Story of Seasons: A Wonderful Life Review (Asla_Lord_Beerus)
Tip: Use the 'Launch Configuration Tool' to set the game to English before you start.
2nd Tip: Use a controller. The default keyboard layout is bad.
'A Wonderful Life' being so close to my heart, I'd like to offer a comprehensive review including details including info on what is new and what has changed.
For those who have never played any version of 'A Wonderful Life' such a detailed review won't be necessary, so here's a summary on the game why I recommend it and we can go into the finer details for those returning.
Context & Summary
SoS: AWL is a farming simulator set in the cozy 'Forgotten Valley' - keep various animals whilst growing crops, befriending villagers, finding your future husband/wife and over the series of chapters raising a family all whilst discovering new events & expanding your farm.
This remake includes features from AWL & AWL Special Edition whilst offering updated graphics, better performance, a new spin on music, some new features and various quality of life changes. You can present masculine or feminine, choose your pronouns & marry any eligible candidates (regardless of sex).
I'd recommend this game simply because the GC version had two separate versions (for hetero m/f playthroughs), some design issues and less sophisticated sound design, whilst the PS2 (Special Edition) had many improvements, it ran absolutely horribly. Therefore this remake is a necessary one and worth it.
They did more here than simply updating the graphics and re-releasing what is basically the same game. This is refreshing.
So for those new, that's all you need to know really, there are some changes I'm ambivalent about, essentially approach this game as a 'casual experience' because there are more safety nets now.
If you'd rather discover what is new / has changed on your own STOP READING HERE.
That being said feel free scroll down to the comment section on this review. I have put a short history lesson about the series name ♥
What is new/ has changed?
New Features
CHARACTER: Choose your appearance (skin tone, hair, hair colour, body shape, pronouns and can change your clothes)
RELATIONSHIPS: can marry ANY of the male/female bachelors. There is sadly no way to set a candidate-sex-preference at the start of the game so all 9 can trigger events - pity if you wanted a platonic relationship with the same sex.
CHILD: You can freely choose if you want a boy or a girl, no need for Mr Pots this time.
BULLETIN REQUESTS: You can now do requests for villagers for rewards
SENTIMENT TRACKER: You can now view your relationship with all of the villagers in the pause menu.
CAMERA: You can take photographs in game and they're stored in an Album you can view. Added side effect you can see interiors easier.
CORKBOARD: collectable photographs throughout the story, I guess.
ENCYCLOPEDIA - Records all kinds of items and when you first obtained them. This includes pretty much everything.
NEW RECIPES (automatically added to the stove when discovered)
WONDERS - Collected for doing various things in game - act as in-game achievements.
COOP/BARN Upgrade: You can double your barn/coop capacity to keep 16 of livestock & chickens each!
COWS/SHEEP/GOATS: Now all three can be bred. You will need to manually place them in isolation close to birth (it also sounds like you can buy Goats every Spring now.)
MILKING ROOM REMOVED: I am not sure why. It's implied there is a tool to milk all your cows at once that exists.
CHICKENS: Hens can naturally hatch eggs by laying on a fertilised one for a few days.
TOOLS: Upgrades no longer available to order. I believe Van will bring in upgraded tools. Need to play more to find out.
FERTILISER SPREADER UPGRADE: Will automatically fertilise a field.
FERTILISER MAKER: Now produces 5 fertiliser.
FLOWERS: it seems that FOUR flowers can be used when enhancing crops with you know who!
QoL Changes
Animal Care
GOOD: Brushing is now the same as washing - no need to push animals to the trough anymore.
GOOD: Milk is auto-collected now when using the milker
GOOD: You can bring chickens outside using a bell now.
MIXED: Your dog is now automatically fed by Takakura. You cannot feed your dog wild plants or dairy it seems...
QUITE BAD: Indefinite milk output makes it no longer imperative to breed cows. Milk output will reduce but cows will still produce a minimum of 4 milk a day. WHY?!
VERY BAD: Animals can no longer get sick or die. The only consequence is there is a new 'C' type milk that cannot be used in cooking or shipped. WHY?!
General
GOOD: You can choose specific items to sell at your market stall now.
GOOD: Shipping bin/order form/collection bin/tool & food storage are all conveniently placed outside and close together.
GOOD: Picking up multiples of the same item (e.g. flowers) can be done and putting things into your bag is instant.
MIXED: You can see objects in the dig-site as you dig them up - however Flora/Carter standing close by can make it hard to actually dig.
MIXED: Forced wake-up at 6AM. Takes away urgency to sleep and factoring in fatigue. No risk of oversleeping anymore
MEH: You can leave the valley to 'visit other towns' but all it does is pass 6 hours. Future integration???
BAD: Like SE you need to fertilise your grass but once chopped down you need to fertilise again making it pointless, WHY make this change? Fertiliser costs 20 and fodder can now be ordered for 20 as well - so what is the point?
BAD: Territory capture: gone from hard to super easy - no time limit and Charlie has lost his skill.
Aesthetics
MOSTLY GOOD: Updated graphics - (a more cartoony colourful feel. Chickens in particular look very different and you are stuck with cotton-candy pink sheep). You may want to turn down the brightness a little.
GOOD: Revised music - a new spin on music. Pity we cannot switch between GC/PS2/SoS versions)
MIXED: Localisation - improved translation quality, however the updated names to be closer the literal/spiritual meaning of the Japanese will be jarring to those familiar with the previous localisation.
MIXED: Design Changes - Gordy (Cody) definitely had a questionable design originally, the brow ridge arching over his eyes, wide strong features & the weird addition of facepaint however...did we really have to turn my boy into a Pokémon trainer? With the frat-boy build and loss of the mohawk I find it hard to believe this man PUNCHES metal into beautiful art. A change was needed but I am sure I'm not the only one missing when he was built like a statue.
BAD: Design Changes - Pui (Murrey) the dirty homeless beggar with flies buzzing around trope is not necessarily a tasteful one but the transition of this beloved character into a forest gnome-like creature with a resplendent crown topped with a flower and two butterflies, who now sings happy songs because I am willing to throw him a coin... I don't know. Pui was originally a reminder that the Valley is set in a real world and poverty exists, I can understand tweaking this character but I think this was too far in a different direction.
BAD: Design Changes - The Blue Bar is now the Bluebird Café. In the original the drinks were not explicitly alcoholic but it was implied. I guess there's more stuff you can order now, but that could have been done without sanitising.
BAD: Censored names in a single-player game - you cannot name something 'Cass' because that it has a bad word in it.
BAD: We can choose slightly longer names but restricted characters - there is no on-screen keyboard with extra symbols like stars, hearts and so on available to choose from. Only non-accented alphanumerical names allowed.
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That about covers it. Loving the game so far even if it's over-sanitised in some areas. Hope all this info was helpful to new comers & devoted fans all the same. Thanks for reading and happy farming ♥