After having a vegetable patch in real life, I finally understand why all farming games start with mastering the turnip. And while you won't be able to make a living with turnips like in Story of Seasons, at least in Friends of Mineral Town: The Friends of Mineral Town, you can make a living with turnips, At least real turnips have a taste.

It all started with a letter from a distant mayor. He has taken over the rundown farm of his grandfather, who died some time ago, and is desperately trying to scavenge wild berries to buy his precious turnip seeds. The town has people to woo, events to attend, and even mines to explore. Sounds familiar, doesn't it? This is the inspiration for the agricultural colossus that is Stardew Valley.

Time for a confusing history lesson. Story of Seasons: The Fellowship of Mineral Town is a remake of the classic 2003 Game Boy Advance title, Ranch Tales: The Fellowship of Mineral Town. The name "Harvest Moon" has been changed here to "Story Of Seasons" because it belongs to the former publisher Natsume, but it is itself a remake of "Harvest Moon" and is the same game: "Harvest Moon" released on PlayStation 1 in 1999. It is a remake of "Back to Nature". It is a remake of "Harvest Moon", which is itself a remake of the same game: "Harvest Moon: Back to Nature", which was released in 1999 on the PlayStation 1.

Mineral Town itself is a pretty place to live, everything is pretty and rounded, and the only danger you face is a late bedtime. There is a lovely little library, scenic mountain trails to stroll along, and beaches to relax on. All is idyllic, but on a smaller scale, as the map is based on a 21-year-old game. Those who played the original will enjoy finding everything exactly as they remember it, but those who want to enjoy the farm life after living in Stardew Valley will be left wondering what all the fuss is about.

All the residents have their own lives and routines, but they are all unconventional and shallow. The girl with glasses is shy and works in the library, the painter is brooding and "mysterious" (mysterious being where his personality went), and there are childhood friends. Some of them are romantically involved, but none of them are boring, and I resented giving my precious turnip to be friends with most of them.

I began courting the doctor, who seemed to be the only serious adult in the village, dedicated to the pursuit of science and medicine. But after giving me a taste of my cucumber, he gave me a "negative ion" diffuser. He might as well have told me to do a juice cleanse, using jade eggs. Instantly I feel sick. Other single men are equally disappointed. They romance because they have to for the sake of the game, rather than because they are actually likable; Stardew created a character you care about, and has done it better ever since, than a simple first foray into this genre.

My other complaint is that the farms are mostly fixed. The barns and coops are pre-built, so there is not much layout management or customization, except for crop placement. The mines are basically empty, so you don't really feel like you are exploring. But at least the animal designs are super cute, and all the old game guides come in handy when you want to find out what the townsfolk do on a daily basis or how to get a fishing pole.

Despite all this, farming is pure joy. The cycle of tilling the soil, planting and growing vegetables each morning is compelling. Even though I'm not in town, I find myself in a comfortable "just one more day in the game" loop as I brush the cows and feed the chickens. The stamina bar depletes surprisingly quickly, so progress is slow and arduous, but each time you upgrade your tools, you can expand your plot a little more. The respite in this routine is one element that still holds up, but even that begins to feel painful when there is not much else to do. One can befriend the harvest sprites and ask them to help with the work, but in order to do so, one has to go through yet another daily struggle of begging them for the right gift.

There are several modernizations. In addition to the bedside diary, you can save anywhere you want, you can change outfits, and there is an easy mode that boosts your gold to ship items. Most, however, are completely faithful to the original. Some modernization is not sufficient. You have some creative control over your character, but with only four avatar options (two male, two female) and three skin tones (pale, fair, and vaguely tan), it feels like a cut-and-dried affair. Why not go further and provide an actual character creator? Being able to better create peasants in one's own image would not take anything away from the original experience.

It's great that 17 years after the GBA version, they are trying to bring back the nostalgia that got people hooked on the genre, but things are changing. It's an interesting history lesson to learn about the work that inspired "Stardew Valley" and how it has progressed since then, but maybe it's time to put "Mineral Town" out to pasture.