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[KojiKnight]

Unpopular opinion: worst harvest moon game by far. It's menu system Abd lack of quick select for items is almost infuriatingly bad and the translation and controls straight up are.


They essentially remade the same game only better on ps1 with back to nature, and made it perfect with Friends of Mineral Town on gba.

 

[oni-link]

As I said above, nothing indicates otherwise. Either their own comments on the issue nor history. So there is non reason to assume they won't in some way. That's not optimism, just basing speculation on facts.

Well nothing indicated the PS4 wouldn't launch with backwards compatibility considering the PS2 and PS3 did

The fact they haven't confirmed they will carry over when that would be an easy publicity win indicates they are probably going to add a catch (that costs money) or not carry over at all

I guess we'll see

 

[TheMoon]

Well nothing indicated the PS4 wouldn't launch with backwards compatibility considering the PS2 and PS3 did

The fact they haven't confirmed they will carry over when that would be an easy publicity win indicates they are probably going to add a catch (that costs money) or not carry over at all

I guess we'll see

"not carry over at all" is not an option based on Reggie's comments last month. Like I said, question is just if it costs an upgrade fee and how much it is. The PS comparison doesn't work here.

 

[oni-link]

"not carry over at all" is not an option based on Reggie's comments last month. Like I said, question is just if it costs an upgrade fee and how much it is. The PS comparison doesn't work here.

I was unaware of those comments

I can't see them having a virtual Wii U, in the same way the Wii U has a virtual Wii, so it will be interesting to see what happens

That said I'd be a lot happier about buying Wii U VC games if I knew how it would work on Switch

Considering we're under 2 weeks from launch I don't think I'm being unreasonable by wanting to know already

 

[Man God]

I'm so happy.

 

[batfax]

They essentially remade the same game only better on ps1 with back to nature, and made it perfect with Friends of Mineral Town on gba.

BtN is so unbelievably far from a remake it's ridiculous. It's a lot slower by design, has completely different personalities and relationships for almost all the characters, different festivals, and, to me, a lack of a challenge as big as "Achieve the best ending." The brisk pace of the days in HM64 in particular makes it really fun to play multiple times, as a few days can go by exceedingly quickly.

edit: Also really uncertain about the control complaints? The basics are as simple as can be, and certainly wasn't refined any significant degree by BtN. You can't even rotate the camera in BtN, which is weird considering the additional shoulder buttons.

 

[TheMoon]

I was unaware of those comments

I can't see them having a virtual Wii U, in the same way the Wii U has a virtual Wii, so it will be interesting to see what happens

That said I'd be a lot happier about buying Wii U VC games if I knew how it would work on Switch

Considering we're under 2 weeks from launch I don't think I'm being unreasonable by wanting to know already

There won't be a "virtual Wii U" on Switch so that's out, of course. They're gonna detail that stuff next week or later this week but next week is looking more likely at this point.

 

[RedToad64]

Also, it's the first N64 VC game that wasn't already on Wii VC before aside from DK64.

And ExciteBike 64...

 

[maxcriden]

Which one is the best Harvest Moon? I only played Back to Nature and that was so good

This (HM64) is the game that everyone thinks is the best. I really hope for their sakes that it isn't just nostalgia talking. My favorite is Magical Melody. If you liked Back to Nature you should probably check out Friends of Mineral Town or More Friends of Mineral Town.

Besides a GB entry or two, and those were pretty bare bones, I've played HM64, BTN and FOMT. Its bene many years but from what I recall those three games were very similar. 64 was my first of the three, then BTN with its brutal loading time, then FOMT. I think the newness to me of 64 and the portable nature of FOMT probably meant I was more eager to play those, but I remember finding all three pretty similar in terms of content and charm, though I do find the early 3D graphics more happening than the 2D for these games. Not that they didn't do a great job translating the game for GBA, because they absolutely did.

