Harvestella, we’ve discovered a new Harvest Moon impersonator with lots of cards to play.

Agriculture is undeniably one of the most important human activities, considering we wouldn’t quite get to where we are right now. After all, an old man who is not particularly wise, but who is at least aware and aware of the main function of his stomach, might say we should eat. Many people are surprised when farming and video games meet as if they are two very distant and irreconcilable worlds living on different existential levels. Indeed, it is only natural that such an important field is somehow represented by the media, including video games. After all, custom games like Harvest Moon, Farming Simulator, Stardew Valley, and all other variants like Sakuna: of Rice and Ruin are usually very successful. So it’s no surprise that Square Enix has decided to have a say in the genre and launch a game that looks really promising, as you’ll find out by reading this. Harvestella special.

History

The game’s story tells of four giant crystals called Lighthousethat regulates the seasons and energizes all life forms on the planet. Unfortunately, one day the Lighthouses begin to show malfunctions with very serious consequences: In the transitions between the seasons, the Quietus, the season of death, manifests itself in the form of dust emerging from the crystals. all life forms. Thus the fields cannot produce anything, and people risk starving to death or even not being able to go out in search of food. The main character is an ecstatic girl in a remote village, apparently unnamed (will the player give her one? Presumably). When She wakes up, she meets Aria, a scientist researching Quietus. From here begins the adventure that will take the two women to discover what happened to Seaslight.

gameplay

Comes as a blend of Harvestella Japanese role-playing game and farming simulator in which the stages of maintenance of fields, social life and adventure must be alternately changed. These are three intertwined but distinct stages of the game that are typical of the genre. In moments of so-called daily life, the protagonist will have to perform raising, cooking, raising animals, fishing and all other actions that characterize the productive side of the game, through an intuitive system very similar to that seen in the game. other titles of the same genre. . Then fields, planting, tillage, etc. will be divided into boxes where you can perform various actions such as

After harvesting, the resulting products can be traded to collect coins. You can also use them if you wish. recipes. Cooking is a core activity, as it not only allows you to feed the characters, but also allows you to create dishes with various beneficial effects, such as restoring life points or bonuses to traits. The hero will also be able to build objects using raw materials found while traveling the game world, including personal equipment.

There social life it’s exactly what it sounds like: near the hero’s estate there is a village where you can go and talk amicably with its inhabitants. While walking on the streets, you can enter a bar and experience the activities of the four seasons. Some non-player characters will also entrust us with quests that will give us classic rewards. There is also talk of the possibility of some characters becoming partners by following their stories. Basically there will be some love storiesFor those who love emotional intrigue.

Finally, there is the adventure phase where you have to pierce the weapons in your hand. dungeon and clean them. There are various dungeons scattered throughout the game world, all filled with enemies and all with style determined by reference seasons. In addition to the terrestrial dungeons, there will also be sea dungeons that can be reached using a comfortable submarine (we do not know if they are immediately accessible).

The combat system will withstand coordinated attacks between the various characters of the used group, allowing you to quickly switch from one class to another. Classes will be different. For now, they’re presented with the warrior, the Shadow Walker (basically a warrior fighting with two blades), and the mage’s. Each enemy will have strengths and weaknesses, so the player will have to use different classes to continue.

In reality, the three phases are not so clearly divided in the sense that the player can choose how to face their day and devote himself to one or the other activity. Days change from morning to evening, and the seasons change every thirty days. Each season brings with it different crops to diversify agricultural activity as much as possible. The only exception is the aforementioned silenceWhere deadly dust withered crops and forced people to barricade inside.

characters

Talking about characters, there will be many primary and other secondary ones. Primers include Aria, the scientist who studies Quietus as noted. In reality, his goals are multiple because he comes from the future and also needs to find a way back in time. Asyl is a young man living in the village near the Sea Light of Spring. He is part of the Argus Brigade and is loved by his fellow countrymen for his outspoken and honest personality. Finally, Shrika is a missionary of the Sea Light Sect, who fights the blades of light and tries to solve the problems she encounters. It’s unclear if there will be other characters as well, but we’re speculating that these are just the main characters and could possibly be used in dungeons.

From a technical standpoint, Harvestella seems to be well done, considering it has the Nintendo Switch as its reference console. The graphics look varied and colorful with tons of special effects and some really happy looking options. The overall style is one that attracts the anime world, so it’s nothing particularly new, but it seems to be very well done overall.