Next up on the 2019 Electronics and Entertainment Expo booth tour was a stop at one of my favorites, Natsume. Natsume is known for the Harvest Moon franchise and they brought with them another Harvest Moon game as well as some other interesting games so without further delay let’s get right into it!
First up at the Natsume booth was a Harvest Moon game but not like one we had seen before. Harvest Moon Mad Dash plays like a simple puzzle game that will get crazy when more action hits the screen. You can play solo or multiplayer and your trying to match up multiple crops to make them sparkle. The minute they start to sparkle, you can pick or “harvest” them and get points for your hard work. It starts out simple but will get tougher as you’ll have to deal with the elements such as lava!
Next up was Reel Fishing: Road Trip Adventure which is part fishing simulation and part role-playing game. It wouldn’t be a Natsume game if it didn’t have anime style characters which it does and takes fishing to the next level. You’ll be able to fish for all kinds of fish in all kinds of locations and use all kinds of rods and reels to do it. Long story short, three college kids are trying to figure out the mystery of a fish they heard about at the local museum and they’ll have to use all their skills as fishermen to catch it! You’ll be able to craft rods and reels to make fishing easier as well as craft meals for your characters to eat. When it gets too dark to see/fish, you’ll go back to camp and your characters will interact and you’ll eat and sleep. The fishing mechanic is pretty fun but it does take a little getting used to at the start. You cast with one of the shoulder buttons and then you see a circle within another circle. This circle is you hooking the fish and when you hook said fish, you reel it in with the other shoulder button. However, the line can snap and you’ll see how much tension it has by how red it gets. The stamina bar underneath goes with the tension line as you can reel in when your stamina is empty but it replenishes quickly.
Lastly, there was an Indie game for Natsume, Cosmic Defenders. From the minds at Fiery Squirrel, Cosmic Defenders is a 2d shooter where you’re tasked with defending the planets from incoming invaders. You’ll be able to shoot up, across, and side to side on each planet so you can do whatever it takes to save the universe from destruction. You’ll be able to play alone or with your friends and co-op is more fun. If you’re playing co-op, you’ll have to coordinate with your team to figure out where the enemy is and who has what area as there is a lot of ground to cover and not a whole lot of teleportation units to get there.
Natsume always has a good showing at E3 and this year they were giving out sheep key chains so double bonus!