Harvest Moon DS Cute

"You have already farmed these fields before"

The original Harvest Moon DS was the deciding factor in me purchasing my first Nintendo DS Lite. I was a big fan of Harvest Moon on the SNES, Harvest Moon: Back to Nature on the PS, and I've played Friends of Mineral Town on the GBA more than I care to admit. The allure of a great, DS Harvest Moon game was just too much for me to resist. Natsume had yet to let me down, and the assertions of a DS Harvest Moon game were too tempting for me to pass up.

About a month after making the purchase of my DS Lite and Harvest Moon DS, I was still playing the darn game, but not so much because I was enjoying it. You see, Harvest Moon DS offered the same indigenous Harvest Moon experience that previous games in the series did, but this time, the game was plagued with far too many bugs and glitches. I really think that I continued playing it just to see how broken the game truly was.

I won't dwell on the glitches of Harvest Moon DS, but I'll mention a few that I came across while playing: Animal affection ratings not going up, holiday events just flat out not taking place when they should have, the shipper not picking up my goods for the day, and a money glitch that allowed you to wake up one day with millions of gold.

I was very disappointed with Harvest Moon DS for many other reasons besides the glitches. First off, the game was very similar to Friends of Mineral Town on the GBA. It almost looked identical graphically, and it seemed more like a jazzed up version of Friends of Mineral Town than a new game.

Instead of holding Natsume negligent for their buggy game, I decided to stop playing it and move on to other games. A year and a half later, Natsume decided to release Harvest Moon DS Cute, which was essentially the same game as Harvest Moon DS, but with a female lead character, and it supposedly fixed the bugs that plagued the original Harvest Moon DS game.

So Harvest Moon DS Cute sounded like a natural purchase for me. I picked it up and finally put some time into the game, but everything about the game just seems too familiar. Instead of the potential heady experience that Natsume could have made with the “Cute” version, they pretty much copy and pasted the game and reversed the roles of a few characters to make it synch with the female lead character. The gameplay has been kept intact, and the story has been slightly assuaged to appeal to a female audience. This didn't really bother me, since I spent most of my time focusing on the farming. I found it kind of odd to search for a “husband” instead of the usual “wife”, so I approached Harvest Moon DS Cute a bit differently than most Harvest Moon games.

After looking at the trivial nuances that Harvest Moon DS Cute offers over the original Harvest Moon DS, it seems more like a tawdry attempt by Natsume to make a few bucks off of their existing game.

Graphics 4/10

Harvest Moon DS Cute looks identical to Harvest Moon DS, which looks just like a GBA game. Natsume did little to upgrade the visuals in either game, and it makes it look very primitive and old school. The overall graphical presentation fits well with the game style, but I was just expecting a bit more with the extra year and a half that Natsume put into the “Cute” version.

One graphical change worth noting is the ability to change your outfit from the onset, and acquire new outfits via a tailor in town. It's a neat little feature that doesn't change the game in any way, but gives the player a few more options.

There's really not much to say about the graphics. If you have played Friends of Mineral Town on the GBA or the first Harvest Moon DS game, you will know what to expect from Harvest Moon DS Cute.

Sounds and Music 5/10

The original Harvest Moon game on the SNES and Back to Nature on PS had some very catchy music, and I enjoying frolicking around my farm in both games while enjoying the music, but Harvest Moon DS Cute doesn't really have any memorable tracks. It maintains the upbeat composure of the game, but it just didn't catch my attention like previous games in the series did.

The sound effects are pretty standard and get the job done. Using all of your tools on the farm sounds like it should. The only problem is that you will be doing the same things over and over in this game, so be ready to hear the sound effects over and over. This is one of the few DS games that can be played in silence and you won't miss a whole lot.

Story 4/10

I realize that most portable iterations of the Harvest Moon series are simply trying to emulate the console Harvest Moon experience and allow you to farm on the go, but this game has very little story. It sticks with the general premise from previous Harvest Moon games. You inherit a farm and you must nurse it back to health. In the process, you save Harvest Sprites, which unlocks new features in the game.

However, this time, the story is even more vague than before. It starts out with the Harvest Goddess standing over you while you sleep in bed. The Harvest Goddess is finding it difficult to motivate you to work, and this is not pleasing to the Harvest King. The Harvest King removes the Harvest Goddess and most of the Harvest Sprites from your life, and makes you accomplish farming related tasks to make them return.

This is pretty much it. After this short sequence, you are thrown into the game with little instruction. There are plenty of tutorial menus for you to dig through, but any returning fan of the Harvest Moon series should be able to jump right into things.

The interactions with the townspeople are the saving grace of the game. Each townsperson has their own little quirks that make them stand out. Each conversation is laced with intentional gaffe that can be charming at times, but annoying in certain situations.

Gameplay 7/10

If you have never played a Harvest Moon game before, Harvest Moon DS Cute would be a great place to start, but if you have played a Harvest Moon game in the past, specifically Harvest Moon DS, then this game is not really going to offer much to you that's new.

The main difference between the “Cute” version and the regular DS version are the bug fixes. These are very welcome, and I don't remember coming across any glitches during my play time with Harvest Moon DS Cute.

It does seem a little different having a girl for a main character, but you will get used to it quickly, and whether or not you decide to pick yourself up a husband or not is up to you. I chose not to. This doesn't mean I had a lack of things to do in the game though. Farming in the Harvest Moon games takes center stage, but there are tons of other things to do as well.

Cooking, shopping, mining, making friends, attending festivals, and training animals are just some of the things you can do to occupy your time. Speaking of time, this game has a serious lack of it. That was another major problem I had with the original version of Harvest Moon DS was that days just went by too fast. Since Harvest Moon DS Cute is basically the same game, the same holds true for it as well. If you take a walk into town to talk to the locals, by the time you get back, you'll barely have enough time to harvest your crops and tend to your livestock. It makes for some frustrating days, since something as simple as going to the mine for ores may end up taking up most of your day.

Attending festivals with the townspeople will be another string of fun activities you can partake in. Every season has a handful of festivals that take place on certain days. These can be as simple as showing off your prize cow, or having a race with all of the horses in town. They are fun little diversions, but they can take time away from your precious farming.

Longevity and Re-Playability 6/10

Anyone who has played a Harvest Moon game before knows that there is no shortage of things to do in any Harvest Moon game, and Harvest Moon DS Cute is no exception. The problem is that Harvest Moon DS Cute is a complete rehash from Harvest Moon DS, and the lack of anything new to do may discourage you from playing it in the long run.

The Harvest Moon games are about a race against time, and this game really makes you pull your resources together to accomplish your goals and make the townspeople happy.

Conclusion

If you have never played Harvest Moon DS, I highly recommend you skip it and play the glitch free Harvest Moon DS Cute instead. It may seem a bit weird having a female lead character, but there will be much less frustration when you're not encountering glitches every ten minutes. If you have played Harvest Moon DS, I'd pass on this game, there is not much new here to hold your interest.

Reviewer's Score: 5/10, Originally Posted: 09/14/09

Game Release: Harvest Moon DS Cute (US, 03/25/08)