Natsume's unusual series of farming games comes to Game Boy Advance with the release of Harvest Moon: Friends of Mineral Town. As in previous titles, players can go about their day as they see fit, with the overall goal being to become profitable while planting and harvesting various crops or raising livestock. After a hard day's work overseeing the day-to-day operations of the farm, players can visit the city to talk with the locals, spend some time fishing in a nearby pond, or embark on various other side-quests and mini-games. Romance is also part of the series, and characters can eventually marry, have children, and own pets. Friends of Mineral Town also interfaces with the GameCube version of Harvest Moon: It's a Wonderful Life, allowing players access to specific events and other bonuses.
Controls
Control Pad = move character, navigate menus
Start Button = game menu
Select Button = status screen
A Button = action
B Button = use equipped tool
R Button = run
L Button = whistles for your dog or horse ~ Keith Adams, All Game Guide
Review
A cult favorite among gamers, Natsume's long-running Harvest Moon series finally comes to Game Boy Advance in Harvest Moon: Friends of Mineral Town. Never did Natsume's tagline "Serious Fun" seem more appropriate than with this series. Harvest Moon is indeed serious fun, but it certainly isn't for the gamer looking for an action-packed, thrill-a-minute gore fest. That doesn't make its gameplay any less compelling (in fact, the game is remarkably addictive), it simply takes longer to appreciate all that Harvest Moon has to offer.
In this particular iteration of the game, you are given management of a run-down, dilapidated farm located near Mineral Town that has, pardon the pun, gone to seed. To renovate the farm, you'll be pulling weeds, moving stones, chopping stumps, and growing crops to make money. Along the way, you can make friends with the various denizens of Mineral Town, and you can even marry one of the girls and produce a child.
None of this happens right away, but instead develops over the course of the days, weeks, and years that pass as you build up your farm. Harvest Moon represents an idealized version of farm life so making friends with the villagers is as simple as talking to them and plying them with gifts. Crops grow steadily and regularly throughout the seasons, and it's nearly impossible to truly fail, though your animals can get sick and die if you're especially negligent. There's no real way to "beat" this game, but the sense of satisfaction gained from watching your farm grow is its own reward.
It also seems as if the GBA and Harvest Moon were made for each other. Character sprites are large and colorful, with easy-to-read text, though it would be nice if the villagers had a greater variety of things to say. Musically, the game's main themes do get repetitive, but the sound effects (particularly the chickens) help spice up the soundtrack. The GBA version streamlines many of the farming functions of previous titles, cutting down on the tedium of daily chores. If you make the right friends, you can even have them do most of your farming for you, which is a welcome addition since it lets you focus on other tasks.
Harvest Moon also makes it easy to stop or start a game with a save function that allows you to halt play at anytime and pick up right where you left off. The danger is that you'll pick up the game to play "just one day," and end up whiling away a week or more of game time. If you're a fan of builders, such as SimCity or The Sims, you may just want to put your hand to the plow, Harvest Moon style.
