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I should begin by pointing out that I’ve
been anticipating the release of this game for a long time but
I’m not entirely sure why. I’ve never played a Harvest
Moon game before this one, yet I’ve always had an attraction
towards their simple philosophy.
Perhaps that attraction stems from my desire
to one day return to a crofting existence, or perhaps it’s
a simple urge to play a truly open-ended game with no obvious
goals to achieve. I don’t know what it was that made this
reach out to me. I just had a good feeling about it.
So what do you do when a game you’ve been
anticipating opens by providing an insight into a personal inner
turmoil? It all begins with a simple statement to set the scene
of your life ahead. It’s a statement from your guide, Takakura,
and simply reads: “He wasn’t unhappy. But he didn’t
seem to have a direction in life.”
The world at his feet and no idea
where he’s going…
If I hadn’t been sitting down on a bean-bag,
I would have taken a step backwards in shock. This game, a collection
of code and data, the game I had been anticpiating for months
for no discernable reason, this game had just opened itself to
me by describing my current state of mind exactly. From that point
onwards, Harvest Moon has done nothing but pull me in further.
I am a farmer and this game is as real as the days are long.
It may look cutesy, but it oozes life and harsh
reality. If you don’t water your plants, they’ll die.
If you don’t feed animals and abandon them to the extremes
of wind and rain they’ll get sick. If you don’t eat
you’ll grow exhausted… These are rules that we as
human beings are programmed to understand, because they’re
the simple rules of life. There’s nothing complex about
Harvest Moon. It’s simple, it’s pure, it’s wonderful,
it’s life… and I love it.
She’s
dirty and she wants it. Would you feel guilty riding the village
bike?
Generally, I trust my feelings towards games,
and Harvest Moon is pushing me along on a rollercoaster of emotion.
I feel love, happiness, loathing and anger throughout each game
day. I feel love towards my animals as I wake each day to give
them a hug and make sure they’re happy and well fed. I fish
in the river and am made happy and tranquil by the distant white
noise of a waterfall. I loathe myself for marrying Muffy instead
of the much harder to please and much more desirable Celia. I’m
made angry by Murray, the French-sounding village tramp who tries
to steal my vegetables. Each day has something new to experience
and cherish. It’s as if the world is in microcosm on your
doorstep.
Life is nothing without feeling and Harvest
Moon has a spirit and beauty that evokes passion for the magic
of nature in the world around me. It’s a game to grow old
with. I look forward to each new game day and tomorrow can never
come soon enough.
JIMAROID,
March 2004.
RODENT CASH RATING -
40 quid, or as many melons you can barter.
"It’s life, Jim – a wonderful one."
Comment
Here.
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Final
Fantasy Tactics Advance
