I remember not liking this game very much.
Granted, I grew up with HM64 and fell in love with the series. In that game, there was so much to do every single day, it would compel you to play into the next day. This feedback loop is very addicting in this way and I think it's what got so many people hooked on Stardew Valley today.
AWL is sloooow. The days are fewer and longer, but there is also just as much to do because everything else takes longer. Planting takes longer, feeding and caring animals takes longer, mining and scavenging takes longer, and the commute around town takes longer. This game does not respect your time and wants you to slow down, which would be good if it meant it ultimately amounted to something. But it kinda just...doesn't? Once you play past a certain amount of time in the game, there really isn't that much to do anymore. I know that's the case for every Harvest Moon, it's pretty much endless and at some point you just run out of stuff to do and then you just stop playing. But AWL hits that wall a lot harder and sooner. It goes without saying though, I never beat it either, despite the fact it actually does have an ending.
Some mechanics are just bizarre for a HM game too. You NEED to eat to have enough energy to do anything in the game, but the game won't tell you except for your characters own animations (that also takes up time). Getting milk from cows works the same way in real life, so you have to keep making your cow pregnant so it keeps making milk for longer than a year. You have limited barn space, so only a certain amount of cows can be kept before you have to start selling them. The game gives you a goat that's only good for 1 year too, but it only gives you 1 and no means to get more, so you just have to get rid of it I guess. Lol You're only limited to 3 bachelorette choices, which pales in comparison to just about every other HM and Stardew. They've all got distinct personalities, but if you don't really like any of them well then that's too damn bad cuz you gotta marry somebody before your first year of the game! Almost no holidays also keeps the town feeling less lively.
That's not to say I didn't enjoy some aspects of it though. Its outdoor atmosphere is greater than almost ever other HM (aside from 64). It's a more mature and realistic feeling HM compared to the more colorful and anime HMs, especially compared to the later titles. The game also has a surprising sense of humor to it too that other HMs are just too cutesy to even dare try. It's visually distinct and dared to be different in a series that eventually got way too cozy with it's formula.
So yeah, that's a 3 from me.
Granted, I grew up with HM64 and fell in love with the series. In that game, there was so much to do every single day, it would compel you to play into the next day. This feedback loop is very addicting in this way and I think it's what got so many people hooked on Stardew Valley today.
AWL is sloooow. The days are fewer and longer, but there is also just as much to do because everything else takes longer. Planting takes longer, feeding and caring animals takes longer, mining and scavenging takes longer, and the commute around town takes longer. This game does not respect your time and wants you to slow down, which would be good if it meant it ultimately amounted to something. But it kinda just...doesn't? Once you play past a certain amount of time in the game, there really isn't that much to do anymore. I know that's the case for every Harvest Moon, it's pretty much endless and at some point you just run out of stuff to do and then you just stop playing. But AWL hits that wall a lot harder and sooner. It goes without saying though, I never beat it either, despite the fact it actually does have an ending.
Some mechanics are just bizarre for a HM game too. You NEED to eat to have enough energy to do anything in the game, but the game won't tell you except for your characters own animations (that also takes up time). Getting milk from cows works the same way in real life, so you have to keep making your cow pregnant so it keeps making milk for longer than a year. You have limited barn space, so only a certain amount of cows can be kept before you have to start selling them. The game gives you a goat that's only good for 1 year too, but it only gives you 1 and no means to get more, so you just have to get rid of it I guess. Lol You're only limited to 3 bachelorette choices, which pales in comparison to just about every other HM and Stardew. They've all got distinct personalities, but if you don't really like any of them well then that's too damn bad cuz you gotta marry somebody before your first year of the game! Almost no holidays also keeps the town feeling less lively.
That's not to say I didn't enjoy some aspects of it though. Its outdoor atmosphere is greater than almost ever other HM (aside from 64). It's a more mature and realistic feeling HM compared to the more colorful and anime HMs, especially compared to the later titles. The game also has a surprising sense of humor to it too that other HMs are just too cutesy to even dare try. It's visually distinct and dared to be different in a series that eventually got way too cozy with it's formula.
So yeah, that's a 3 from me.