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Players: 1 - 4 (Offline)
Platform: Wii
Developer: Marvelous Interactive
Publisher: Natsume
Price: $49.99
Release Date: September 30th, 2008
Website:www.Natsume.com
More than 20 different Harvest Moon games have been made and you have to wonder,
will these games ever evolve? Well, Harvest Moon: Tree of Tranquility looks to take the
evolutionary step that some fans have been waiting for since the original on the SNES. Wii-mote
controlled farming, more choices for getting married, and more interaction with the townsfolk are
just a few of the things present in Harvest Moon: Tree of Tranquility.
The game starts with players taking a boat to the main island, in which the story takes place. It’s
during this time that players choose their gender, and then begin a tutorial by spending a few days
at an inn. Afterward, it’s on to the farming! Like any previous Harvest Moon game
players will milk the cows, shave the sheep and plant crops. The major change with the general
farming comes in the form of using the Wii-mote. So now, instead of just pressing buttons,
players can actually re-enact the movements of hoeing, raking, fishing, cutting down trees or
destroying rocks. There’s an alternative to this...I think it’s called real-life farming. Some of you
might actually be interested in trying it out. Really.
As mentioned, many of the livestock care-taking features have been upgraded. But there’s also
new animals to adopt, some of which include boars, pandas, penguins, turtles, cats, weasels,
rabbits, squirrels, baby bears, dogs and monkeys. Players will have to be friendly to the wild
animals in order to adopt them, including bringing them their favorite treats. It’s a little like
Tamagotchi, except without the deformed evolution, or uncontrollable bowel-
movements.
Another popular returning feature is the marriage candidates. Both male and female characters
receive eight potential mates, each. Some of these candidates require special attention to acquire
their affection, and hence, players will have to try to win over a selective mate by carrying out
various side-quests (viz., Think GTA without the “hot coffee”). The neat part about the
open-ended aspects of the game is that after getting married and having a kid, players can choose
to start over as their child with their acquired items and money.
Earning cash and rewards will still play a big part in gaining wealth in Harvest Moon: Tree of
Tranquility. Aside from making money on the farm, players can partake in a number of
contests and festivities. These will work as mini-games to keep players on their toes, in-between
trying to attain a spouse and running the farm. On the bonus end of things there’s also unlockable
mini-games that support up to four-players, ranging from horse racing to stone skipping. I guess
when the developer tosses in something like that you can’t complain too much.
Harvest Moon: Tree of Tranquility is due out on September 30th, exclusively for the Wii.
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