Rune Factory: A Fantasy Harvest Moon for Nintendo DS Reviews by Gamers

If a man walked up to you fifteen years ago and told you a farming simulator video game would amass a cult following around the world, you'd laugh. But never the less, he'd be right. The Harvest Moon series has spawned a version on multiple systems and popped up in multiple countries all around the world. It's been the same formula every game: farm, get married, farm more. That may sound boring, but somehow, it never was. Still, it seems the developers decided to mix it up a notch. That's where Rune Factory comes in. The tried and true formula of the series hasn't changed, overall. They just added something new. And it spices up the game. It's something I like to call an action RPG.

The series now places you in a serious story, not just one to explain why you're stuck farming. You're put into the shoes of Raguna, who is discovered by Mist, a kind yet odd girl. Very odd. Upon waking, Raguna discovers he seems to have obtained amnesia (gasp!). Mist uses your weakness to her advantage and puts you straight to work on her farm. But all isn't well. As you approach the farm, a monster is lurking there in wait. The valiant hero you are, you must rush to Mist's aid with your trusty hoe in hand.

That's where this game differs from every Harvest Moon in the past. It has battles. Actually pretty fun battles. The battles are all real time, too, so you don't have to worry about wait times or any of that. Don't worry, the system of farming is relatively the same, with a few curve balls thrown in to spice things up, like skill levels, which reflects how good you are at something by how much you do it. You can fight, farm, or mine, but no matter what you're doing, it's fun.

The game takes the best of Harvest Moon, mixes it with some fun fighting and a fun, albeit cliché, story, and gives you the reins. Do you want to only farm and never fight, okay. Do you want to hack and slash to heck and back. Your call. Because in Rune Factory, your virtual life is yours to command.

I love the many levels of detail for farming, cooking, gathering, monstering. I have a hard time fitting in all the tasks needed in a day but that's why it's addictive. This will keep my Monster Hunter addiction at bay until the Unite title comes out. Glad that MH doesn't force you to talk to every person after each hunt!