A lot of expectations fell upon Harvest Moon: A New Beginning as it was the first 3DS-only Harvest Moon. It also wound up the last real Harvest Moon, as its sequel became Story of Seasons in the West and the Harvest Moon name became associated with whatever shovelware Natsume is putting out these days.
Which is ironic, because this iteration took bold new steps for the franchise, putting you in charge of rebuilding not only the a farm, but also the town surrounding it. The setup for the game is the usual: you're a newcomer moving into Echo Village to become a farmer. However, as you get there, you're met with townsfolk departing in search of better opportunities.
As it turns out, the town has become deserted over the years, making it impossible to run a business in it. Your objective is to attract new people to town by constructing new buildings, generating revenue through the farm, winning festivals, among other things, turning the deserted village into a bustling town once again.
This involves assembling blueprints and materials for everything in your farm and the town, and physically placing down each item built. You can fully customize everything: your town has the layout you want it to have, while the farm can be assembled for maximum efficiency or aesthetics -- however you like it. There are multiple types of fields to use, as well as many facilities to build.
The degree of customization the game offers does mean that the town starts out nearly empty, though. If it seems weird to start a Harvest Moon game like that, it's actually not. In my experience, the start for these games is the hardest part, as you have to get to know the entire map and population. A New Beginning lets you slowly get used to the mechanics and your tasks as the town is rebuilt.
It builds a real sense of progress, and also makes it feel like each villager you bring in was someone you wanted to be there, since you have to work for them to move in. That, and the game takes the time to introduce them individually, and let you learn about and befriend each batch before the next one arrives.
Besides, depending on what kind of player you are, it's possible you begin each season by creating long and elaborate task lists for each season, often consulting guides to do so. Having stuff made gradually available, and with clear goals, gives you a bit more room for error, as well as time for unrelated things you might want to do.
Unfortunately, as much as I like the progression, I have to admit its balance is one of the game's greatest shortcomings. The game doesn't want you to go too fast, see, and sometimes it puts arbitrary barriers in your way to slow you down. These barriers are usually items obtained by means of luck (like ores) or, in the worst case, that are only available after certain dates (seeds).
To illustrate how harshly this slows down the game: your main goal is to complete the five Town Restoration Plans. I completed Town Restoration Plan #1 by the end of Spring, #2 during the first week of Summer, #3 in Fall 8th, then #4 in Year 2, Fall 7th. An entire one year wait, simply because one single task in TRP#4 requires a vegetable whose seeds are only available in Y2 Fall.
And during all that time, TRP#5 characters, including the best bachelors in the game, Amir and Sanjay, are locked away from you. Best? Scratch that. The only good bachelors in the game. Neil, Allen and Soseki take pleasure in belittling you, while Rod looks like a child. Amir and Sanjay are the only pleasant ones, but marrying either of them means you won't have a child until Y4, by when it's possible to already have completed the game.
Naturally, ANB doesn't let you marry people of the same sex as you: the Best Friend system is nowhere in sight in this entry, and as of 2022, the series only recently started including these marriages post-launch. It's a shame, more options might have alleviated the marriage issue, and some of the girls are pretty lovable. I still think they could have written men that are less of berating a-holes, though? Just a thought.
Anyway, enough ranting about husbandos. Criticisms aside, I do believe ANB was a huge step forward for the series, and I was sad, later on, to see some of the innovations it brought didn't make it over to Story of Seasons. It does have a slower pace, and that might drive old-time fans away, but those who stay will find that there's a rewarding experience to be had in rebuilding Echo Village.
Which is ironic, because this iteration took bold new steps for the franchise, putting you in charge of rebuilding not only the a farm, but also the town surrounding it. The setup for the game is the usual: you're a newcomer moving into Echo Village to become a farmer. However, as you get there, you're met with townsfolk departing in search of better opportunities.
As it turns out, the town has become deserted over the years, making it impossible to run a business in it. Your objective is to attract new people to town by constructing new buildings, generating revenue through the farm, winning festivals, among other things, turning the deserted village into a bustling town once again.
This involves assembling blueprints and materials for everything in your farm and the town, and physically placing down each item built. You can fully customize everything: your town has the layout you want it to have, while the farm can be assembled for maximum efficiency or aesthetics -- however you like it. There are multiple types of fields to use, as well as many facilities to build.
The degree of customization the game offers does mean that the town starts out nearly empty, though. If it seems weird to start a Harvest Moon game like that, it's actually not. In my experience, the start for these games is the hardest part, as you have to get to know the entire map and population. A New Beginning lets you slowly get used to the mechanics and your tasks as the town is rebuilt.
It builds a real sense of progress, and also makes it feel like each villager you bring in was someone you wanted to be there, since you have to work for them to move in. That, and the game takes the time to introduce them individually, and let you learn about and befriend each batch before the next one arrives.
Besides, depending on what kind of player you are, it's possible you begin each season by creating long and elaborate task lists for each season, often consulting guides to do so. Having stuff made gradually available, and with clear goals, gives you a bit more room for error, as well as time for unrelated things you might want to do.
Unfortunately, as much as I like the progression, I have to admit its balance is one of the game's greatest shortcomings. The game doesn't want you to go too fast, see, and sometimes it puts arbitrary barriers in your way to slow you down. These barriers are usually items obtained by means of luck (like ores) or, in the worst case, that are only available after certain dates (seeds).
To illustrate how harshly this slows down the game: your main goal is to complete the five Town Restoration Plans. I completed Town Restoration Plan #1 by the end of Spring, #2 during the first week of Summer, #3 in Fall 8th, then #4 in Year 2, Fall 7th. An entire one year wait, simply because one single task in TRP#4 requires a vegetable whose seeds are only available in Y2 Fall.
And during all that time, TRP#5 characters, including the best bachelors in the game, Amir and Sanjay, are locked away from you. Best? Scratch that. The only good bachelors in the game. Neil, Allen and Soseki take pleasure in belittling you, while Rod looks like a child. Amir and Sanjay are the only pleasant ones, but marrying either of them means you won't have a child until Y4, by when it's possible to already have completed the game.
Naturally, ANB doesn't let you marry people of the same sex as you: the Best Friend system is nowhere in sight in this entry, and as of 2022, the series only recently started including these marriages post-launch. It's a shame, more options might have alleviated the marriage issue, and some of the girls are pretty lovable. I still think they could have written men that are less of berating a-holes, though? Just a thought.
Anyway, enough ranting about husbandos. Criticisms aside, I do believe ANB was a huge step forward for the series, and I was sad, later on, to see some of the innovations it brought didn't make it over to Story of Seasons. It does have a slower pace, and that might drive old-time fans away, but those who stay will find that there's a rewarding experience to be had in rebuilding Echo Village.