

Sure, we took time away from each day to go court our eventual wife, but more than anything it's the times when we're working in the field and have a chance to go to a pre-planned town event where we felt most of the game's story progression and character-to-character "life sim" attitude. While AI takes its own paths around town and seems to mingle more than, say, Magical Melody, interaction just doesn't seem to have the same impact or depth this time around as it has in previous Harvest Moon games. With Tree of Tranquility, we found ourselves spending much more time hanging out around our farm fishing and working the land than we did interacting with locals, and we think it has a bit to do with the boy/girl mechanic in the game. Once there, you'll be put to work by the locals at Souffle Ranch, and eventually chose from one of three locales to start your life on. In addition, there's a whole new story, following a young boy (or girl) as they arrive in a mysterious town after surviving a storm at sea. No need for Tree of Traunquility "Cute" this time around. For starters, you've got the option to play as both male and female leads, which means the game includes eight potential husband and wives depending on how you play. Things changed this time around, so those thinking Wii's first Harvest Moon is just another quick crossover, you'll want to think again. Tree of Tranquility may not be one of the best Harvest Moon games we've played over the years, but it isn't a bad one, despite a few oddities in both the presentation and execution of the game.
#Harvest moon tree of tranquility dogs series#
Now that Marvelous brings its classic series to Wii, we're again seeing a new design, and a pretty unique take on the experience with Tree of Tranquility. Over the years the world of Harvest Moon has continued across nearly every imaginable platform, and on GameCube alone the series saw two very distinct style changes in as many games (we don't count "Another Wonderful Life" as a third offering, really). On N64, console Harvest Moon was defined, as it still to this day remains to be one of - if not the - single best overall packages the series has to offer. On GBA, Friends of Mineral Town brought gamers a beautiful representation of pocket Harvest Moon, blending the best from Game Boy Color with an even deeper experience. On Super NES, the franchise got its amazing start. The Harvest Moon series has now brought 10 years of farming goodness to gamers, but when all is said and done the series can - at least in this reviewer's opinion - be boiled down to just a few key versions of the game that really personify the best the franchise has to offer.
