“Harvest Moon 64”

Nintendo 64

Clearing your field, feeding your cow and foraging for berries may not sound like an exciting video game — until you play “Harvest Moon 64,” that is.

Farm chores are just the beginning. Before long you’ll be hanging out at the bar, attending the town festival and maybe even wooing one of the lovely young ladies in the village.

The game begins rather grimly at your grandfather’s wake. You have decided to move into his tiny house and take over his overgrown farm.

On your first day, the mayor gives you a tour of the nearby village, pointing out places such as the florist, bakery, library and town square — all of which will be important later in the game.

Then it’s time to get to work.

You start the game with 300 G (money), a few simple tools and your trusty dog.

The first thing you need to do is make some money, but how are you going to go about doing it?

The game is loaded with options. You can clear the weeds and stones out of your field, buy some seed and grow some vegetables to trade. You can find the old fisherman, who teaches you how to catch fish, which can be eaten or sold. You can even forage for berries around the base of the mountain.

Even as you begin to earn some money, the chores around the farm never decrease. Almost every day involves watering the garden, brushing the cows and feeding the chickens. If you’re lucky, there will still be some time left to have some fun.

There are five lovely young women in the town that you can attempt to win the affections of. They range in personalities from Maria, the shy young minx who works at the library, to Karen, the fiery hellcat who works at the bar.

Talking to the women and giving them gifts will, it is hoped, win your heart. If you’re lucky, one might even invite you to the town festival or to watch the Fourth of July fireworks with her. Score!

Eventually, you may even marry one of the women and have a child. One tip: A woman won’t marry you until you’ve built a kitchen for your house. Politically correct this game ain’t.

To describe all of the options available in “Harvest Moon 64” would take up this entire page, if not the entire arts & entertainment section. Even within your own game, it is impossible to explore all of the options. There is only so much you can do in a day, and it’s impossible to know what would have happened if you had, say, bought a cake from the baker’s daughter instead of getting drunk at the bar.

“Harvest Moon 64” is a bizarrely addictive game. It would seem that the mundane nature of most of the game would become boring.

Instead, you find yourself thinking “Man, if I can just get these potatoes to grow, I can make some money, build an addition onto my house and marry the mayor’s daughter.”

If your own life is dull, the game may provide a pleasing surrogate.

There are already dozens of Web sites devoted to the game, arguing which woman is prettier and just how to take care of your chickens.

The one drawback is its amazing complexity, for which the instruction book offers little guide. There are hundreds of actions that can be done, and you’ll often find yourself staring at the controller, wondering “How the hell do I get my horse in the barn?”

Once you get the hang of it, “Harvest Moon 64” will provide hours of entertainment. Just don’t forget to brush your horse.

4 Stars

Rating based on a 5 Star scale