Oddities of Harvest Moon: A Wonderful Life

Ever play a game riddled with things that just... didn't seem quite right? Or spend hours doing research on a rumor that you heard, only to find out that it wasn't true? I know I have. What's your favorite rumors, tropes, or underlying themes in games? Is there something in a game that is slid under the radar making it more "E" rated? My favorite game that has examples of both would have to be from Harvest Moon: A Wonderful Life. Here are a couple of my favorite 'wtf' moments.

• The rumor that Rock is adopted. Ah man, this gets me every single time. Probably because it's most likely true. The thought of Rock being happily adopted with parents who never bothered to tell him makes me laugh, as Rock is just happy go lucky in his own little world. Rocks bears absolutely no resemblance to either of his parents. His parents are hard working people of Asian descent with black hair. Rock is white, laid back, blond, and 'lazy' doesn't even cover it. His parents don't even seem to like him, and they aren't seen conversing much in the game. Even as a kid I asked myself, "am I crazy or is there something wrong with this picture?"

They totally look related.

• The rumor of being able to get a chihuahua and a lizard.  I remember researching this for myself for hours without coming up with any result. It bothered me that there were these animals out there I thought I could get or my farm! It was a widely spread rumor that a lot of people believed to be true which I think just made things even worse. To this day, people still believe that this fact may be true, but it's not.

• "Cheating Husband" If you've watched all of a girl's three heart events, and continue to maintain your friendship but marry ANOTHER girl, you will witness cut scenes of the jealous girl coming to your house, verbally abusing you night after night. If you try to talk to the girl, she'll explain that she's mad at you, but will soften up after gifts. It's implied that you have a "woman" on the side, as you're trying to maintain a friendship and impress another woman, but you don't really. There's no cheating in Harvest Moon!

• Grant and Samantha's awkward marriage. Samantha is.. a crazy, crazy woman.. never could stand her. It is heavily implied in the game that she's an incredibly bossy, demanding and controlling wife and mother. She constantly tries to control the way that her daughter acts and dresses. Grant appears in the game as a "businessman", when really, he purposely gets up early to leave his house before his wife wakes up. He stays out as LONG as he can to avoid his wife, and even when he does come home, he goes directly to the bar. In Harvest Moon DS, Grant and Samantha are divorced. Samantha dumps Kate on Grant, and leaves him for another man. It's implied that she left because Grant worked too much and never paid any attention to her, but I think it's her fault as much as his.

• Murry and "Po-Po Valley". Did anybody else hear as a kid that Murrey would go back to Po-Po Valley if you donated enough money? I sure did! What a mistake that was, handing over all of my hard earned dollars. Instead, that bum steals food out of my fridge when I'm not looking and begs for the other villager's hard earned dollars.

• Daryl's strange mannerisms. I'm sure that one or two of you were afraid of Daryl as a kid playing AWL. He's a weird guy. He's one of those characters that just doesn't quite fit. Not to mention that he has a creepy fascination with your child, and he can be often seen peeping into your windows when you're not looking to "observe" your son. CREEPY. His fixation on your cows was also something that made you back away slowly and run the other direction when you saw this guy pacing around your farm. He then tries to capture Makumuku in winter time. He was definitely the "weird" factor for this game, and maintains this title even to this day throughout the series.

• The rumors surrounding Carter and Flora's relationship. Just like in real life, rumors are started that are... well.. rumors. Although it seems like Carter and Flora are going buck wild in their tent every night, the two are completely oblivious. If you talk to Carter and Flora, the idea about a relationship has never even crossed their minds, and they seem totally unaware that the villagers think differently. Their innocence about their situation is just plain adorable to me. Strangely enough though, when Harvest Moon: DS was released, Carter and Flora were both marriage candidates. They are also paired as a rival couple. So hmm, its up to you decide on that one!

• Patrick's Crush. The subject is nothing to joke about, but Harvest Moon somehow managed to slide pedophilia into the game under the radar. If you talk to Patrick when Lumina is nearby, he makes comments that very heavily imply that he has a crush on her. Now, while Lumina is technically 18 in the game, Patrick is still in his 50's and the reference is odd. You never really pick up on it as a kid, but you go back to play the game, realize it and go, "well that's wrong."

