Harvest Moon DS: Island of Happiness
Ages: harvestmoon-ds

Tired of the hustle and bustle of city life? Want to trade it for the simple life on the farm? Then this is your game. In the decade that has seen mass migration from farming communities to the cities this game sets you into a small group trying to make a community by farming.

Farmers work hard and you will too: clearing fields, planting seeds, watering, harvesting and selling your crops for profit. But that's only the beginning: raising livestock, breaking rock, sawing logs, building houses, barns, bridges - are you beginning to get the idea? It's work, work, work, but if you hang on long enough there might be a love interest and you know where that leads to. Me, I crapped out at the rock breaking and turnip harvesting stage.

As a shipwreck survivor to this sparsely populated land, you start out with a minimal supply of tools - hoe, saw, hammer, a bag of turnip seeds and a watering can. You get your own one-room shed with a bed and table. There doesn't seem to be food for you but you do restore stamina and fullness by returning home and going to sleep. Instructions are provided in game by old-timer Taro. The game works best at the beginning if you wait for Taro to give you instructions before going ahead on your own.

For those who want to build cities - there are the Sims games - for those who hanker for the bucolic life - there's Harvest Moon.

Fun Factor: For farming - this is it.
Female Factor: You can play as boy or girl
Player Friendly: Plenty of instruction both in the manual and in game.

Reviewed by: Editor - 09/08