First off, I did not know what to expect when I bought this game. How much fun could a farming sim be? Well, it really is fun just because of the sheer amount of stuff to do, tied into addicting gameplay, atmospheric music, and a pretty nice (but original) plot. You start the game as guy who has forgotten his past (due to amnesia) and end up in a small farming town. You acquire a small house and a field right away. Farming tools are acquired by other npc's and each tool serves a unique purpose. The game's menus are easy to scroll through. As you talk to people daily friendship and even love can develop. These are vital for the story to continue. There are many other stats for attack, defense, level and experience, as well as many many more. There is a day and night cycle but it's recommended to sleep at night or you'll be groggy the next morning. The game has so much to do that you'll soon find the end of the day upon you. Farming (plowing, planting, watering, collecting), selling, fighting monsters, talking to people, exploring caves, capturing monsters, taking care of monsters, mining, fishing, giving gifts, decorating and forging, and cooking are some of the things that can be done in the game. The graphics are pretty good. The backgrounds change with the seasons and the 2d stuff is nicely done. I was a little disappointed by the 3d character sprites. They should have been more detailed. The music was good, but can get repetitive. The sound effects get the job done but they're nothing special. Overall this game is very good. I still have not beat it and I've played a good 30+ hours. It's not for everyone though because the tasks can be tedious at times and the ugly sprites might turn others to the older harvest moons. Either way, the addicting gameplay has added a new fan to the harvest moon series.
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