• Daachan the Bear. There's a bear that you're able to purchase from Van for your child. Throughout the course of the game, there's several cut scenes that indicated that this teddy bear is actually real. The bear creeped me out so badly that I wish I had never purchased it for my child. Late at night (on two different occasions), Daachan can be seen seen stealing food out of your fridge. Your child also speaks (or is presumably) speaking to the bear on a couple of occasions. The bear can also be seen walking, if he's laying on the floor out of place. You can also zoom in on the bear and stare it for a couple of in game hours - and the bear 's head will be turning side to side. o_o Not to mention that the bear also breaths... to this day, it's one of those things in a Harvest Moon game that legitimately freaked me out.

• Bad parenting. You may or may not have witnessed an example of bad parenting if you married Nami. Nami is hardly ever at home, even when your child is a toddler. Although the other spouses that you can marry will leave your farm during the day, Nami does this much more then the other candidates. She stays out late (often past 10PM at night), and frequently visits the bar. When your son is a teenager, she tends to have a short temper, and often fights with your son. Nami's son will be one of the most depressed as a teenager, partially because of Nami's behavior, and he mentions this if you try to talk to him. Maybe Nami wasn't cut out for this whole parenting thing.

First Impressions: Silent Hill Downpour

It took me 9 hours, but I finally finished Silent Hill: Downpour a couple of weeks ago.  Being that I am a hardcore fan of the Silent Hill series (if you've read my mile long post of previous Silent Hill games), I thought I'd share my thoughts and opinions on the game after finishing it for my first time.

Being that I played the game blind the first time, I played on easy monster difficulty as well as easy puzzle difficulty. It was somewhat of a casual play through, and I missed a lot of collectibles, easter eggs and side quests. I plan on doing a second (at the very least) play through in the future. I managed to get the "Truth and Justice" ending my first time through, which isn't too bad, all things considered.

Alright, enough rambling.. on to the review/thoughts/opinions thing!

Pros

1. Murphy was a great protagonist.

Although Murphy seems to have received a lot of criticism, something about his character made me love the guy. He has a very unique demeanor, and his story and attitude seem to differ from other protagonists in the series. It was a refreshing change from Travis Grady and Alex Shepard, both of whom I'm not too big a fan of.

Murphy, in a lot of ways reminds me of Harry Mason (<3). While Murphy does technically commit a major sin (in all endings except for the A ending), his actions may seem justifiable by some. Murphy is somewhat of a small time criminal, only getting imprisoned after stealing a car and evading police. Besides that, he has a clean record, and seems to be somewhat of an upstanding guy. Murphy's time in Silent Hill (like Harry Mason) seems somewhat unfair, as he can be seen more or less as "innocent" (in comparison to some of the previous protagonists in the series). Murphy feels "real", and he displays such emotion in game that I really do believe that he does feel immense amounts of guilt, and that he is truly confused and afraid.

The symbolism of Murphy being a prisoner "trapped" in his own mind works perfectly, and this reflects on his character even before the events of Silent Hill. Some may find it strange that Murphy is one of the only protagonists who shows true fear, but I absolutely love it. It shows terror in a horror situation, adds a touch of realism, and gives the player a sense of panic. It creates a tense atmosphere, and shows that Murphy isn't an "invisible hero" and that he's just a regular joe. 'Nuff said. Love him. Moving on.

2. References to past Silent Hill games.

Yes, yes, yes! I love references! There were some some very well executed references from past Silent Hill games. Here are some examples:

• An EXACT replica of Henry Townshend's apartment that you're even able to visit, located right in the town of Silent Hill. Unfortunately I didn't get to go to Room 302 during my play through, phooey. :(
• There were a couple of references to Alessa Gillespie, including the presence of wheelchairs throughout Silent Hill, as well as having to chase a young girl as the main character. There is also a portrait of her in the Centennial Building.
• Murphy can examine a photograph and will mention that this "must be somebody's special place." This is a reference to Silent Hill 2.
• There's a large truck that's stopped on the side of the road near the bridge area. This may or may not be a reference to Travis Grady, the main protagonist in Silent Hill: Origins. He was a truck driver who made the mistake of taking a shortcut through Silent Hill.  
• There are many pictures of areas around the town of Shepard's Glen from Silent Hill: Homecoming. There is also a side quest that becomes available on your second play through called "Digging Up The Past." This may also reference Homecoming, as one of the children were buried alive, and his watch can later be found in a casket.  