So, I'd be hard-pressed to say which of the three is in fact a better game than the other two. I remember my experience with the characters being similar across the three but the magical je ne sais quoi of HM being probably most apparent in 64... but that might've been because it was the first one I played in-depth. So. I'd be curious from someone who remembers them better and has played and enjoyed all three which one they liked best and why. I do remember some magicalness to BTN as well, and I'm sure FOMT was plenty special in its own right even if my memory of it is not quite as strong.

 

[Camjo-Z]

The king... has returned.

 

[TheMoon]

And ExciteBike 64...

Huh, that wasn't on Wii VC? Crazy. Thx!

 

[Teriyaki Blues]

Besides a GB entry or two, and those were pretty bare bones, I've played HM64, BTN and FOMT. Its bene many years but from what I recall those three games were very similar. 64 was my first of the three, then BTN with its brutal loading time, then FOMT. I think the newness to me of 64 and the portable nature of FOMT probably meant I was more eager to play those, but I remember finding all three pretty similar in terms of content and charm, though I do find the early 3D graphics more happening than the 2D for these games. Not that they didn't do a great job translating the game for GBA, because either absolutely did.

So, I'd ve hard-pressed to say which of the three is in fact a better game than the other two. I remember my experience with the characters being similar across the three but the magical je ne sais quoi of HM being probably most apparent in 64... but that might've been because it was the first one I played in-depth. So. I'd be curious from someone who remembers them better and has played and enjoyed all three which one they liked best and why. I do remember some magicalness to BTN as well, and I'm sure FOMT was plenty special in its own right even if my memory of it is not quite as strong.

You're right. They reused casts and settings liberally during the Yasuhiro Wada era of Harvest Moon aka Bokujō Monogatari. Even Magical Melody has a lot of returning cast. Often they'd change names, personality traits, and other details but the strong character resemblances can't be denied. In the case of some games they copy and pasted certain things wholesale while changing pretty much everything else. The Tree of Tranquility and Animal Parade games are one of the better examples of that.

I'm in my mid-40s so I had the luxury of playing each game as it came out. Generally speaking whichever one that fans had access to during their formative years seems to be their favorite. The Gen-Y/Millennials tend to pine after the A Wonderful Life games, where Gen-X kids venerate either HM64 or Back to Nature depending on if they had a Nintendo 64 or PlayStation system. Just my observation.

I think out of Harvest Moon 64, Back to Nature, and the Friends of Mineral Town games, I prefer Back to Nature. It felt easier to play and understand the goals in BtN and HM64 has a really tight game clock. I don't like feeling rushed and I highly recommend Animal Parade to anyone who wants a more relaxed playing experience. Back to Nature has aged the worst of those three because of the awful loading times and it never did get a port or straight HD remake that addressed the flaws in the game. That would have been nice. I think BtN also was the first entry with any multiplayer options at all, as it had an easily abused trading system between memory cards.

 

[maxcriden]

You're right. They reused casts and settings liberally during the Yasuhiro Wada era of Harvest Moon aka Bokujō Monogatari. Even Magical Melody has a lot of returning cast. Often they'd change names, personality traits, and other details but the strong character resemblances can't be denied. In the case of some games they copy and pasted certain things wholesale while changing pretty much everything else. The Tree of Tranquility and Animal Parade games are one of the better examples of that.

I'm in my mid-40s so I had the luxury of playing each game as it came out. Generally speaking whichever one that fans had access to during their formative years seems to be their favorite. The Gen-Y/Millennials tend to pine after the A Wonderful Life games, where Gen-X kids venerate either HM64 or Back to Nature depending on if they had a Nintendo 64 or PlayStation system. Just my observation.

I think out of Harvest Moon 64, Back to Nature, and the Friends of Mineral Town games, I prefer Back to Nature. It felt easier to play and understand the goals in BtN and HM64 has a really tight game clock. I don't like feeling rushed and I highly recommend Animal Parade to anyone who wants a more relaxed playing experience. Back to Nature has aged the worst of those three because of the awful loading times and it never did get a port or straight HD remake that addressed the flaws in the game. That would have been nice. I think BtN also was the first entry with any multiplayer options at all, as it had an easily abused trading system between memory cards.

