Harvest Moon: Friends of Mineral Town

"Life on the farm ain't that bad."

Harvest Moon: FoMT is the latest in a long series of games by Natsume. You take the role of a boy who has just inherited a farm. As the new owner, it is your job to clean up the farm and turn it from a dump into a money-making business. HM is a great simulation of the farm life, but certain qualities keep it from a 9 or a 10.

Gameplay 9/10
At the beginning of the game, your first goal is to clean up the field. The previous owner was very sloppy in doing this, so you'll have to be the one to pick all the weeds, break down the rocks, and chop the wood. Once that's done, the best thing to do is go into town and introduce yourself. There are all kinds of witty and charming characters in town, so you should get to know them all. They all play an important part in the development to your farm, which you will soon discover. Heck, one day you're going to be marrying one of them, although the things you do to get girls in this game do NOT apply in real life.
At this point, you should get to work and plant some seeds. From this point on it is of utmost importance to water them every day. It is also important to spend time with your dog, your horse, and after a while, the rest of your barnyard buddies. During the game, you can upgrade your house or barn, allowing for even more space to work. You will also need to upgrade your tools. To do this you will have to go into the mines and find some ore for the blacksmith. I know this sounds more like a strategy guide than a review, but it's very important. Unfortunately, later in the game you can feel overwhelmed with the amount of work you have. You'll need to water your crops, feed your cows, chickens, and sheep, chop wood, and certainly many other things. To help you out the developers put in Harvest Sprites, which are basically little elves that help you with your farming. You have to be nice to them, though, because if they feel overworked, you'll have to do everything yourself.
The game takes place at the beginning of spring. Each season is thirty days long, and a day is about an hour long. This is plenty of time early on, but later you will find it is not nearly enough time to do everything you need to do. Despite all these complaints, this is the only game on GBA that has this kind of gameplay, so you should take the time to experience it.

Graphics and Sound 7/10
Nothing special here. HM has simple graphics and sound, which are nice, but nothing spectacular. Well, what did you expect? It's a farming game! All the characters in the game are recognizable, and when you talk to them you get to see a better view of what they look like. Crops can be a bit hard to tell apart, and you might end up watering something you've watered before. As for sound, all the normal effects are here. Everything sounds like it would in real life. The thing is, the music is a bit annoying, but you shouldn't let that bother you.

Value/Replayability 10/10
If there's one thing that's guaranteed about this game, it's that it will last you a while. It will be a LONG time before you have top-of-the-line tools, a big house, a cute wife, and tons of money to spend on whatever you like. The game doesn't really end, so you'll probably quit before it does. If you are really patient, you might never put this game down.

Fun Factor 8/10
HM:FoMT is a fun and unique game. If you enjoy simulation games, I highly recommend this to you. If you're not sure, buy it if you want, but keep in mind that it is very demanding. This game will eat up all your time.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 12/28/03