Harvest Moon: Back to Nature
The First Few Days
WARNING: This guide could contain spoilers! Please keep that in mind as you read.
Before Gameplay
There's always a start to a game whether it be filled with cut scenes or tutorials. The first screen that you will be greeted with will be Mayor Thomas asking you about yourself, such as your name, your birthday, the farm's name, and your puppy's name. Once you are done with that, the cut scenes will begin. Basically, you have come to this town as a child to visit your grandfather for the summer. During this time, you spend time playing around the village and with the animals along with finding a friend- a girl friend. Many years later, you have come back to the farm to care for it since your grandfather has passed away. It is your goal to make it successful. You will wake up on Spring 2 in your house.
In order to interact with things, press X. You have a bed with a diary next to it. The diary is the saving, loading, and starting a new day mechanic. You have a bookshelf with some settings such as vibration and button controls. Your television has four different channels: Weather, News, Farmer Life, and a channel that changes daily. Watch the tv to help with figuring out the game. You have a calendar which has all of the festival days in red. Your tool box contains your starting five tools: sickle, hammer, axe, watering can, and hoe. Finally, you have a table as a place to eat your breakfast.
When you go outside, you will be greeted with Mayor Thomas will be there to offer you a tour of the town. While I recommend doing this if it is your first time playing, I have found that my game will freeze if I take the tour. After the tour, the shipper, Zack, will come by and introduce the mechanic of shipping items into shipping bins. These are the only way to earn money with very few exceptions. Now, you can begin playing!
The button controls are pretty easy to figure out. The X button controls interacting with objects, villagers, and animals. It also picks up items and throws them. Be careful when holding an item, if you throw it, it will be lost forever. The square button is the tool interaction. The O button is used to back out of menus. The triangle button is used for more information on an item in a menu and it brings up your inventory screen. The directional buttons move your character around. The start button brings up the main menu screen which has information about your farm. The select button brings up the map of the town. The R1 button controls which tool is equipped. The R2 button controls moving around items in your inventory. The L1 button calls your dog. The L2 button calls your horse.
Let's explore our farm. We've already been through the house, but right next to it is our mailbox. Most day there won't be any mail, but occasionally there will be a greeting or information on products at stores. Next is our apple tree. If you plant flowers, when they bloom, bees will come and live in your tree. It also produces apples during Fall. Nearby is our pond. Here is a place to fill up your watering can and to breed fish. The wooden object next to it holds the fish feed if you buy it. Keep going down the screen and there is your chicken house. This is the main place where your chickens will be located. Next to that is the mill where you can grind corn up into chicken feed. Along with a bridge to the Hot Springs area. The main part of your farm is your field, which is filled with rocks, sticks, stumps, and weeds. Next to it is the shipping bin that Zack showed you. There is one in the chicken coop, the barn, and one in the Hothouse when you build it. Next up on the right at the top of the farm is your barn. This is where your cows and sheep will usually reside. Next to it is the stable where your horse will live. Other than that, this is basically your farm.
Now it's time to explore Mineral Town. During this walk through the town, you may encounter some cut scenes of villagers introducing themselves to you and the beginning of the rival scenes. Since the mayor showed you part of it (if you did take the tour), let's go into the wilderness. Go past the chicken coop and over the bridge into the Hot Springs area. If you go up the stairs, it leads to the Hot Spring, the waterfall, and the mine. This area usually grows several foraging items. Go south and it leads to Gotz's house. Go straight and it leads to Mother Hill. So, let's go straight and climb up the hill. Here there is the lake. Keep running along the path and over the bridge to get to a little plains where a lot of flowers grow. Keep traveling up the path onto the mountain top called Mount Moon. You won't need to go here very often.
Go back down to the Hot Springs area and go to your right to Gotz's house. He is the local carpenter and will upgrade your buildings. There is a lot of stumps and usually foraging items. Follow the trail up to the Poultry Farm. Here is where you can buy chickens and chicken feed. To the left leads back to your farm and to the Blacksmith's and Aja Winery. To the right leads to Yodel Ranch and the Square. Let's go to the right.
This is Yodel Ranch. Here you can buy cows, sheep, and fodder. The only other path makes a right angle to the north. Follow it. This is the Square. Majority of the festivals take place here. There are three different paths to take here. The right leads to the Beach where the Seaside Lodge is located and a few festivals take place. The left is the Inn where a lot of people hang out, Won's Shop is located, the phone, and food and drinks to buy. Straight leads to the church and the Harvest Sprite's house behind it. Let's go to the Inn.
In this area, make a 90 degree turn to the right to get to the Inn and keep going straight. In this screen there is the Clinic to the right and the Supermarket to the left as well as a loop back to the Church. The Clinic is a place to buy "Bodigizer"- like items which help with fatigue and stamina. The Supermarket has items for cooking, seeds, and other items. Go to the left and it leads to first the mayor's house, then Ellen's house. Make a 90 degree turn to the left. There is the Library then Basil's house. Keep following the trail.
This area is the Winery then the Blacksmith's. The Winery sells wine and grape juice, also they ask for your help for a week (paid of course). The Blacksmith's is where you can upgrade your tools, buy tools, and make jewelry. To the right is the Poultry Farm and straight is your farm.
Looking at the map will help you out a lot as far as getting lost goes. The town is pretty easy to memorize and navigate.
Day One
While you are exploring the village, be sure to pick up some seeds from the Supermarket. When you get home, clear a 5x5 square (preferably beside the shipping bin) with your tools, then till a 3x3 square. Stand in the middle of the 3x3 square of tilled soil, then equip your seeds and plant them. Go fill up your watering can in your pond, then water each of the squares with seeds on them. Keep doing this for all of the seeds you have bought. Now, go to the Hot Springs and Gotz's house and forage the items around here. Then throw them into your shipping bin. After all this, start clearing your field, making sure to leave at least one small stone for cooking. After Zack visits to pick up your items that you had foraged, you can go to bed or keep clearing. The day will automatically end at 6:00AM.
Week One
Since this is a guide and not a walkthrough, I'm only slightly guiding you for the first week. After day one, be sure to keep foraging every day along with clearing your field and watering your crops. After about five days (if you bought turnips), then turnips are fully grown. Just pick them up with X and drop them into the shipping bin with X. Keep some if you want to give it to a villager. Try to go back to the Supermarket to buy more seeds to replace these. During this week, you should also start to figure out which of the girls you want to marry: Ann, Elli, Karen, Mary, or Popuri. There are no individual benefits of marrying a certain girl. Also, don't forget to go to the Goddess Festival. If you have free time at the end of your days, try mining or fishing to finish out the day and earning more money. Other than this, try to save up for a chicken for the farm. This game is all about managing money and investments. So, think wisely about spending your money.
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