Harvest Moon: Tree of Tranquility

Story

All is not well on the rural island you call home. Once it was an idyllic place where people and nature coexisted in perfect harmony, all watched over by the benign Harvest Goddess and protected by the mystical powers of the Mother Tree. But the populace have turned away from nature, their connection with the living soil has grown weak. Your goal is to show your fellow islanders how to live together with nature and to restore the Mother Tree and Harvest Goddess to their rightful place at the centre of their hearts and lives.

By working the land, building a successful farm and finding that special someone to start a family with, you can take your place at the heart of the community as a fine, upstanding citizen. As you grow crops and raise animals, sell farm produce and win the trust and affection of the islanders, you'll develop the strength you'll need for the ultimate quest - restoring the Mother Tree and Harvest Goddess.

This will entail an absorbing adventure as you strive to locate the elusive Harvest Sprites, guardians of the Rainbow Bridges that will lead you to the seedling from which the Mother Tree can be grown again. With the largest game world to date and a host of exciting new additions, Harvest Moon: Tree of Tranquillity takes the long-running and much-loved series to a new level of depth and detail.

Gameplay

Once you've chosen whether you want to play as a boy or a girl, it's time to roll up your sleeves and get to work building a bustling, prosperous farm. Whether you're growing crops or raising livestock, there'll be plenty of scope for doing things your own way and at your own pace.

To prepare the fields for crops, you'll need to weed them and remove any rocks and tree stumps with your trusty hammer and axe, controlled using motions of the Wii Remote. You'll then be all ready to plant seeds, water them and hope for a bumper harvest. To raise livestock, you'll need to purchase a barn or coop and feed and tend to farmyard animals ranging from cows, sheep and chickens to silkworms, ducks and ostriches.

It may sound like a lot of hard work, but it'll pay off in the end. Harvest your crops, milk cows, shear sheep or gather silk from your stock of silkworms - there's no shortage of ways to get your farm turning a healthy profit. You can then purchase new crops and animals, invest in more effective tools or plough your profits into expanding your farm. You can also supplement your income with other activities, including mining for precious ore, foraging for rare items, fishing and doing part-time jobs.

While there's plenty to keep you busy down on the farm, all work and no romance makes for a dull farmer! Once you've set your sights on that special someone, pluck up the courage to speak to them or surprise them with a well-chosen gift and you'll be well on the way to winning them over. If they accept your marriage proposal, marital bliss and a family of your own awaits you. As a proud parent, you'll be able to enjoy interacting with your child, whether it's giving them a cuddle, entertaining them with a rattle or taking them for a walk. When your child grows up, they'll even be able to give you a helping hand on the farm.

As you watch your farm prosper and build a family, you'll also interact with the other islanders by speaking to them and working alongside them. This will build up their trust and affection for you, which will prove indispensable as you embark on the quest to find the Mother Tree and Harvest Goddess and restore the community to its former glory. Building strong relationships with your family, animals and the rest of the community is the key to success in your ultimate quest.

With all of the challenges that await you, you'll need to take an occasional break - and what better way to take your mind off the stresses and strains of rural life than with multiplayer mini-games? Up to four players can compete in games that include horse racing, bug-catching and mole-bashing. Swing the Wii Remote to skip stones off the water or see who is the keenest shot in a good old-fashioned shooting range.

Features

With more to explore than ever before, Harvest Moon: Tree of Tranquility offers the largest, most immersive game world in the series so far. Boasting an involving story line and a host of original features, including more interaction with family members, new crops and livestock and a whole new level of control offered by the Wii Remote, even long-standing fans of the series will find plenty of innovative aspects of the game to enjoy.

There are a wealth of new additions to the crops you can grow and the animals you can raise on your farm. New crops include rice and half a dozen new varieties of flower, while new livestock includes goats, silkworms and ostriches. You'll even be able to adopt wild animals as your pets. You'll also be able to customise your player character, kitting them out in the latest styles from the tailor. The other islanders will even sport different outfits depending on where they are.

The unique controls made possible by the Wii Remote also offer a fresh twist to the gameplay. Whether you're tilling the fields, watering plants, milking your cows or casting your line and reeling in a fish, the Wii Remote's motion-sensitive controls will bring the level of interaction to an all-new level. With the Wii Remote, the tools are really in your hands.

The level of interaction with your family has never been greater. As well as being able to enjoy a lovingly-made lunchbox every day courtesy of your spouse, you'll also be able to gain a whole new perspective on the world of Harvest Moon by playing as your own child for the very first time in the series. The future of the farm is in their hands, so give them the chance to explore and discover how to run a successful farm. All of these exciting new features and many more are waiting to be explored in Harvest Moon: Tree of Tranquillity!