A brand-new Harvest Moon game has been announced by creators Natsume and Rising Star Games, just in time for the series’ 20 th anniversary. Harvest Moon: Light of Hope will be the first ever Harvest Moon game to be available on the PC, and it is also being released for the PS4 and the Nintendo Switch.
The Harvest Moon franchise is a series of games that have a simple premise on the surface, a farming simulator where you can make friends with the townsfolk and start a family. However, the stories that each Harvest Moon game tell bring a level of depth to the games. In addition to growing crops and caring for farm animals, each Harvest Moon game has additional goals that keep the game interesting. For example, in Harvest Moon: Magical Melody , the player moves into a town and is contacted by several Harvest Sprites that beg the player for help in restoring the Harvest Goddess who has been turned into stone. Throughout Harvest Moon: Magical Melody , the player performs actions that result in the collection of a musical note. Collect enough musical notes, and the Harvest Goddess will be restored.
The townsfolk of the Harvest Moon games also bring a lot to the table regarding storytelling. Speaking to a character every day to build up a relationship, whether platonic or romantic, will reveal different lines of dialogue, and different ways for the player to interact with said character. The stories that each character has to tell throughout the various Harvest Moon games are sometimes humorous, sometimes sad, but are always interesting.
Harvest Moon: Light of Hope is the newest game in the Harvest Moon family. The game begins with the player on a ship, heading to a new home. A storm suddenly rises and the ship sinks. An article in Twinfinate gives the official game description from Natsume.
“As they drift into a small harbor town, now in a shambles from the storm, it will be up to the player to help rebuild the town and save the lighthouse…but it won’t be easy! Nevertheless, with some hard work growing crops, tending livestock, and gathering materials for repairs, players will be able to make new friends, start a family, revive the lighthouse, and save the town.”
Natsume will be bringing Harvest Moon: Light of Hope to E3 2017 so that players can try it out, and form an opinion about it. Harvest Moon: Light of Hope will be going back to its Super Nintendo roots in terms of style and story-telling, according to IGN .
“ Harvest Moon: Light of Hope will set itself apart from other Harvest Moon titles with its depth,” said Natsume president and CEO, Hiro Maekawa. “We set out to create an SNES-style nostalgic game with deep and meaningful characters and events, and we are excited to have our fans play it at E3 and tell us what they think!”
Natsume is planning a full year of celebration for the 20 th anniversary of their Harvest Moon series of games. The announcement of Harvest Moon: Light of Hope is just the tip of the iceberg. Natsume has already been hard at work with plans for the celebration. Recently they have re-released Harvest Moon: A Wonderful Life Special Edition and Harvest Moon: Save the Homeland for the PS4, and have made a Wii U version of Harvest Moon 64 . There is also a Harvest Moon mobile game , Harvest Moon Lil’ Farmers , on the way, reports GameSpot .
With the re-releases of old favorites and introductions to new Harvest Moon worlds, fans of the Harvest Moon game series have a lot to look forward to in the coming months. Who knows what other surprises Natsume has up their sleeves for this anniversary celebration. Fans will just have to wait and see.
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