how life on a farm looked like. I had played this game with all my passion, and it really rocked my youth. Now, over 2 decades have passed, but I’m still in love with Harvest Moon games. Therefore, I would like to introduce the old Harvest Moon games to the next generation of gamers.
Alright! I think it is enough compliments. Now, let me take you on a tour of the Harvest Moon’s history and timeline.
What is Harvest Moon?
According to the information about Harvest Moon by Wikipedia, its name is 牧場物語 (Bokujo Monogatari) in Japan, meaning Farm Story in English.
The name revealed a lot about the game. Harvest Moon is a farming simulation game developed by Amccus for Super Nintendo Entertainment System. In 1996, the first Harvest Moon game was released in Japan. Afterward, Harvest Moon was available in Northern America in 1997, and one year later, it arrived in European countries.
Harvest Moon - A legendary farming game series
Unlike most others, Harvest Moon (HM) games do not have a specific plot, they simply tell a farming story in different places and with different characters. Therefore, HM games do not give you an accurate goal or force you to follow a fixed storyline. You have all your freedom to do what you want such as growing crops, raise animals, dating, etc. However, each Harvest Moon game still has some kind of direction to support your own story. Eventually, the plot of the game is yours to decide.
In some of the first Harvest Moon games, the story often started with a young guy dressing in blue. He inherited an old farm from his grandfather. During the game, you will be playing as that guy to build and run the farm from the ground. A lot of exciting things waiting for you in the game such as farming, breeding, dating, joining festivals, etc. All are yours to experience in Harvest Moon games.
What made Harvest Moon a legendary game?
The first Harvest Moon game was created one year after I was born; therefore, I only had the opportunity to play it when I was 10 years old. So, what made Harvest Moon a game that I have been playing since 2005 until now without getting tired?
Growing crops, raising animals, mining, etc are what you can do in Harvest Moon games
Obviously, the answer is that Harvest Moon enables me to do things that no other games can do at that time. I will list them down here:
Growing Crops
As a farmer, you will grow crops and earn gold coins from shipping what you harvest. There will 4 seasons in a year including spring, summer, autumn, and winter. And each one will have different kinds of seeds that you can buy and grow on your ranch. I can name some of the typical types of vegetables you can grow such as turnip, potato, cucumber, cabbage, strawberries, etc. In some Harvest Moon games, you can grow crops in winter, but you cannot in some others. Additionally, you can build a greenhouse to grow crops there also.
Moreover, you will have to take care of your crops, sow the seeds, water them, and watch them grow until you can harvest them. All of the farming experiences you can find will be found in this game. Try it like a real farmer.
Take care of Animals
Farmers do not only grow crops, but they also raise animals as well, and so do you. You can raise 3 types of animals on your farm including pets, livestock, and poultry.
- Pet: Usually, you will be given a dog (sometimes a cat too). Every day, you have to pick it up and talk to it to build a friendship.
- Livestock: You can raise cows, sheep, and horses. To take care of them, you can brush them and talk to them. Each animal will give you different products. For example, a cow gives you milk while a sheep can give you wool. In some recent Harvest Moon games, you can raise other animals such as lamas, rabbits, etc.
- Poultry: You can raise chickens and ducks for eggs. Similar to livestock, you have to take care of them every day. You can add eggs to incubators to hatch chicks.
Sometimes, your animals may get sick and need medicine too. If you raise your animals well, they can take part in competition too. The friendship between you and your animals will give higher quality products. Therefore, you should put a lot of effort and love into animal breeding just like what farmers do.
Mining
Not only farming, but you are also able to do mining stuff too. There are mines where you can explore and dig for mineral resources such as copper, silver, gold, mystril, etc. You can use these to upgrade your tools to work more effectively. You can dig for gemstones to make jewelry as well.
Build your house
In the Harvest Moon game, you inherited an old small house. After you earn enough money in-game, you can start to reconstruct your home. You can upgrade it into a bigger one, buy new furniture, and more. This is one of the most interesting parts of the Harvest Moon games.
Dating and get married
Speaking of the hottest part of the game, Harvest Moon enables you to meet, date, and get married to some NPCs. There will be some bachelors and bachelorettes for you to choose from. To build up a relationship with your future husband or wife, you can give them their favorite gifts. The love point will be measured by the heart color.
Get married in Harvest Moon games
The love point will start with a black heart, then purple, blue, green, yellow, orange, and finally red. Once your partner’s heart turns red, you can propose to them with a blue feather. Afterward, you can get married to them, and your husband/wife will move in with you. Guess what, you can also have children in the game. Sound interesting, right?
Events
In total, there are 3 types of events happening in the Harvest Moon games.
- Love & Family Events: These events can be triggered when your partner’s love point gets higher, by wedding, or else.
- Friendship Events: When you become good friends with the NPCs, you can activate the friendship events. Each NPC will have different stories, and you will be able to witness them.
- Festivals: During the 4 seasons of a year, there will be several festivals for you to take part in and enjoy. I.e. Horse racing festival, chicken festival, etc.
Cooking
Yes, you heard me right! In Harvest Moon games, you can cook different dishes. After you upgrade your house, you can buy a kitchen and cook your own meals. You can eat what you cook, give dishes to NPCs as gifts and take part in the cooking festival.
These are just some highlights of the Harvest Moon games. I believe you will like the games if you experience them yourself.
How many Harvest Moon games do you know?
Of course, the Harvest Moon series has more than just one game. How many Harvest Moon games do you know and which ones have you played? These are all the Harvest Moon games you should try playing:
- Harvest Moon SNES
- Harvest Moon GB
- Harvest Moon 64
- Harvest Moon GBC
- Harvest Moon Back to Nature
- Harvest Moon Save The Homeland
- Harvest Moon A Wonderful Life/ Another Wonderful Life
- Harvest Moon Friends of Mineral Town
- Harvest Moon More Friends of Mineral Town
- Harvest Moon DS/ DS Cute
- Harvest Moon Magical Melody
- Harvest Moon Island of Happiness/ Sunshine Island
- Harvest Moon Animal Parade
- Harvest Moon Frantic Farming
- Harvest Moon Little Shop
- Harvest Moon Hero of The Leaf Valley
- Harvest Moon Tale of The Two Town
- Harvest Moon Grand Bazaar
- Harvest Moon A New Beginning
- Harvest Moon Lost Valley
- Harvest Moon Seeds of Memories
- Harvest Moon Skytree Village
- Harvest Moon Light of Hope
A lot, right? I have played nearly all of them, each game will have different interesting things, and also have something that I dislike too. In general, all of the Harvest Moon games are good and worth playing. You should not miss out!
The Harvest Moon games have so many things for you to explore, so if you have difficulties, you can find useful information about Harvest Moon game tutorials here.
Which Harvest Moon game is my most favorite?
As I said, I have played so many Harvest Moon games. However, among them, my most favorite HM game of all time is Harvest Moon Friends of Mineral Town.
The main reason is the game is so damn good for sure. It has become an important part of my childhood. Even now, I still play Harvest Moon Friends of Mineral Town over and over again. And every time I play it, the game brings back all the good memories and feelings like when I was younger.
Yeah, I have no complaints about the Harvest Moon series too
So, I highly recommend Harvest Moon Friends of Mineral Town for anyone who hasn’t played Harvest Moon games before. Hope you guys like it too. I will be writing more about the Harvest Moon games in detail in the upcoming time, so please stay tuned.
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