John Deere: Harvest in the Heartland Hands-On

What if the cute characters from Harvest Moon had industrial strength agriculture equipment at their disposal? The result would likely be something like John Deere: Harvest in the Heartland, a farming game for the Nintendo DS due for release later this year. We had a chance to walk the back 40 with a preview build of the game recently.

You start off in Harvest with a small farm and a plot land, as well as a few basic tools to get you on your way. The first step in nurturing a successful farm is to clear your land of any obstacles, such as rocks and tree stumps. To do so, you'll need extra tools, such as hammers and shovels, which you can purchase from the nearby town. All of the tools in Harvest have their own unique control scheme involving the stylus and touch screen. For example, when hoeing a field, you want to move the stylus from the outside in, toward your character. In addition to the tool you use, the direction your character is facing will determine how you need to move the stylus.

Though you don't start out with much when you first fire up Harvest, with a little cash in your pocket, you can begin purchasing the things you'll need to get a thriving farm going. One of the easiest ways to get some quick cash is to check out the minigames. Here, you can compete in a number of stylus/touch-screen minigames based on your common farming activities--collecting chicken eggs, milking goats, milking cows, and the like. If you succeed at these minigames, you'll leave with some extra cash in your pocket, which you can then spend around town. Other outlets available to you include a livestock area, where you can purchase animals for your homestead, and a veterinary facility, where you can take your sick cattle in for treatment. There's also a commodities market, where you can sell your crop and, naturally, a John Deere establishment, where you can purchase the latest (officially licensed, naturally) John Deere equipment.

In addition to tending your land, there will be some modest customization in Harvest. For example, you can choose the color of your farmer's getup, the paint scheme of your barn, and the logo to represent your homestead. Though your life as a farmer seems to be an often solitary one, the game will also include cooperative play via the DS's wireless functionality.

Of course, the point of any farm is to grow crops, which sadly wasn't possible in the early build we played of Harvest in the Heartland. When we attempted to purchase crops for our farm, the store owner would tell us we didn't have enough money, despite having more than enough from our extensive cow-milking adventures. As a result, we didn't really get that far into the actual farming segment of this (admittedly very early) build of Harvest in the Heartland. Nonetheless, assuming that aspect of the game is cleared up in the final build, fans looking for a slower pace--or at least a rural feel--in their gaming lives might find some appealing ideas right here. The game is due for release later this year.