Harvest Moon 3D: A New Beginning - Nintendo 3DS

In Harvest Moon, there are no enemies to blow up, slash, or jump over. There are no bosses, points, or button combos to memorize. Instead, Harvest Moon is a game of nuturing, relationship building, and persistence. It is a challenge like no other! While appealing to me personally, I think the "chore" aspect may not be for everyone. Some people are just turned off by (even the thought of) chores. One friend calls this game, "a waste of time," but in the end, what game isn't? I think the point of contention is the gaming industry's habit of instant gratification. This game challenges one's persistence in a way I find really fun and satisfying. I finished my first full year (in-game), so it's time for a review!PROS:In "Harvest Moon: A New Beginning," your character wakes up everyday to an ever-growing list of daily responsibilities. The priorities are totally up to you. I find game pacing is spot-on. Things start off simple. As a new player, I needed the initial simplicity to understand how this farm and village work together. The gameplay guides you but does not force you--in other words it is non-linear gameplay. Within a few days my farmer's tasks became more complex as I received more animals and met more villagers. The initial fun is in learning farming procedures and the learning the lay of the land. I enjoyed watering crops and helping my cows, sheep, and chickens (and bees!) grow and mature throughout the year.I like the relationship with nature and people that this game puts forth. It's not about conquering nature, but about seeking opportunities. The daily dynamics change with the weather and each season. When I find myself beginning to grow tired of doing the same routine, a new season comes--and with it new crops, new animals and insects and new season-specific activities. For example, bug-catching is important in spring while I've found that mining becomes more important by winter. By the second spring, I'm raising my own bees and far less concerned about wild ones.In "A New Beginning" there are always new things to look forward to. Weather events puncuate what would otherwise be a common routine. Even within each season, I find myself always looking forward to the festivals. Winning a crop context with a "big broccoli is strangely rewarding. I don't explicitly win points, but I gain the favor of other villagers by simply showing up. Like real life, "It's the thought that counts."Speaking of real life, I really enjoy this game's balance of fantasy and reality. This is the magic of "A New Beginning." Harvest Moon automates a lot of functions that would be tremendously complicated in real life--(i.e. building construction). But the management of it all is very rewarding and the "hard work" is somehow really fun and unique. I do like suspension of disbelief that time stops when I close the game. (In other words, your crops will mercifully still be green and luscious even if you stop playing the game for a month.)CONS:While "A New Beginning" is known for it's visual customization (i.e.clothing, hairstyles, and the ability to re-arrange objects), the lack of button customization is a big shortcoming. The "L" button does absolutely nothing! Why can't "L" be customized to access regular gifts to villagers? A hot-menu exists for tools, but another is sorely needed. Everytime I get lost in a long list, I am reminded that I'm playing a video game. This game has got to be the dozenth Harvest Moon iteration, so I would have expected this kind of thing to have been solved ages ago! Super long lists are a buzzkill.The lack of features for the touch screen is a disappointment. Most times the second screen is a dedicated vicinity map, which strangely does not illustrate the layout of my farm, nor does it track any of my animals--arguably the two most important game elements. During cut scenes, the second screen just shows an animated flowery wallpaper, with absolutely no interactivity. Sometimes I wish I could just switch off the second screen to increase my battery life. This most certainly won't be the last Harvest Moon game, so I'm sure Natsume with further refine the gameplay later.CONCLUSION:Otherwise, this is a really satisfying, fun, and unique game. It is my first direct experience with a Harvest Moon title, and is my favorite 3ds game so far. I have to admit that it's addictive. My advice is to keep an open mind and you might also experience the joys (lessons) this terrific gaming concept has to offer. Question if any other games actually challenge one's persistence. Finally, if we put as much enthusiasm with developing ourselves in real life as we do developing the skils of our RPG characters, think of all that we could accomplish!