Mm, thanks for your insights, TB, they're much appreciated. I hadn't realized from your forst post that I'd quoted that you had played 64. BTW, do you remember which of these three had the best festivals and which was the one with the Kai arc where he washed ashore?
I do remember the tightness of the clock in 64 but it never occurred to me as a kid that the clocks could differ between the games. I remember mining way past my bedtime (in the game and IRL, most likely) in I think 64 and/or FOMT. From what I recall the layout of the town in BTN was a bit more labyrinthine and made the days feel a bit shorter than they actually were just navigating the landscape in and out of the town - in 64 at least it felt very straightforward to me and probably thr lack of load times contributed to that feeling.

I'm curious what you think of the AC games. When I started losing interest in sim games was around the time I tried AC and it just didn't have the right feel for me growing up on HM. I felt like the dynamics between the characters didn't capture the "feeling of being an adult" I sought.

 

[Deadpool_X]

Make it a Switch VC launch title.

 

[Spukc]

Make it a Switch VC launch title.

yup

 

[Teriyaki Blues]

Mm, thanks for your insights, TB, they're much appreciated. I hadn't realized from your forst post that I'd quoted that you had played 64. BTW, do you remember which of these three had the best festivals and which was the one with the Kai arc where he washed ashore?
I do remember the tightness of the clock in 64 but it never occurred to me as a kid that the clocks could differ between the games. I remember mining way past my bedtime (in the game and IRL, most likely) in I think 64 and/or FOMT. From what I recall the layout of the town in BTN was a bit more labyrinthine and made the days feel a bit shorter than they actually were just navigating the landscape in and out of the town - in 64 at least it felt very straightforward to me and probably thr lack of load times contributed to that feeling.

I'm curious what you think of the AC games. When I started losing interest in sim games was around the time I tried AC and it just didn't have the right feel for me growing up on HM. I felt like the dynamics between the characters didn't capture the "feeling of being an adult" I sought.

Kai is in so many of the games (6 between HM64, BtN, BtN: For Girls, FoMT, MFoMT, and his Magical Melody replacement named Dan) that I don't remember which one he washed up on shore in. I want to say the BtN games, since he worked at the beach shack in those. That's just a guess though.

HM64 has the best Festivals. Out of HM64, BtN, and FoMT. Magical Melody secretly has the best Festivals overall.

Animal Crossing and other similar games are fun for about two months for me and then I lose interest in them. There's a relaxed time schedule and then there's a real time schedule. The latter is just too slow to hold my interest for very long. The Disney Magical World games are a nice comprise between the two but they also don't hold my interest for more than a couple of months. Less if I manage to compete the whole storyline quickly. There are also no waifus which is a crippling flaw.

 

[maxcriden]

Kai is in so many of the games (6 between HM64, BtN, BtN: For Girls, FoMT, MFoMT, and his Magical Melody replacement named Dan) that I don't remember which one he washed up on shore in. I want to say the BtN games, since he worked at the beach shack in those. That's just a guess though.

HM64 has the best Festivals.

Animal Crossing and other similar games are fun for about two months for me and then I lose interest in them. There's a relaxed time schedule and then there's a real time schedule. The latter is just too slow to hold my interest for very long. The Disney Magical World games are a nice comprise between the two but they also don't hold my interest for more than a couple of months. Less if I manage to compete the whole storyline quickly. There are also no waifus which is a crippling flaw.

Gotcha, thanks TB! I thought I remembered HM64 having particularly excellent festivals but wasn't sure if that was nostalgia talking. There were some cool fansites I remember visiting for the N64/PSX/GBA HMs back in the day that had great guides... I was mostly focused on the relationships, animal care and festivals...and hidden secrets, which always seemed plentiful...over the farming itself, in those games. (I always liked the Gourmet (whose name I always misremember as Gourmand) and was psyched when he would show up at a festival because IIRC that meant food and cooking were involved. The cooking in the HM games I enjoyed quite a bit, I almost enjoyed reading about it online more than experimenting with recipes I think, lol. But, the cooking in those games probably spurred on my IRL interest in cooking quite a bit. On a side note, if you've ever watched Masterchef Australia, the judge Matt Preston looks quite a bit like the Gourmet - worth googling to see the resemblance if you're not familiar with him!)

