Story of Seasons: Grand Bazaar - Newcomer's Review
The original Grand Bazaar was one of the games that fell by the wayside for me back when it seemed like there was an absolute deluge of new games in the series during the DS era, though it always seemed like one of the more unique among them. With the previous Story of Seasons remakes released during the Switch's lifetime staying extremely faithful to their original counterparts, I was curious to see how Story of Seasons: Grand Bazaar compares to modern games in the series. It's been about 17 years since the original game was released in Japan in 2008, so how does this remake stand up to modern expectations?
The immediate first impression of the game is that Grand Bazaar is probably the most visually pleasing, vibrantly colored game in the series to date. As I experience what the game has to offer, this positive impression holds through. The game doesn't just use its strong art direction to make interesting environments and characters to interact with, but event scenes are given full voice performances from numerous talented actors, and the overall cinematography of every scene elevates it to a new standard that hasn't been seen in the series before.
There is a wrinkle in the presentation that is hard for me to ignore, though. At the start of the game, you're given an option to show or hide portraits, and in the options is also a "chat camera" that cuts to a character's face during dialog. With the expressive character models and animations during event scenes, I feel the portraits are distracting and unnecessary, but with the game's typical overhead camera during gameplay, I find them more convenient for talking with villagers than using the chat camera. There simply isn't a combination of settings to give the best of both worlds, which is a bit of a bother.
Performance-wise, I never experienced any noticeable frame hitching or stuttering while running around any of the environments. At this point, I feel like I'm used to seeing some level of noticeable pop-in for shadows, textures, or detail across previous entries in the Story of Seasons and Rune Factory games released on Switch, but I can't recall a single time when there was any consistent or notable issue in Grand Bazaar, even with over 20 animals milling about my farm and the wind blowing across my fields and grass.
If you're familiar with the genre at all, you can basically hop right in and not worry too much, with the usual farming and social mechanics all present. The biggest new mechanics are wind and the titular bazaar. Instead of simply filling a shipping bin and letting someone else handle your goods, you save up your goods throughout the week to sell them all in one big batch when the bazaar opens. Running your stall is fairly simple: Stock up your items, place them on the table, and ring the bell to attract customers. Every time you sell an item, you also build a little bit of meter that you can activate for "Cheer Time," where the Nature Sprites come out and do cute little dances as they increase your profit margins. With a little bit of prep and planning, you'll be raking it in every week. It's a very satisfying stress-and-relief rhythm.
Wind, meanwhile, affects your day-to-day planning. What areas you can access for precious ore, how much time your glider can save you for getting around, and how fast your windmills can make your basic or high-ticket items, from mayonnaise to sparkly bracelets. Ready to upgrade your watering can to Orichalcum but can't stand waiting a day and a half without it? Wait for a windstorm, and it'll be done in half that, with the benefit of the storm watering your crops too. That is, assuming you put up some windscreens to protect them. While previous games didn't always make storms a big deal, you're liable to lose most of a field if you don't remember to prepare, so always make sure you have a few at the ready.
While these are big new features, the traditional elements of the game also feature a few tweaks. A wonderful quality of life change is an icon on your HUD alerting you when an event is available, with the map letting you know exactly where. It's a lovely way to take the guesswork out of getting the most out of interacting with your neighbors. Characters in general are also fairly responsive to new events and happenings, commenting on festivals and your recent accomplishments, such as earning Titles, and maybe sometimes even complimenting your outfit.
Another fun feature is how pets work in the game. Rather than simply being cute little decorations that laze around your home, your furry friends put in work and help herd your animals in and out of the barn for you, as well as can be trained with a cute little minigame if you give them treats. For some reason, horses also count as a "pet" in your ledger and naturally get trained by riding them around, but there's also an obstacle course you can train on any time of the year. Considering that you usually only get to ride your horse around and not much else, it's a nice little activity to do.
Coming off of the previous remakes in the series, I largely assumed Grand Bazaar would be a relatively low-key experience; a faithful recreation of a DS game that had initially passed me by. Instead, Story of Seasons: Grand Bazaar feels like a major step forward in the series, with some delightful characters, strong presentation, quality of life features, and a distinct set of central mechanics in both the wind and bazaar that make an addictive addition to the usual gameplay loop. My expectations were absolutely blown away, and I highly recommend it to any fan of the genre.
Additional coverage and a second review focusing more on the Steam version will be shared soon.
Review codes provided to Ranch Story staff by Marvelous USA and Marvelous Europe.