There's more great examples found throughout the game, so go have a look around. :)

3. They executed the sidequests well, there was a ton of collectibles, and Murphy's diary was interesting. 

When I first heard that there were sidequests in a Silent Hill game I was a little bit iffy on the idea. Silent Hill has always had collecting, but never really doing a lot of mundane quests for the "residents" of Silent Hill. As I played, I really grew to love this feature, as it adds to the "completion" nature of gaming, and it allows you to fully explore the town. You also get some stories, artifacts, and diary entries from it. If you played the game blind your first time like me and are clueless on what it is to do, don't worry! The game allows a "free roam" period before the game's final area, and you're able to back track to several areas of Silent Hill. There's also shortcuts through the town's underground subway to make the back tracking easier and quicker. If the game puts in the feature for side questing, I'm glad that the game catered to the idea of back tracking.

I have no idea how Murphy managed to get a diary (video game logic), but I enjoyed this feature as well. I loved getting the entries scattered through out Silent Hill, and putting the pieces together. I l enjoy back story, as well as character development and information on the town of Silent Hill. I felt that sub character development was severly lacking in the game, and diary entries were one way of making up for it. That is, assuming that you can find the diary entries. It was also convenient that objectives and the map were all kept in the same place. 

Cons

1. The so called "monsters"

Konami, I am disappoint. Please give the original Team Silent a call, because they need to give the developers of Downpour a lesson in scare tactics. The enemy designs were awful for this game. The lack of thought and design, as well as lack of variety was extremely disappointing. Not to mention that there are next to no boss battles, and the regular enemies can be easily skipped, or incapacitated. The final boss was 'meh', and was, in my opinion, very boring. 

Does this look even slightly menacing to any of you?

I miss the scare factor of enemies flying at you, looking incredibly menacing, making you run for your life. These enemies were scattered haphazardly, and were not menacing in the least bit! Murphy wasn't exactly on a field trip, but the Void was the most menacing thing in this game. The enemies also feel out of place, as most have no real symbolism to Murphy's past life in Silent Hill. The ones that do, well.. they used the SAME character design for two enemies. Dafuq?

I played on an easy difficulty, but I do know that on a higher difficulty enemy health is increased. Enemy encounters are not increased, and you would just have to deal with these stupid enemies with the even stupider combat system. Rage. The enemies in this game are a slight annoyance and a nuisance at most, but nothing scary. I'm an incredibly jumpy person, and even I was wondering when it was that I'd be jumping out of my chair. The moment never came. -gonk-

2. The crapfest ending of the game. 

I felt that Downpour was pretty fluid all the way through, and I was really looking forward to the ending of the game. Downpour was a little more "quiet" with lack of great supporting characters, few "Otherworld" sections, and pathetic monsters, but it was still enjoyable to play. I was hoping that the mediocre aspects of the game would be made up with a great ending. A great boss battle, SOMETHING. Throw me a bone here Silent Hill. There's a huge lead up to the final part of the game....

and then there's nothing. 

Although I enjoyed the final "Otherworld" section, the winding down of the game into it's final moments was nearly enough to make me shut the game off in frustration. First of, the game hands out first aid kits, guns, and ammo like it's candy. Secondly, they give you a fucking gauntlet of enemies near the end. What the hell? What's more fun then defeating hoards of the weakest enemies in the game (yes, they put the weakest enemy in the final area of the game -_-) with a shotgun that the game practically begs you to take? Anything. Really.

The ending felt incredibly rushed, and that the developers just got plain lazy. It was developed with next to no thought, no difficulty, and nothing new from the rest of the game. I realize that I don't have much of a right to criticize, as making a game is no easy feat. But in comparison to other games in the series, this ending makes me shed angry fan girl tears. The ending had so much potential, and it was wasted. I wish it at least felt that there was some effort put in, but it feels as if no fucks could be given on the day that they developed the game's ending. I was left feeling almost robbed at the end of the game and was asking myself, "I solved all of those puzzles and went through Silent Hill for this?"

3. The supporting characters. 

I mentioned before that I loved Murphy, and it's incredibly disappointing that no other character in this game reaches a level of being likable like Murphy was.I feel that the character design was sloppy. There was no real focus on supporting roles, and the scarce amount of characters is also a shame. 

*sigh*

Characters that Murphy does run into only make an appearance once or twice, and offer little to no help. They speak in riddles, and all seem to know what's going on.. which is odd. The game has a lazy way of "killing" off characters, and some mysteriously disappear with no real explanation at all. The positive side to this is that it puts more focus on Murphy, and it gives a more "helpless" sort of feeling to the atmosphere. Every Silent Hill game has at least one memorable supporting character or antagonist.. but this game stands out from that, which is a shame, as characters are a large part of what makes Silent Hill so great. Just like the ending, there was potential, and it was flat out wasted. 

