Harvest Moon: Magical Melody Review for Nintendo Wii

System: Wii	Review Rating Legend
Dev: Marvellous Entertainment	1.0 - 1.9 = Avoid	4.0 - 4.4 = Great
Pub: Natsume	2.0 - 2.4 = Poor	4.5 - 4.9 = Must Buy
Release: Aug.25, 2009	2.5 - 2.9 = Average	5.0 = The Best
Players: 1-4	3.0 - 3.4 = Fair
ESRB Rating: Everyone	3.5 - 3.9 = Good

The only aspect of Harvest Moon: Magical Melody that has benefitted from the game's unchanged format is the audio. The story in Magical Melody revolves around magical instruments that can be created by gathering notes while working on the farm and completing other in-game objectives. Since so much of the game revolves around music, the soundtrack has to be perfect, and, just like in 2006, it is. Although plenty of remakes remaster the sound or generate new mixes, the music in this title was wisely left alone.

Harvest Moon: Magical Melody screenshot

Unfortunately, there just isn't all that much to love about Harvest Moon: Magical Melody this second time around. The three year period between the original GameCube release and this new Wii version has not been kind to the source material, and the new controls just don't make the re-purchase worth it for fans of the series. Couple this with the fact that the Wii-specific Harvest Moon: Tree of Tranquility, has better controls and more modern visuals, all you are left with is an outdated GameCube title that comes on a bigger disc in a Wii box.

The only condition under which you should pick this game up is if you have never played a Harvest Moon game before and you want to try the franchise out for the fist time. Magical Melody is still one of the best Harvest Moon games to date, and the $30 price point is certainly attractive if you don't already have the game.

Still, if you can find an old copy of the GameCube version to play on your Wii (remember, the Wii is still backwards compatible with GameCube discs), you may enjoy that one a little bit more, as you can plug the old GameCube controller into the Wii for better control, and you'll also have the option to play as a female. This port doesn't add anything to the core Magical Melody experience, and this three-year rerelease was one of the most unnecessary and poorly done Wii-makes that I have ever encountered.

By Amanda L. Kondolojy
CCC Staff Contributor

RATING OUT OF 5

RATING DESCRIPTION

2.7

Graphics
GameCube-level graphics look cute, but they should have been touched up for the rerelease.

2.0

Control
Poor Wii-mote controls and lack of alternate control options make this one a pain to control.

3.8

Music / Sound FX / Voice Acting
Music is the same as it was in the original, which is exactly how it should be.

1.5

Play Value
This game actually has less content than the original, and with no other improvements, it's hard to recommend this even at a $30 price point.

2.0

Overall Rating - Poor
Not an average. See Rating legend above for a final score breakdown.

Game Features:

Compete against a rival farmer! Your productivity will be judged on a daily basis against that of your rival's… you will also compete against your rival in the festivals!

Cultivate a wide variety of crops and trees!

Raise cows, sheep, horses and chickens!

Purchase different plots of land and expand your farm by building various extensions!

Magical Melody offers a side story of trying to revive the Harvest Goddess.

Harvest Moon: Magical Melody (GameCube) was a "Player's Choice" title!