Harvest Moon

"Milk the cows, feed the chickens, egg the wife"

Sure, This game is a tad old, but it deserves more recognition than it gets. This game proves that the SNES is capable of producing quality games even after the release of the N64. What is truly great about this farming sim is that it is not just a farming sim. You also can raise farm animals, either Cows, chickens, or both. But a dating sim is what makes this game truly great. You live on a farm and a town is nearby, as well as a mountain. In town you must buy seeds, livestock, energy-recovering items, and socialize with the commonfolk. There are 5 eligible women in the town: Maria, the Mayor's daughter, Eve, a waitress at the bar, Ann, the grocer's daughter, the livestock dealer's daughter, and the flower shop owner's daughter. Using gifts, conversation, and dances, you can woo one of these women into marriage. Once married, you must have all your work done before 5pm every day, after too mlate nights, your wife will leave.

You can have a baby with your wife, or you can even stay a bachelor all 2.5 years of the game. It's up to you. The happier you are, the better ending you will get. Some people are in it for the money, which is challenging, a hard way to play. These people rarely get married, you can save money by not shelling 15,000G in upgrades for your house and 1,000G for a blue feather of happiness(the equivilant of an engagement ring). All in all, Harvest Moon is one of the best Sims out there, and for those of you who like to travel, check out the Game Boy version.

Graphics-For a Super NES, not too hot...much like Zelda. A bit above average. 6.0

Sound-Different music for every season, and sound effects are great, everything from footsteps to rain to the bark of a wild dog. Good, but also not the best. 7.5

Fun Factor-Except for the fact that it tends to get a tad repetitive, a very entertaining game! 9.0

Replay Value-Takes a while to play, but you might want to go and marry each woman and then try going solo just to get the many different endings. 9.0

Control-Only problem is sometimes you'll accidentally jump off a ledge and you gotta go all the way back up again..and sometimes you'll accidentally throw the shipping from too far away..otherwise its good. 7.5

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 11/01/99, Updated 11/01/99