Switch Funday - Harvest Moon - My Second Time – It Went Much Better

Welcome to Switch Funday!

Last week i played Harvest Moon for the first time, https://youtu.be/De1aItAfPFk, and it didn't go well. This week i tried it again, having learnt from my mistakes in the hope of making progress and having a better experience. To be honest, that didn't really happen.

By about 20 or 30 minutes into the second video, i had already gotten further than i did in the previous video. but in terms of story, i don't feel like i made any extra progress. i did have a greater understanding of the mechanics, i explored a new area and learnt more about building extensions, and i finally managed to harvest grass. But even after an hour, i still didn't have enough grass for animals, and in some respects my farm was beginning to look worse than when i arrived. i had noticed that the wooden walls around the farm had begun to deteriorate. 

So whilst this attempt at playing Harvest Moon did go better than my first attempt, and i'm happy things went better the second time round. i'm also disappointed that nothing really came of it. i'm starting to think that it's more the game's fault than mine. that maybe the game has a really slow start. i get the feeling that the game is wide open and is expecting us to go and explore rather than offer guidance.

Switch Funday - Harvest Moon - My First Time - It Didn't Go Well

Welcome to Switch Funday!

Many games that i've played for the first time in this series have mostly gone fine. I've not been that good at them, but they've always gone better than what happened with Harvest Moon. in nearly all the videos i've said something along the lines that the manual would have helped. But i think that wouldn't have helped here. as you'll see, i get stuck in the main town area for over 17 minutes as i couldn't find the one person to talk to.

Unfortunately, that wasn't the only thing i didn't understand. it's possible that had i watched the full How to Play video i would've understood what to do. But i hadn't so i made many more mistakes. for example, i didn't plough enough soil so sowing grass seeds didn't go right. the same for turnip seeds. this meant that i was stuck for money. out of the three turnips i actually managed to grow, i broke 2, so i was only left with 1 to sell. thankfully, that meant i had just enough money to buy some more turnip seeds. by this point i had ploughed more soil so when i sowed them, i finally realised what i was meant to do.

Ultimately, this game doesn't tell you anything as a tutorial. the town's people offer advice and heavily suggest what to do. But as it's my first time playing the game, there was no context for it. by playing it, and mostly stumbling along inefficiently, i've now learned how to start the game and how it should be played. Harvest Moon on the SNES is like the Dark Souls of this farm simulation game style, as the world offer hints as to what to do, but only by failing do you truly work it out for yourself.

Unlike Dark Souls, i didn't come away from the game thinking too favorably of the past hour i spent with it. to be honest, it almost feels like a waste of my time. there are other little things about the game i wasn't enjoying, like what was the point of the dog. i can't pet it, it does nothing inside the house, and seems to do nothing outside. i put the mole/rodent thing next to it and nothing happened. what am i supposed to do about that, too!?

At the end of the video i kinda think out loud that i may give it another go now i understand what should happen. i feel like i could condense the hour plus i spent with it to less than 30 minutes and then maybe the game will open up a bit more. i may do that but i can't guarantee when.

Switch Funday - Super Mario Kart - My First Time

Welcome to Switch Funday!

This week i decided to try out the Super Nintendo App that's part of the Nintendo Switch Online. i had a Mega Drive growing up so i didn't get to play the SNES beyond Super Mario World that my cousins had. on the Game Boy Advance App, i have been playing Maro Kart Super Circuit for fun in my spare time so i was curious what the original game would be like.

i am familiar with the original game, in that i've seen videos of it and heard people talking about it. but i haven't sat down and played it myself before. so in a way i broadly knew what to expect. in some ways i was surprised, i played the game using Pixel Perfect mode and i was impressed as to how well the graphics hold up. certain characters look strange, Yoshi being the prime example, but the bold simple designs of the tracks and backgrounds were great.

it did take time to get used to how it played. modem Mario Kart games use a drift mechanic that also gives you boost as you charge it up. however in this game, and the GBA version, the drift isn't quite the same. the main use seems to be jumping, with a little drift and no boost. another difference is how the weapons work. you can't hold weapons behind you nor can you fire the green shell behind as it's just placed on the track. it also seems that each character has their own unique weapon(s) rather than how it is now where there are no unique weapons as each character can use all of them.