Proper, farming followers and mates: let’s get it out of the best way. Harvest Moon just isn’t Harvest Moon. The sequence generally known as Bokujo Monogatari in Japan was translated as “Harvest Moon” when it got here out again in 1997, and that title caught with the sequence till 2013, when Natsume – the Western writer of the Harvest Moon video games – misplaced the rights. Nevertheless, they stored the rights to the title, and have been churning out deeply disappointing, sub-par video games ever since.
The actual Harvest Moon video games are actually referred to as “Story of Seasons” within the West, and should you’re on the lookout for a continuation of the farming sequence that you just liked as a child, that is the place that you must direct your consideration.
This month, we received one among every: Harvest Moon: One World and Story of Seasons: Pioneers of Olive City. You could be on the fence about which one to purchase, otherwise you may not have even realised that there was a selection.
Our poor reviewer performed each (learn the SoS:PoOT evaluation right here, and the HM:OW evaluation right here), and which means we will now let you know for sure which one is healthier – and what higher means to try this than with a direct comparability over a number of vital classes! YEAH! SCIENCE!
Character Creation and Customisation
Everybody needs to depart their very own stamp on the world, and farming video games have lengthy been a improbable place to take action. Why not kick issues off with the very begin of the video games?
Harvest Moon: One World
Harvest Moon’s customisation is, erm, properly… it is not good. Six pores and skin tones, six hair colors, and 6 eye colors – and that is it. You may’t even change your outfit till actually late within the recreation’s plot. Your farmer’s face will all the time look the identical, it doesn’t matter what.
As for customising your own home, it’d even be worse than the character creator. You appear to unlock recipes for altering the look of your preset furnishings, however you seemingly cannot change the placement of the furnishings, or put new furnishings in.
Story of Seasons: Pioneers of Olive City
Story of Seasons has a surprisingly diverse character creator, with numerous hair colors, eye colors, pores and skin tones, and even the flexibility to have two completely different colored eyes. Gamers may also select a masculine or female voice, stance, and clothes, it doesn’t matter what their gender. What’s extra, you possibly can change your have a look at any time – all of it, even the voice – on the salon that you just unlock fairly early on.
There are fairly a number of outfits on supply, which unlock as you progress within the recreation – though all of them include a worth in each cash and supplies, some rarer than others. Characters may also put on glasses and hats, however be warned that the hats are, for no matter motive, actually large and a bit ugly.
The home that you just get has a delegated, restricted space for putting furnishings, which will increase as you improve the home, however by no means appears to incorporate the total home, which is odd. The vary of furnishings, decor, and lighting is diverse, however we have not seen any choices for altering wallpaper or flooring, sadly, and you may’t transfer the furnishings that is already there.
WINNER: Story of Seasons: Pioneers of Olive City!
It is not even a contest – Harvest Moon: One World’s customisation sucks. The truth that the six out there hair colors are brown, brown, black, yellow, lavender, and inexperienced ought to warn you to the truth that Natsume has no thought methods to make a compelling character creator. Story of Seasons has its limits – particularly on the subject of home ornament – but it surely’s miles higher than the paltry choices of HM:OW.
DLC
Ah, keep in mind the times when video games got here absolutely loaded with all of the content material you can ever need? Effectively, these days are over – however DLC can nonetheless supply tempting surprises to gamers who do not thoughts shelling out just a little extra dosh.
Harvest Moon: One World
One World’s DLC prices £13.49 for the Season Cross, or £53.48 for the sport plus the Season Cross. It contains 4 DLCs, two of that are already out, one releasing on the thirteenth April, and one releasing on 4th Might.
Two of those DLC packs are new animals, with cats, canine, and horses within the “Treasured Pets” pack, and inexperienced tigers, parrots, lava rabbits, a bear, and a yeti of some form within the “Legendary Wild Animals” pack (are bears legendary now?).
One of many DLC packs will add a brand new stage of device upgrades and quite a lot of new themed furnishings for your own home, and the most important DLC pack is the “Far East Journey”, which provides a brand new location and story, new crops and animals, and two new dateable characters, Shogen and Sana.
Story of Seasons: Pioneers of Olive City
Story of Seasons’ DLC is a bit pricier, for £17.99/$19.99, though you can even purchase the bundle for £62.99/$69.99 complete. There was a ten% low cost on the bundle, however that was for pre-orders solely; the standalone Enlargement Cross may have a 15% early chook low cost till the twelfth April.
Nevertheless, it features a little greater than the Harvest Moon Season Cross, with three outfit units out there on launch, two new “sub-scenarios”, three outfit units for each your character and their marriage candidate, and a reasonably beefy collection of three story enlargement packs, all of which add a brand new space, and two new marriage candidates every.
The DLC will launch a lot slower than the Harvest Moon: One World timeline, with one “Half” per thirty days all the best way from April to August.
There are additionally a number of extras that do not come within the bundle: the Fox Costume and Buffalo Costumes, which had been out there as a pre-order bonus, however may be purchased individually, and “Neil’s Jacket”, referencing grumpy boy Neil from Harvest Moon 3D: A New Starting, which must be purchased individually. All of those outfits price £1.79 every.
WINNER: Story of Seasons: Pioneers of Olive City!
For just some bucks/quid additional, Story of Seasons provides a reasonably hefty quantity of latest content material. You would argue that the additional areas ought to have been within the recreation in the beginning, and we do not disagree – but it surely’s nonetheless a vastly higher deal than Harvest Moon affords.
