Possible Fix for Stuck Animal Glitch

I received another email recently about a cat who became stuck in the wall in HM DS. This is an unfortunate situation that can occur randomly and when it does, it usually spells eternal imprisonment for the poor creature, like the cat in Edgar Allan Poe's famous tale.

While responding to the player, however, a possible 'fix' occurred to me. It only would be possible if you have not ordered all expansions from Gotz yet.

Whenever you order a house expansion from Gotz in HM DS or Cute DS, your Dog and Cat, if inside the house at the time, are at risk of being imprisoned in the new walls. I do not know WHY Gotz fails to notice them, but he sometimes is guilty of this oversight.

So my possible fix is: order ANOTHER House Expansion from Gotz. When the walls change again, your Cat or Dog MAY be freed from the unfortunate imprisonment. Note that I use the conditional word 'may' here. Even so, a possible fix is better than none, and I would be thrilled to hear from any player who tried this and succeeded in regaining his/her beloved Pet!

As previously stated, it only becomes an option if you did not order every expansion previously. Fortunately, there are many possible expansions in HM DS and Cute DS, including Bathroom, Restroom and three Basements...

Games within Games in Harvest Moon

This is nothing more than a quick post to respond to a player's question about Cute.

The player asked: After scrolling through your guides, I didn't see anything about it so I decided to ask you. :D
In harvest moon Cute, when i pressed A next to the telephone, suddenly I was 'transported' to a screen that had multiple people in the game, in the Excavation Site, then a question saying 'how many muffys were there?' & there were options. When I tried again, nothing happened. How do I make it happen, & what'll happen if I answer correctly? (End of comment.)

What the player is describing is one of the Mini-Games available both in Harvest Moon DS and Cute DS. It is not the Telephone that gives you access to this game but the Record Cabinet in your house. The information is included in my HM DS General Guide in Section XXVII, under the heading of 'Mini-Games'. I believe I included it in my HM Cute DS General Guide as well but if not, please let me know and I will rectify the omission.

In many respects, HM DS and HM Cute DS are identical. If a player cannot find information about an aspect of the game in one of my Cute Guides, please look at the corresponding HM DS guide. For example, I did not duplicate the 'Perpetual Calendar' guide but it is as valid for HM Cute DS as for the original HM DS.

Here is the information about the Mini-Games in HM DS/Cute DS:

XXVII. Mini-Games:


There are a number of mini-games in the DS version of Harvest Moon that can be
accessed only by performing a specific action.


How many Girls?:


This game can be played from the start of the game if you go to your record
cabinet at 6.01 a.m. precisely and press 'A'. To do this, you need to exit the
house as soon as you awaken at 6.00 a.m. and re-enter it immediately. When you
press the 'A' button, you will open a little game.

In this game, there will be 12 girls on the screen, each facing one of the four
directions. There may be more than one of any given 'eligible girl' in the
game. In other words, there may be three Floras, two Muffys, four Celias and
two Namis and one Lumina. The configuration of 12 girls will flash on the
screen for a moment and then you will be asked a question. The question may be
as simple as how many of the girls were Lumina? You may be asked instead how
many of the girls were facing east.

If you guess correctly, the only prize you will obtain is a few points towards
your Farming Degree. If you want to make certain to win, save your game BEFORE
you press 'A'. If you lose, reload and play again.


Which Bear?


This mini-game can be played only at the stroke of midnight if you press 'A' in
front of your television. You will see the Witch Princess with three bears.
She will sprinkle coloured powder on the bears and you will be required to
choose the bear she indicates after she changes their positions rapidly. This
game will last for ten rounds if you keep winning. If you choose correctly 10
times, you will gain 100 AP with the Witch Princess.

N.B. This game is NOT available in the English version of the game once you
purchase the DVD player. All you can do with the television then is to use it
to watch DVDs once you have purchased the DVD player and a DVD. If,
therefore, you wish to play the Three Bears game, do not buy the DVD player
immediately. You do need the DVD player to experience Lumina's 2nd Heart
Event, however.


Gladiator Girls


This mini-game can be activated only at 4.44 a.m. when you press A in front of
your doghouse. The Witch Princess will officiate here, choosing an opponent
for you from the eligible girls in the game.

When the game opens, she will say: So you're finally here. Let's test your
power and see what you're like. Here we go.'

You will engage in a typical turn-based RPG battle with the girl the Witch
Princess has chosen. If you win, the Witch Princess will choose another
opponent for you randomly. One by one, you will be forced to battle against 5
of the eligible girls in the game. The Mineral Town girls are included as
well. An interesting aspect of these battles is the addition of your 'rival'
for each girl. The rival in each case will aid the woman he loves, and both he
and the girl herself will attack. If you manage to emerge victorious from all
five encounters, you will be able to fight the Witch Princess herself! Defeat
her to win the Battle Master item.

Recover Stamina Twice.
Recover Spirit Twice.

In classic RPG turn-based combat style, you will be able to choose from a
number of different moves whenever it is your turn. The choices are:

Attack
Defend
Dodge
Charge
Special
Escape

If you have sufficient Spirit, you will be able to choose to execute a 'Super
Move' by choosing the 'Special' option. These include Super Attack and Super
Healing. If you choose 'Super Healing', the Harvest Goddess herself will come
to the arena to heal you, showing a big red heart and restoring your Stamina.

The Accessory that you equip before you activate the game will have some
influence on your Stamina and Spirit. It therefore would be wise to equip one
that does boost your Energy. The best of these would be the Witch Princess
Earrings as it restores Stamina and combats Fatigue. If you would rather see
your opponent's levels of energy during the battles, equip the Truth Ring
instead. (I opt for the Witch Princess Earrings myself.)