Even the main antagonists of the game weren't focused on all that much. While you get the general idea behind the antagonists and the role that they played in Murphy's life, they are not elaborated on much. No awesome boss battles, not a lot of confrontation, next to no focus, and most don't even get much screen time in the game. Silent Hill antagonists are famous for being evil, complex, sick, twisted human beings. They're even characters that you love to hate, and a part of you looks forward to their role in the story. Unfortunately, Downpour fails to meet this standard. 

Overall...

If the original Team Silent had been working on Downpour, I think that this would have turned great. It ranks nowhere in the tier of SH1, 2, or 3, but I still preferred it over Origins and Homecoming.

Although my criticisms seemed rather harsh, I feel that the game is still worth playing (at least once), and it does still include many of the "Silent Hill" aspects. If this is your first Silent Hill game, you may find it more enjoyable then I did, as I compared it to the rest of the games in the series as a whole. 

There is a LOT of room for improvement with this game, which is my main problem. The parts that they did well, they did really well. However, the same can be said about the game's negative parts. 

Feel free to let me in on your thoughts and opinions on the game, and I hope you all enjoyed this rather lengthy post. 

Reviewing: The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker

I dreaded for the day this would come.... because this is my favorite Zelda game of all time. I am so incredibly biased about the Wind Waker that I knew it would be hard to think of things I didn't like about the game! Truth be told is that I love everything about it. This blog post may look a little different because it will more or less be things I like about the game, with things that it could have improved on... rather then things I didn't like about the game. I hope that you enjoy, as I have so very much enjoyed Wind Waker the countless times that I have played it. If you would like to see the Youtube video walkthrough I did, you can click here. Thank you! 

Synopsis:

Link's quiet island life is quickly turned upside down in an instant. When his young sister is kidnapped, Link goes to save the day! Link enlists the help of pirates to search the great seas, in an attempt to save his sister from her captives. Our young blonde hero has more then his sister's life at stake - he must also save the land of Hyrule! With the help of some friends, Link awakens as the Hero of the Winds and embarks on a great journey. 

What I love:

1. The creators of the Wind Waker dared to be different, and created a colorful and fun art style.

Most 3D Zelda games (although all animated) have a more realistic looking graphic and art style. Comparing Twilight Princess and Wind Waker is like comparing night and day. I feel a lot of people don't like the extremely cartoony nature of the Wind Waker, but this is, in fact what I (nearly) love most about this game. It's so incredibly quirky, and sets itself apart from other Zelda games in the series. I see absolutely nothing wrong with bright colors and a more "cute" style for the characters. If anything, it made the game so much easier to see, and gave the game a positive feeling right from the beginning. Link's large eyes and stubby legs really gave him a lot of character, as he's small but deadly. Facial expressions were done very well, and because Link's a silent character, I feel they were that much more meaningful. I feel this game's atmosphere is built around the style of the game, and the two go so well together. So if you like your whites whiter, your oceans bluer, and your blondes blonder... then this is the game for you. 

2. The game is easy to handle with a well implemented controller and camera system.

I feel that the Gamecube controller is the best controller out there to date. It fits in the hand well, the buttons are all in a great place, and the mapping just makes sense! There's nothing better then a game that controls well, and Zelda in general does a good job with this. It follows the formula of a lot of Zelda in terms of how the buttons are set up, so it's familiar to previous Zelda players. The thing I think I love most about Wind Waker is the free camera! Camera angles in this game are never a problem, which I think is huge. I think that it also sets it apart from the rest, as it's certainly been a huge problem in other games. It's especially useful when looking for chests or when you're out on the map doing free exploring. If you don't want your camera to be free, just have it focus back on Link and it will be a set camera again. I love not having to worry about crappy camera angles or terrible button controls.

3. The setting and method of travel.

It's too bad that the sea exploration part of Wind Waker seems largely unappreciated. I think that sailing as opposed to just walking around was an interesting twist. It was the first 3D Zelda game (now that Skyward Sword has come out) that dared to deviate from the norm. Because the game title "The Wind Waker" is about the wind (duh), making the game in a traditional "Hyrule Field" type of setting wouldn't have made any sense. Having your feet planted on solid ground doesn't exactly put you at the wind's mercy. However, being in a sailboat in the middle of the ocean definitely suits the game's theme of using the wind. You gotta get some wind in those sails!  I do admit that sailing can feel boring, because there's not a whole lot of scenery on the great open sea. However, the game does compensate for the large amount of sailing with songs to warp and change the wind's direction. One can argue that travelling in most games can become tedious at times. Although some may find it dry and dull, I think there's something appealing about looking at the big open blue and feeling the wind on your face. Plus, who the hell doesn't love the King of Red Lions?

