Harvest Moon: Tree of Tranquility

The Harvest Moon franchise already has its place in history, with a string of releases across gaming machines spanning 10 years. The success of the previous titles sets quite a standard to keep up for this 10th anniversary release, and with the added pressure of keeping up with the technology the Wii has to offer, it will be interesting to see how Harvest Moon has progressed in its lifetime as a simulation game.

Firstly, I have to clear up the fact that while I am familiar with the Harvest Moon series and have heard much about its role playing greatness, I have never actually played it in any form. I have played similar games, and they are just my cup of tea, so I’m hoping that this experience is as sweet as I expect it to be.

The first thing you will notice about the game is its long but charming introduction. You are first allowed to choose which gender your character will be, then a name for him/her. A lovely man named Pascal sails you to Waffle Island, but there is a storm on the sea, and your character then takes a turn for the worse. The next thing you know, you wake up in a room in the Inn and the game really begins from there.

The story is set up while you sleep, although unless you know what the plot is, then I don’t think you could have a guess. Mayor Hamilton later explains that your main reason for being on the Island is not just to farm but to “awaken the legendary Mother Tree”. In order to do this you must complete a set of recipes and find the Tree seed. The ultimate aim in this is to bring back the Harvest Goddess.

The great social aspect of Harvest Moon kicks in on your first full day as an island resident. You are ordered by Mayor Hamilton to meet all of the residents in order to settle into Island life. During this time, some people may ask you questions, to which you can pick one of three answers, affecting how the conversation flows. These simple touches help to make each gamer’s experience more personal as you can tailor answers to your personal opinions. You will also pick up gifts from your new neighbours, mainly books to read through and increase your knowledge of the Island.

While this social aspect is great, some of the loading times when moving from place to place in the Island are a little slow. Moving between most streets is simple, but say for instance you were going to the Town Hall, along the way there is a loading screen without warning, so if you accidentally stray too far, you will have to wait for the Town Hall to load and then go back to the main part of the Island and wait for that to load. However, you will get used to the positions where this happens.

When you really get into the game, you find that there is so much to do and so many outcomes. Your career and relationships develop throughout the game, and if I’m completely honest, I found myself growing to love my character (who I named Lucy!) to the point where I quite cared what happened to her. There are also a lot of possibilities to learn new things, especially about farming animals as well as crops.

There are many other activities that make for a fairly realistic ride, such as cooking and fishing, and of course you can use your hard earned cash to buy clothes and accessories from Shelly the Taylor. Although your work day will take a lot out of you energy wise, there are plenty of activities around the community to keep you occupied out of working hours.

The controls are at times frustrating, particularly when carrying out farming tasks. The Wii Remote and the Nunchuk are used to navigate Waffle Island as well as carry out daily work duties. Well, maybe it is harsh to completely blame the control system because they do make good use of the Wii capabilities. The off-putting element is the precise aiming that is required for so many activities. Even when attempting to talk to someone in the street, you must aim at exactly the right area before being allowed to press A to interact. The same can be said for such tasks as watering crops where it is very difficult to get a slight enough movement using the Nunchuk to aim directly at the plant and pout water in the correct place. This is even more irritating given the time limit for such activities, making your poor character look a bit useless!

There is plenty of incentive to continue playing this game. Its simulation style with progressive storyline means that play is constantly evolving and no two days are the same. Don’t forget that there is also a plot to follow along the way, and although at times this takes a backseat. There are also mini-games that you can unlock when attending festivals on Waffle Island. When you play the mini-games at the festivals you automatically unlock them to play any time, and practise to be the winner for the next celebration.

This title is pleasing to the eye in its colourful and friendly presentation. The youthful animations and scenery make for a very pretty yet accomplished visual game. I like the look of Waffle Island as a whole. It’s nicely laid out with pretty pathways and grassy areas just like a real community. Obviously, the people look very cartoon like, but where would the fun be otherwise? The menus are simple to navigate and are also very colourful making for an all round nice looking game.

It is very difficult to go into great detail about the game, because I think you just have to take everything as it comes without analysing it too much. It is a very complex game with the variations in daily play making for interesting gaming, especially the further you settle into it. It is however very slow in reminding you that there is a storyline to follow, which can leave you wondering why you are working so hard on a farm on a daily basis.

It remains a very sweet and innocent game, and as it is a simulation title, it cannot fail as such. There are a few annoyances like dodgy camera angles, awkward controls and long dialogues, but I think the bulk of the game succeeds in being a game that you would come back to, if only to see what the next day brings. Your curiosity gets the better of you, but at times some of the days can seem a little tedious if you don’t make the best of them and really socialise with other characters.

+ Character interaction and social aspect is good
+ Visually pleasing
+ You want to keep playing to find out what happens in your next “day”

- Controls are too sensitive at times
- Too little focus on the main storyline
- Some parts of the game are slow to load, interrupting game play

Score – 7/10