I completely agree with you about the real time schedule of the AC games. I didn't quite put my finger on it previously but I think that's a big part of what put me off also. It really does slacken the pace too much for what I looked for in a life sim game. And as you said, the lack of romantic entanglement makes for a less compelling journey for your character.

Have you played the Boku no Natsuyasumu games at all? I'd like to try one when my Japanese is a bit better than it is now.

 

[Teriyaki Blues]

Have you played the Boku no Natsuyasumu games at all? I'd like to try one when my Japanese is a bit better than it is now.

No. I don't speak Japanese at all. Outside of a few catch phrases, common terms, and stuff that you just kind of pick up if you watch a lot of anime that is.

Boku no Natsuyasumi is a game I've always been interested in but have never played due to the language barrier. I know Ray Barnholt is a big fan of that series, so you should check out SCROLL 10: SUMMER. He's the person who got me interested in Millennium Kitchen and Kaz Ayabe.

Please enjoy your newfound addiction. Also see: Lost in Blue 1-3 for the Nintendo DS.

 

[SolVanderlyn]

I may play this for the first time in 20 years.

Oh wait, PAL... nvm.

 

[Galang]

This is great! Hopefully we can get more N64 third party games on VC. Konami come on

 

[theaffection]

Is it better than Back to Nature?

BtN is much better suited for farming, foraging, fishing etc. so like all the technical aspects. Has cooking while HM64 doesn't.


HM64 beats BtN in atmosphere, characters, dialogue, soundtrack etc. The town design of HM64 is much better too IMO



Harvest Moon 64 is a farming sim where mostly everyone in it is either depressed or alcoholic. What's not to like?

 

[Kirie]

People are going to lose their minds over this.

Edit: Even if it hits the US, I'm going to wait until we see how good the emulation is, because Nintendo said it was impossible without major problems. And Natsume has been doing anything for the almighty dollar since Marvelous kicked them to the curb, so I'm wary.

2: Just had another thought on this subject. If this does come to NA within the next two weeks it is going to lower my already negative opinion on Natsume, the timing cannot be a coincidence. Just like World of Warcraft used to release major content patches in the same release window as other MMORPG launches. Snakey little trick to undercut competitor sales.

Yup, glad I wasn't the only one thinking that. A sound business move I guess but I personally won't be buying it until after I've bought and played Trio of Towns.


It's coming to NA later this week too according to CeeCee.

http://www.natsume.com/community/showthread.php?p=160863#post160863

 

[maxcriden]

No. I don't speak Japanese at all. Outside of a few catch phrases, common terms, and stuff that you just kind of pick up if you watch a lot of anime that is.

Boku no Natsuyasumi is a game I've always been interested in but have never played due to the language barrier. I know Ray Barnholt is a big fan of that series, so you should check out SCROLL 10: SUMMER. He's the person who got me interested in Millennium Kitchen and Kaz Ayabe.

Please enjoy your newfound addiction. Also see: Lost in Blue 1-3 for the Nintendo DS.

Thanks man, will check it out for sure. Never heard of Millenium Kitchen or Kaz Ayabe. I've heard of LiB but don't know much about those games - I'll check out all of the above, though. Thanks again!

 

[Alex_Mexico]

Oh goody. A new WiiU VC title a week before the switch. A console which we still know jack shit about its online services especially its VC and account system.

When are we going to learn about Switch's VC btw?

Also, it's the first N64 VC game that wasn't already on Wii VC before aside from DK64.

This is just pathetic.

 

[maxcriden]

Oh goody. A new WiiU VC title a week before the switch. A console which we still know jack shit about its online services especially its VC and account system.

