Many of the mechanics introduced in the Harvest Moon series are still being used to this day.
Take Harvest Moon: Friends of Mineral Town, released on the GBA in 2003.
Compared to the later smash hit Stardew Valley, the two games were practically cut from the same cloth. That classic opening scenario was already beginning to take shape in Friends of Mineral Town.
For one reason or another, the protagonist inherits an abandoned farm. Then, step by step, they grow crops, raise livestock, interact with the townspeople, and may even get married.
The formula seemed simple, yet it became the evergreen foundation of farming games, and arguably of the entire life simulation genre.
At the same time, it was a truly all ages title, appealing equally to men and women, young and old alike. For GAMENOVA, expanding its audience beyond hardcore gamers was crucial.
"So, another slow-paced game, huh?"
After listening to Ethan's explanation and imagining the gameplay in his head, Sam's expression wilted.
To put it bluntly, controlling a character who spends their time hoeing fields and watering crops? Who the hell would waste their free time playing something like that?
"Ethan, The Legend of Zelda was already pushing it. Players who've grown up on arcade games might not even fully accept that."
He tried his best to phrase it politely. Personally, even after completing The Legend of Zelda, whenever he turned on a NovaBox, he'd usually end up launching Street Fighter or Wolfenstein 3D instead.
He liked fast and immediate gratification.
The puzzles in Zelda were brilliantly designed, and exploration was genuinely fun. But its replayability was nowhere near something like Street Fighter.
After clearing both the surface-world and hidden-world campaigns, aside from trying for faster completion times or more optimized routes, Sam couldn't find much reason to play through the entire game again and now Ethan was presenting something even crazier.
"Why would players want to keep watering crops and mining rocks? How is that any different from going to work?"
Granted, after witnessing Ethan create hit after hit, reason told him he should trust him unconditionally. But if a game wasn't even fun, Sam simply couldn't bring himself to believe in it.
To his surprise, however, Ethan nodded, fully acknowledging the criticism.
"You're right, Sam. Players whose attention spans last only ten seconds probably won't like it."
"Then what are you doing? Making a passion project? Fulfilling your artistic vision?"
It was fair enough. With GAMENOVA's current cash flow, maybe Ethan really could afford to make games that weren't massive commercial successes but that he personally loved.
"The hell are you babbling about?" Ethan rolled his eyes. "What I'm saying is that this game was never meant for the arcade crowd in the first place. It's aimed at homebodies, women, and kids."
Shaking his head, he glanced at the time before continuing.
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"Anyway, once the demo's done, you'll understand. For now, take me to the airport."
He had a flight to catch, one that would take him across half of the United States.
...
Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Howard Scott Warshaw pushed open his front door and collapsed onto the couch in exhaustion.
Sometimes fate really enjoyed playing cruel jokes on people. As one of Atari's former star developers, Howard had made numerous contributions to the gaming industry.
The famous Raiders of the Lost Ark for the Atari 2600 had been developed by him. In many ways, Howard was the creator of the world's first movie tie-in video game.
And Raiders of the Lost Ark had lived up to expectations, selling over a million copies. Yet no one could have predicted that the very idea of "movie adaptations" would eventually become the source of his downfall.
In 1982, Atari's parent company, Warner, assigned him an important project.
Dun-dun-dun-dun.
A video game adaptation of Steven Spielberg's new film, E.T.
Development time: five weeks.
As for how that game turned out? Howard rubbed his aching forehead.
His career as a game developer had been buried alongside those cartridges in a landfill.
Was E.T. really the culprit that destroyed Atari? The answer was no.
A gaming empire that generated billions of dollars annually and completely dominated the home console market wasn't going to collapse simply because one game failed.
There were plenty of games worse than E.T., but Atari needed a scapegoat. It needed a famous symbol to represent its downfall. Howard had been the unfortunate man forced to wear that crown. His gaze drifted toward the PC on his desk.
He still worked on computers these days, though mostly for writing projects. Making games had always been what he loved most. Even the catastrophic failure of E.T. hadn't extinguished his passion for game development.
Unfortunately, carrying the title of "the man who buried the video game industry" meant he would never again have a place in it.
Howard shook his head and let out a self-deprecating laugh. Sitting down at his computer, he typed a new line into his article.
"Yars' Revenge was once considered one of the best games ever made, so if E.T. is one of the worst, then maybe I'm the designer that had the biggest downfall in gaming history. Hahaha…."
Buzz.
Just as he typed the last letter, the doorbell rang.
"Please don't tell me it's the landlord."
Feeling nervous, Howard slowly opened the door. Standing outside wasn't someone from collections, it was a man, who was far younger than himself.
"Good afternoon, Mr. Warshaw."
Ethan gave a polite nod. Before his eyes floated Howard's status panel.
[Howard Scott Warshaw]
Overall Evaluation: A (Excellent Developer)
Programming: 87 (Growth Potential: A+)
Script Writing: 75 (Growth Potential: A−)
...
Nothing demonstrated Howard's talent more clearly than those dual A-tier growth ratings.
Ethan had seen firsthand just how unbelievably terrible E.T. was, but he also knew something else. That game had been built entirely in assembly language for the Atari 2600 in only five weeks. If it's viewed from that perspective, Howard was terrifyingly capable.
"That's me. What can I do for you?"
"Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Ethan Hayes, Founder and CEO of GAMENOVA."
Ethan paused briefly, giving Howard time to process the name, then he smiled.
"I'd like to invite you to become GAMENOVA's very first third-party game developer."
Since NovaBox's launch, its success had relied almost entirely on GAMENOVA's own first-party titles. That approach guaranteed quality, but it also limited the platform's potential.
Even Nintendo, despite its overwhelming first-party strength, had opened its ecosystem to third-party developers through a licensing system.
Howard froze, he had never expected to hear something like this.