Harvest Moon: Island of Happiness – NDS – Preview

E3 2008 PreviewE3 2008 GameZone Previews

Having been a Harvest Moon fan since the Nintendo 64 era, I
can honestly say that the next Harvest Moon on the Nintendo DS is looking
especially in-depth for those gamers who love to be a farmer and marry their
girl of choice.

The story behind Harvest Moon: Island of Happiness is quite
different than stories of the past. Instead of inheriting a run down farm,
Island of Happiness starts off with the main character becoming stranded on the
titled island, Island of Happiness, and settling in to build a home along with a
farm.

Harvest Moon: Island of Happiness is more than a farm
simulator; it’s a simulator that asks for you to decide all the big decisions
for the main character’s future. Whether that is to find romance or balancing
your finances, Harvest Moon has a lot more depth than meets the eye.


Harvest Moon: Island of Happiness Nintendo DS screenshots

For this iteration of Harvest Moon, it’ll incorporate touch
control to move the character within the game. Though, – as far as the
demonstration showed – gamers won’t be able to switch to classic controls if
they become confused or frustrated with the new control.

Also, Island of Happiness is more 3D in visuals than it has
been in the past. All of the objects in the game are 3D including the animals,
characters, and buildings. While it’s definitely not as aesthetically pleasing
as the upcoming Wii title, Island of Happiness is an improvement over Harvest
Moon DS.

As a sign of the depth provided, as the player progresses
through the game, the island will become inhabited with more people as they
either visit the island or become stranded. The developer demonstrating the game
stated that he has spent three years in the game and still hasn’t seen
everything the game has to show.

Even though players in Japan can already enjoy the title,
Natsume is bringing over the title for a release on August 26 for the Nintendo
DS.

 


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