Doraemon Story of Seasons: Associates of the Nice Kingdom is a farming simulation recreation for the Nintendo Change. It’s by some means each a spin-off and a sequel, bringing the second quirky story of a robotic cat and his mates into the farming world of Story of Seasons.
For these unfamiliar with Doraemon, he’s a well-liked Japanese manga and anime icon. In truth, he’s been round since 1969. And in case you’ve by no means performed Story of Seasons, merely put, it’s a farming administration sim akin to Animal Crossing or Harvest Moon (which is definitely how the Story of Seasons sequence got here to be .. however that’s one other story).
The plot entails Doraemon the blue robo-cat and his posse of pre-teens, who unintentionally journey to a different world to flee their summer season chores again dwelling. They by some means discover themselves working a farm (which looks as if far more work than their mums and dads had deliberate for them again in suburban Japan). Nonetheless, they tackle the duty with some newfound relish to assist out the locals. There’s in all probability a lesson in there someplace.
What makes Story of Seasons attention-grabbing is the seasons a part of the title. Gameplay revolves across the passing of time, with the hours, days, weeks, and months flitting by fairly shortly. This results in a change in season, bringing new seeds to sow, creatures to catch, and surroundings to get pleasure from. Whereas Animal Crossing additionally sports activities a stunning seasonal change, it displays our real-world seasons primarily based on the place you reside. Story of Seasons frequently strikes by means of time as you play, so you’ll be able to whip by means of a complete 12 months in a matter of real-life hours.
In Animal Crossing, you create your personal city, encouraging new neighbors to maneuver in because it progressively develops round you. Whereas there are some constructing parts to Story of Seasons, it’s extra about tending your farm. Actually. There are timber, rocks and weeds to clear, seeds to plant and water, crops to yield and promote, and a property to take care of. It’s a enjoyable routine. One side I loved is that your character grows drained after performing chores. In these circumstances, you want to nap or eat to regain power. There’s a way of time administration at play, since there are solely so many hours in in the future; in case you don’t get to mattress on time, you’ll sleep late the subsequent morning and waste many hours of daylight.
There’s additionally a strong narrative embedded. That is each a constructive and a adverse side of Doraemon’s second farming sim. On the plus facet, the story makes for a enjoyable single-player journey as you be taught extra concerning the characters round you and work collectively to develop your farm into one thing particular. Alternatively, this isn’t a visible novel, and the prolonged dialogue typically interrupts the circulation of the gameplay.
Sure, the plot could also be attention-grabbing, light-hearted, and even emotional at instances, however typically it’s an excessive amount of. A chronic introduction and a number of cutscenes is likely to be simply what Doraemon followers clamor for, but it surely drastically slows the tempo of the sport. The solid is solely voice acted – a pleasant contact – nevertheless it’s additionally solely in Japanese. Whereas this feels genuine for the subject material, it means there’s plenty of on-screen textual content to learn. I like a superb visible novel, but I discovered myself pissed off by the fixed interruptions once I simply needed to are likely to my vegetation earlier than the solar went down.
Graphically, there’s lots to love about this title. Doraemon and firm are nicely designed, with anime-authentic sprites that look and transfer nicely. The atmosphere can also be a deal with to behold, with detailed environment that leap off the display. As talked about, the seasons change to convey new parts to get pleasure from; irrespective of which season, it’s all the time visually placing.
As beautiful as these visuals are, the map is one other supply of frustration. It’s not intuitive and, though it turns into simpler to navigate with observe, the pathways aren’t apparent. Coupled with the plot-based interruptions, it really works towards itself to decelerate the tempo of the sport, making trekking between locales a chore.
Total, Doraemon Story of Seasons: Associates of the Nice Kingdom is a crossover title that’s more likely to attraction to followers of Doraemon and Story of Seasons. For those who don’t fall into each camps, I’d persist with a extra generic farm-sim outing. It seems to be incredible and has a deep narrative, though it typically will get in the best way of the particular farming.