I personally found it easiest to win these battles if I used 'Defend'
occasionally and 'Super Heal'. The Defend move allowed me to recover some
Stamina, probably because I had equipped the Witch Princess Earrings.

If you win the game against the Witch Princess, it will be 4.00 a.m. You will
have the 'Title Bonus' in your hands and you will not have had any sleep! The
title that the Witch Princess gives you for winning the battle is 'Battle
Master'. The document she gives is described as: Title Bonus: Whatever it
is, you get it when you get a title.



Harvest Goddess Counting Game


Players familiar with FoMT or MFoMT will know this game as the one that the
Harvest Goddess plays on the television with you during the first five days of
the New Year. In this game, however, it will not be available until you have
rescued 60 Sprites and made 20 offerings to the Harvest Goddess. If you guess
correctly twice or more, you will win a random number of a random upgraded
level of seeds. If you continue to give her offerings each day, she will play
this game with you again periodically.

Incidentally, as the prize is a random number of seeds, you cannot have any
tool equipped in your tool slot when you play the game or the Goddess will tell
you that you cannot carry the prize, even if there are empty slots in your
rucksack. Make certain, therefore, that your tool slot is empty before you
drop the offering into the Pond.

Harvest Goddess: You've come so many times that I've beocme familiar with
Mineral Town. Let's play a game. I'll put out a card between 0 and 9 and
you guess if the next is bigger or smaller. If you guess correctly a few times
in a row, I'll give you a prize. Good luck. I'm starting.
Comparing to First is this one
Bigger
Smaller

You then choose 'Bigger' or 'Smaller'.

Example:

Harvest Goddess: That was three. Before was three. You chose Bigger so...
They are the same. So we keep going.
Comparing to Next is ...3?

777777777777

That was 7, before was 3. you chose Bigger so...

That's correct.

N.B. It can be a little confusing because of the manner in which she speaks of
the numbers in this game. If you wish to guarantee that you win the game, save
your game before you drop the offering into the Goddess Pond and then reload
either if you lose before winning a prize, or if you win seeds that are not
particularly valuable.

***********************************************

I do have a question myself for players. The Witch Princess' Mini-Game could not be activated in the original English version of HM DS. Is it possible to access it in Cute? I never had time to test that myself.

***********************************************

Other 'mini-games' that are an integral part of regular gameplay include the games played at the Casino in HM DS/Cute DS.

It is not only HM DS/Cute DS that offers the player an opportunity to play various mini-games. Tree of Tranquility has a separate menu for the Mini-Games unlocked in that game. You do need to unlock the full menu but once you have done so, you can go directly to that menu to play a mini-game instead of being obliged to trigger it again in the course of regular gameplay.

Most Harvest Moon games in fact include 'mini-games' even if they are included in the regular game. In MFoMT, one could play a number of mini-games with Won. His 'Apple Challenge' game as well as his slot machine game are two ways in which the player can become rich quickly in MFoMT.

Finally, who can forget the ubiquitous Mole who pops up in game after game to wreak havoc in your Field? 'Whack-a-Mole' is a venerable mini-game that has been featured in many Harvest Moon games. In ToT, it can be played either as a Mini-Game or whenever you encounter a Male in the Mines. Prizes for whacking the Mole in the Mines consist of Recovery Items such as Pontata Root...

Note: The screenshot is simply one of the Witch Princess in her home with her beloved Bears in Island of Happiness. The Mini-Game in HM DS/Cute DS is quite different, and is accessed through the television.

Heart Levels for Beginners in Island of Happiness

I received an email from a player today who asked me whether the hearts displayed in the Individuals List would change colour according to heart level. This made me realise that Harvest Moon traditions that many of us take for granted probably need to be explained to some beginners.

In fact, the hearts displayed in the Individuals List next to each character's name do not change colour. Hearts for any character eligible for marriage will be red and all other characters will be green. (I believe the hearts next to your child's name may be red as well.)

When you speak to any individual who is eligible for marriage in your game, you will see a heart on the screen itself. That heart will be black in colour when you first meet the character. As you 'raise' or increase his/her heart level, it will change colour. Each 'heart level' represents a specific number of points:

Eligible Bachelors and Eligible Girls:

0 to 10,000 points: Black Heart
10,000 to 20,000 points: Purple Heart
20,000 to 30,000 points: Blue Heart
30,000 to 40,000 points: Green Heart
40,00 points to 50,000 points: Yellow Heart
50,000 points to 60,000 points: Orange Heart
60,000 points to 65355 points: Red Heart

And the other character heart levels...

0 Hearts: 0 to 25 Points
1 Heart: 26 to 50 Points
2 Hearts = 51 to 76 points
3 Hearts = 77 to 101 points
4 Hearts = 102 to 127 points
5 Hearts = 128 to 152 points
6 Hearts = 153 to 178 points
7 Hearts = 179 to 203 points
8 Hearts = 204 to 229 points
9 Hearts = 230 to 254 points
10 Hearts = 255 points

If your character is a girl, there is an exception in the person of Shea, who never has any heart displayed on the screen. You can access the Individuals List at any time, however, to see what his actual Heart Level is. Two hearts, for example, represents 'Purple Heart' Level.

At deepest red heart level, the eligible Bachelor/Girl will be at a minimum of 60,000points or 10 hearts.

This system is common to most Harvest Moon games. In some games, like HM DS/Cute DS, you can purchase an accessory that, when equipped, will show you the precise number of points earned in Affection or Friendship with each individual. Island of Happiness has the Individuals List but no Accessory that displays precise totals in terms of points.