While Story of Seasons (SoS is the new HM) has made some improvements on this title, I actually like HMNB better than SoS in many ways. It's really comes down to personal preference which one you will enjoy more.In this title, the town (including houses) and your farm can be customized. Some people find this to be tedious, but I really enjoy it; just make sure you remove trees so the buildings can fit. SoS has small areas in town that can be edited, but houses/roads are in place. Your farm area in SoS can be customized in much the same way as HMNB. I love the characters in this title much more than SoS, but they do need to be unlocked. As others have said, it is a slow start, but you'll find yourself unlocking new buildings/people fairly quickly. I found it less boring when something/someone new was being unlocked throughout gameplay.I like the forest area where you can forage, mine, and fish. I was disappointed that SoS only had different field areas for crops and no forest. The mine in HMNB has 3 mining spots, while SoS has one spot within the Safari.HMNB has an animal sanctuary where you can take livestock to reduce stress and eventually get "great" products. There is nothing to do in the sanctuary unfortunately, so it is bet to take care of livestock there instead of at the farm on the days you go so that you are not just standing around. SoS has the Safari which serves the same purpose as the sanctuary in HMNB, except the products are now called "+" products. Animals are in the forest in HMNB and can be befriended, but several need to be unlocked is SoS and then show up in the safari where you can befriend them. There are animals around the rental field spots and right outside of town as well in SoS.Trading in this title is done through the shops and various vendors that show up on certain days. SoS has vendors which need to be unlocked through shipping of several products/crops (there is no shipping box in SoS, all buying/selling is done through vendors). Some vendors take quite some time to unlock and this is the main goal in SoS. I found this tedious, repetitious, and boring as compared to HMNB.The livestock and crops are much easier to manage in SoS than HMNB. More crops can be harvested from the seeds and livestock care is much quicker and easier, but SoS needs this feature much more due to high shipping requirements. I prefer these features in SoS, but it is not a dealbreaker in HMNB.Both titles offer character customization which are quite similar. In HMNB you sheer wool, grow cotton/flax, forage down which is then processed by the tailor to make different clothing items. Hair is done at the salon. In SoS, hair can be changed from your closet and clothes are made by you instead. I kind of prefer the tailor/salon in HMNB, but that's just my preference.HMNB does have a few typos such as funa for tuna and other minor typos which are slightly annoying to me, but doesn't affect gameplay.All in all, both are good titles and worth playing. Personally, I think there is more to do in HMNB and more variety, but some disagree. I think most of what keeps you busy in SoS is producing/shipping loads of products. While that is a feature of all games of this title, there are WAY more shipping requirements in SoS. If you like lots of customization and want to bring characters in with that process, start with this title (HMNB). If you just want to farm and maintain livestock without worrying about town customization or unlocking of characters by building/placing their homes, start with SoS. There are some characters which unlock in SoS, but most are already in place. I look forward to the upcoming release of SoS Trio of Towns and will continue to enjoy HMNB in the meantime.

I thought I had this. And I just realized I didn't so despite Xmas being around the corner got it for myself. The last DS/3DS game I needed for my HM/SOS collection.Been playing it too. It's fun to return back to HM on the DS and I am enjoying the mechanics of the game. I also enjoy the characters I've met so far along, they help bring the town to life. It is moving very slow and there is only a few people as the town starts ouy abandoned. A lot of requirements need to be met for certain events that seem date locked. But I enjoy these slow slice of life Sims and am excited to continue the story. Graphics are also pleasing.It arrived quick, packaged well/ in new unopened packaging and I haven't had any issues with the game.

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Long tutorial but a great game. One of my personal favourite Harvest Moon games in the series.new features but still feels like the classic game.It came fast and in perfect condition

I find it monotonous at times. Maybe because I don't have the required patience to play this game. Some controls are not easy. (I compare it to Tales of Two Towns).I don't like:1. how the shipping is done. It takes time scrolling down.2. to use the makers, you have to put all products in the storage and ref first. so tedious3. the towns people don't walk to their designation; they magically transport! you have to memorize their schedule coz it's hard to keep track of them. it's a pain during birthdays especially when you still have lots of work to do4. fertilizing crops. no handy 'just stick it on the ground'. You have to fertilize every single day5. even if you take your animals out, they still need feed and fodderI like:1. the best thing is: making seed and other products takes only seconds! You don't have to wait for the next day!2. new festivals and contests3. you got to modify your own town4. new crops. herbs and mushrooms can also be made into seeds5. you can fertilize all trees. In Two Towns, you can only fertilize tea trees6. all right, challenging

For fans of the Harvest Moon games this one will entice you. It features a great customization system as well as many things to do.It does take a bit of time to get going as the first year in the game is slow but it really takes off after that. If this is your first Harvest Moon game I would give it at least a year (in game) to see if you like it. The tutorial is long and until you start building things it seems simple.The shipping and processing was extremely fast. Bought Wednesday, it shipped Thursday and I received it Tuesday. Would highly recommend the company. Simply great and so far no problems.