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Harvest Moon: Frantic Farming (Nintendo DS)

common sense media says

Engaging puzzle game about harvesting vegetables.

parents & educators say
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What parents need to know

Parents need to know that Harvest Moon: Frantic Farming contains no objectionable content whatsoever and is a cute, fun, and acceptable game for most kids. However, kids too young to read will not be able to enjoy the story dialogue by themselves.

Educational value: Story mode involves some reading, and Mission Mode require players to use logic to strategize and advance through the game.
Positive messages: The game's story begins when Sunny Island is overrun with vegetables. Though the characters must harvest as many as possible, the consquences of the vegetable infestation aren't fully explored. And because the story is only one of many modes of play, story and theme are secondary to the puzzle play. The main message is one of using your mind to solve puzzles.
Positive role models: The main characters must harvest vegetables that have grown out of control on the peaceful Sunny Island.
Ease of play: The game's controls are simple and straightforward, though in single-player mode, the difficulty curve can be steep in some levels.
Violence: Not applicable.
Sex: Not applicable.
Language: Not applicable.
Consumerism: Not applicable.
Drinking, drugs, & smoking: Not applicable.
Our ratings and reviews are informed by child development guidelines. Learn more.

More on Harvest Moon: Frantic Farming

What to talk about

Talk to your kids
  • Families can talk about how the growth and harvesting of food in this game is different from real life; whereas the object here is to harvest your crops quickly (and yes, frantically), real gardening and farming is a slow process involving care and patience.
  • There are many different vegetables players must harvest, including corn, tomatoes, cabbages, and eggplant. How are these different? Some grow in the ground, some on vines, others on stalks. How are they different or similar? Have you eaten all these vegetables? Do you have a favorite?

What's the story?

What's the story?
In HARVEST MOON: FRANTIC FARMING, players find the island of Sunny Island suffering from a mysterious explosion of vegetable growth. The cute, anime-styled characters must move around a color-coded board to harvest crops. By touching the DS screen, players control a character, or "sprite" who must pluck as many crops as possible. The game includes several variations on this basic puzzle, including a multiplayer Survial Mode where you compete with a friend for a high score, Team Mode where several players collaborate, and Mission Mode, in which players pre-plan their moves for maximum points.

Is it any good?

Is it any good?
 
The gameplay in Frantic Farming is fast, addictive, and fun. While the core idea of manipluating colored blocks is nothing new, the extra modes and original story are enough to make the game feel fresh. And there's lots of gameplay variation, most interesting being the  Mission Mode, where you map out your moves, instead of racing against a clock. Some stages, too, have higher difficulty level, sometimes making for a uneven experience. But overall, a solid, delightful, and compelling puzzle game with broad age and gender appeal.

Online interaction: Multiplayer modes let DS owners link-up and share a single game cartidge.

Game themes & details

Game Details
Available on: Nintendo DS
Available online
Genre: Puzzle
Developer: Natsume
Released on: August 25, 2009
Price: 29.99
ESRB Rating: E for (no descriptors)
Screenshots
This review was written by Alex Porter
 
 

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Most useful reviews by all members

Hotaru Chan
teen, 14 years old
7
 
Can get difficult at times, but its still good
Cute, fun game. It can get a little hard sometimes though, but it's pretty good.
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helped me decide (3) | had useful details (5) | read my mind (3)

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