4. Your companions and main characters that are included in your journey.

 I feel that the Wind Waker did a fine job of mixing in older Zelda characters with some new and unique ones. Classic and long lasting races in Hyrule like the Gorons, Zoras and Kokiri are mentioned, but are not the main focus of attention. This is a refreshing change from other 3D Zelda games from it's time (Ocarina of Time, Majora's Mask, and Twilight Princess a few years later). Some of the main characters are seen exuding some similarities to ones in the past, but manage to have their own twist on things.

Medli and Makar are both very important characters in game, and are both from two new races that Wind Waker created. They are both well rounded characters with their own quirks, and both serve as great companions later on in the game. Medli is one of my favorite characters from the game, and I just cannot imagine playing Wind Waker without her in it. Princess Zelda (as expected) appears later with an amazing plot twist. Her matter of fact and tomboy personality is the perfect partner to Link. Additionally, I like that "help" characters are not irritating. Tetra dropping you occasional hints throughout the game is something that is reasonable and manageable to deal with. I love the King of Red Lion's character, and the fact that he knows when to stop talking (unlike a certain blue fairy that we know) is nice. Wind Waker's difficulty level in comparison to other Zelda games is low, so you don't need a lot of guidance in the first place, and the companions reflect this perfectly.

What could be improved:

1. Rupee grinding

We all know that side questing is a common trend in Zelda. Rupees can be found nearly everywhere in the game, and yes, there are uses for rupees in nearly every single game to a certain extent. I will admit that even for me, rupee grinding became tedious from time to time. Because this game is largely situated around money, the rupee grinding carries on throughout nearly the entire game. If you're not aware of how much money you'll need at the end of the game, you can easily waste many valuable resources. By the end of the game, if you have exhausted chests, you'll be forced to hunt for money using other methods. Trying to fish for treasures in the ocean can be hit or miss, because you don't always know how many rupees you'll get. Selling accessories doesn't get you a sizeable amount of rupees, and grinding is a pain. There's no open field to cut down grass to look for rupees either. Although there's plenty of methods for gathering your much needed (and very necessary) rupees, it's not always easy and by the end you'll feel cheated.

2. Tingle. *angry face*

I'm glad that there are many other characters to make up for Tingle's character in this game. If I could, I would have left him locked up on Windfall Island, but unfortunately he is actually necessary in this game. Who would have thought? That rupee grinding I mentioned in point number one? Yeah. You have to give this jerk off all of your money. It's easy to miss Tingle if you don't explore around Windfall Island your first time there. Tingle even has his own very island, where he practices slavery while he stands there like a gigantic asshole. Tingle's role is to decipher charts that are actually necessary in the game. You'd think that him being your number one fan boy would land you a discount.. but no. There are 9 charts in total to decipher and Tingle charges 398 rupees per chart. PER FRIGGIN CHART. Case and point: I hate this rip off. I wish that he would decipher charts that weren't necessary to the game, maybe for some heart pieces or something. That way you wouldn't need to fork out so much of your hard earned money and spend so much time searching for rupees. 

3. Lack of customization. :c

This really isn't a complaint, as much as it is a suggestion. I personally (maybe because I'm a chick) like being able to customize Link's look. I loved the tunics, swords, shields, and boots featured in Ocarina of Time and Twilight Princess. In the Wind Waker, there are no additional tunics available until you finish the game once. If you complete the game once and play through the game again on this completed file, you will get a change of clothing. However, you're stuck with this new outfit and are unable to change it. Although cool, it would be nice to have a choice between the traditional tunic and a more laid back look. The same goes with shields. You only get two shields in the game, and once you get the second one, you lose the first one forever.  I can't complain though because it doesn't take away from game play and I can't think of a specific situation in which the cosmetic changes would become useful in the game. It's a bonus to Zelda games that I've just been spoiled by!

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End.

Phew. Alright, well that's it for that super long review! Because I feel most people don't love Wind Waker as much as I do, feel free to share why you disliked/liked it. I'd love to hear some thoughts, and I hope you enjoyed my review! I leave you with Zelda's super adorableness. :3