Natsume’s E3 booth is always a fun one to visit, and that was no different this year when we get to try out three games they have coming to the Switch. One of those was Harvest Moon: Mad Dash, and the company has just announced that this “fast-paced farming game” will be arriving on the Nintendo Switch this fall.
Mad Dash isn’t a traditional Harvest Moon game, but fans of the series will find plenty of familiar features and elements to enjoy.
Go solo or take along a few friends in this fast-paced farming frenzy! Harvest, fish, milk, and more as you fulfill orders to complete each level! Things may start out easy, but you’ll hit the beach, the farm, and even the Underworld as you progress through the game! Have you ever tried to grow crops with molten lava falling on them?! That and other obstacles await you as you and your friends try to clear all the levels to restore the broken lighthouse!
Gameplay centers around strategically placing various plants on a game grid so thy can grow and be harvested. You’re told what type and how many you need, and reaching the basic objective (there are expanded rewards to also achieve) is pretty simple at the start. The game quickly becomes more interesting (and challenging), however, as “enemies” start appearing. It’s not enough to just grow your crops, after all, you have to protect them from everything from cows to molton lava.
Add in support for up to four players and things can get very frantic very quickly. Communication is key when finding places to plant your various crops and knowing what needs to be harvested and/or moved, so you’ll need to make sure you’re playing with someone who’s able to keep cool under pressure. Trevor Gould and I each managed to do so with our respective turns, but we didn’t get into the areas of heavy activity. We never left the farm, but beach, Underworld and Skyworld levels await.
Harvest Moon: Mad Dash looks to be one of those games that fits in snugly between the larger releases, serving as a great pick-up-and-play with friends and family. We’ll be keeping our eye on this one.
For more new games to keep your radar, check out our full E3 2019 coverage.
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