When are we going to learn about Switch's VC btw?

This is just pathetic.

Not meaning to give you a hard time, but why is it pathetic? FWIW, Excitebike was mentioned above as one more title that wasn't on N64 VC. Nintendo can only put first party N64 games on the service. They also can't release any Rare games. Based on this list: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Nintendo_64_games, and excluding peripheral-requiring games, that doesn't leave very much.

 

[Teriyaki Blues]

Yup, glad I wasn't the only one thinking that. A sound business move I guess but I personally won't be buying it until after I've bought and played Trio of Towns.


It's coming to NA later this week too according to CeeCee.

http://www.natsume.com/community/showthread.php?p=160863#post160863

I'm glad someone else saw it because I was worried I was being paranoid or too hypercritical. I played WoW for 10 years or so and they always seemed to just "coincidentally" have a huge, polished content patch ready to go on the launch weekend for every other halfway decent MMORPG. Once is chance, twice is coincidence, three times is enemy action.

Thanks man, will check it out for sure. Never heard of Millenium Kitchen or Kaz Ayabe. I've heard of LiB but don't know much about those games - I'll check out all of the above, though. Thanks again!

Yeah, don't get discouraged by review scores on the LiB games. If you like what you see when you're doing research you will enjoy playing them. It is always weird to me how low niche sim games score on reviews. Not really a popular category for the professionals. I tend to trust people like Jeremy Parish and Janine Hawkins because I know they do like this kind of game more than the average bear.

 

[RampagingSoul]

People are going to lose their minds over this.

Edit: Even if it hits the US, I'm going to wait until we see how good the emulation is, because Nintendo said it was impossible without major problems. And Natsume has been doing anything for the almighty dollar since Marvelous kicked them to the curb, so I'm wary.

2: Just had another thought on this subject. If this does come to NA within the next two weeks it is going to lower my already negative opinion on Natsume, the timing cannot be a coincidence. Just like World of Warcraft used to release major content patches in the same release window as other MMORPG launches. Snakey little trick to undercut competitor sales.

Yeah, I was going to wait anyway since I have Story of Seasons: Trio of Towns to play far as Bokujō Monogatari games go (Harvest Moon) since it's out next week (going to preorder soon probably). The emulation quality is what I want to know about, even in accordance with other N64 games since emulation for those have had issues on Wii U in general compared to Wii Virtual Console releases of N64 games.

Need to finish up Rune Factory 4 soon... That game is a time sink with how I've been playing it over the years since it came out, even more than some previous games in the series or even other Bokujō Monogatari games.

 

[Shotgun Kiss]

I live in the UK, and imported Harvest Moon 64 when it orginally released in the US. It quickly became one of my favourite games of all time.

It's EASILY the best Harvest Moon game, and for years I've wanted a re-release of some kind.

But... we now live in a world where Stardew Valley is a thing. They're too late. HM64 may be the best HM game, but it still pales in comparison to SV.

 

[MarkusRJR]

Wow I'm super excited. I've only ever played the SNES Harvest Moon and Stardew Valley but I've heard the N64 one is the best.

It's strange how all the good N64 VC games are coming out lately. Weird timing, especially since last year's Wii U line up was bare.

 

[El Sabroso]

It's strange how all the good N64 VC games are coming out lately. Weird timing, especially since last year's Wii U line up was bare.

makes me think, Smash 64 could be getting to Wii U almost at Switch's launch window

 

[RedToad64]

Fingers crossed for Mario Party 3 on Wii U Virtual Console next year.

Yeah, what took them so long? You would almost think the N64 part of the service started a few weeks ago.

I suppose I should thankful that we are even getting them.

 

[Robin64]

So it's up. Direct shots to show how "dark" it is.

 

[Teriyaki Blues]

So it's up. Direct shots to show how "dark" it is.

What's the nighttime lighting like? Pitch black I'd guess from those screens. Why do they keep ruining VC games like this?

N64 version: