Harvest Moon DS Cute for Nintendo DS Reviews by Gamers

Don't get me wrong. I love this game to death. It's addictive, and as advertised, adorable. With a ton of events, an extra eligible bachelor (or a bundle if you have Friends of Mineral Town), and some nifty little accessories that make your life a lot easier, I'll be playing this one for a while to come before I send it back. The overhead view and familiar sprites gives it that old-school feel, throwing me back to the fond days of PS1.

Harvest Moon: Back to Nature didn't quite give me hand cramps like this one, though. One of my two complaints is the animal-care minigames, which all basically involve the same thing: frantically rubbing the touchscreen back and forth as fast as humanly possible to try to max out affection or product gain via the Touch Glove. It's a chore that makes me dread going to bed and shy away from buying any more animals. However, it'd not actually necessary... but your animals will gain hearts a lot more slowly without.

My only other complaint is the expenses. Unlike some of the previous games, you don't start with a barn or even a coop. Instead you must save up to have one built out of grass, wood, stone, or gold lumber. Anything but gold lumber has a chance to fall down in a storm, killing the unfortunate livestock within... grass even has a chance to fall down in the sun! Stone's your best bet, since the only way to get Gold Lumber is an event in Winter that gives you just one, or to buy it with the construction, which is extremely expensive, and you'll need that money for other things, with 16 buildings/upgrades to be had (even the Bath Room and Toilet Room must be bought seperate). The expenses tend to add up. Well, at least there's a use for those pesky rocks, now!

For all my whining, still a great game. Just keep at it, and you'll have a respectable farm in no time!