#yasuhiro wada

[acquired-stardust]

Harvest Moon Super Nintendo Entertainment System 1996

[ranchstoryblog]

Branch Story: Natsu-Mon: 20th Century Summer Kid

Following up on an old request to post about life sims beyond the Story of Seasons and Rune Factory series, we're branching out to something that's maybe not quite that different: A life simulation game by the creator of our favorite series, Yasuhiro Wada, collabing with another life simulation legend, the creator of Boku no Natsuyasumi, Kaz Ayabe:

For those unfamiliar with the second half of that dynamic duo, Boku no Natsuyasumi is one of the oldest life sim series, starting development a year after the original Bokujou Monogatari launched on Super Famicom and ultimately releasing in the year 2000. Games in the series are typically set in August of 1975 and focus on a young boy trying to get the most out of their month of Summer vacation by exploring their surroundings, catching bugs, fish, and meeting interesting or strange people.

Natsu-Mon is something of a spiritual successor to the concept, keeping most of it intact but now taking place in 1999 and being a little more fantastic as it gives your protagonist a much broader set of exploration possibilities in something like a Breath of the Wild-ification of the concept. It's not as unnatural as it sounds, at least to me, since the ability to climb just about anything is absolutely part of what I remember about being a kid. The glider might be a little much... but I remember trying to make one of those as a kid too, so...

Living in 1999

Though the game takes place in a fictional town in a country you may have never grown up in, the game manages to maintain a strong sense of time and place. Whether you were a kid or an adult during 1999, characters will reference recent or current events. Though they don't usually directly name things, it's easy to pick out references and deduce when people are discussing The Phantom Menace as a movie they saw recently, or that a character recently purchased a SEGA Dreamcast based on how she describes the commercial she saw. If someone mentions something vaguely, there's a good chance they're talking about a real event.

Set-dressing aside, the most important time and place is "here" and "now." You only have about 30 days in this town to adventure with wild abandon, so make it count! Fortunately there's a pretty robust event and collectible journal system, and one of your family friends can provide fortunes to give you hints as to where any special events occurring that day might be.

Those are just video game-y suggestions though. My play-through the Auguest before last was mostly determined by deciding a thing I wanted to do in the morning and then trying to do it. Sometimes I found something cool, sometimes I met someone, sometimes I just kind of wandered around. Somehow, my encyclopedia ended up with 253/256 pages filled, so I guess that's just as valid as any other way to play. Without any guides available on release, the game itself was more than happy to let the player get the most out of it by just doing their best to engage with what was in front of them.

Exploring Yomogi Town

Of course, being in a new place wouldn't be all that interesting without a lot of new people to meet and learn about. Some of the people you meet are more interesting than others, but there's about 30 to meet and each with their own little stories, their own daily schedules, and things to learn about them. Whether their role is big or small, it can be fun to see what everyone's up to each day and maybe end up going on an unexpected adventure, or just channel the mindset of a kid you might remember being a long time ago and pester them with inane questions every day just to see what they'll say this time. Some townsfolk may also arrive or leave town suddenly, so things never feel too static.

If you'd rather not talk to anyone at all, that's just as well too.

Well, that's about all I can say without getting too specific. This is one of those kinds of games I think is really worth just exploring for yourself, so I tried not to give away too many of my favorite moments or expound on any specific character that stood out to me.

... Y'know, I started writing this as Summer of 2025 started to end, but ended up spending too much time playing Guardians of Azuma and Grand Bazaar, and now we're closing in on Summer of 2026... Life moves so fast now, it's almost dizzying. Even so, it's been almost two years since I last set foot in Yomogi Town, but I still remember it very fondly, and still think about the characters a lot. I guess if that's not a glowing endorsement, I dunno what is.

Remarkably, in spite of the game being out for over a year, going on two, there's still hardly anything on the English internet about the game. Even my favorite music tracks still aren't on Youtube or anywhere! So, if you've never tried it, I think now is probably a great time to do it. It'll probably be a pretty fresh experience for you. A great way to spend your own Summer this year.

Also, this isn't the only time we've talked about lifesims outside the farming genre. Check out our article on Shenmue if you'd like:

Beyond the Farm: A Dramatic Martial Arts Detective Life Sim?

Long, long ago; in the year 1999, the term "life sim" wasn't used as often or understood as well as it is today. Boku no Natsuyasumi wouldn'

[itslarigaming]

I've always wanted this game and only now I got it. The physical version was the only option, so I bought it xD

Seriously, it can be a little standard for some of you, but I really liked the hand-drawn art style and the heartwarming story. The cafe management, resource collecting, and the dragon raising are also fun.

Dragons always fascinate me, so I may be biased 💁🏻‍♀️

Anyway, I think it deserves the attention of cozy gamers 😊🌻

[marching-bells]

This is Wada’s interview for the release of Animal Parade in the February 2009 issue of Famitsu magazine’s Heartwarming Bokujou Monogatari Fanbook (vol.2). 

I’ve provided an English translation (from myself) under the cut.

集大成的にもう一度Wiiで作ろうと思ったことがきっかけ Why I thought of creating another Wii title

To start off, please explain the design and creation process of Animal Parade. Wada: The reason I decided to create Animal Parade was that I had discussed making another Bokujou Monogatari title using the Wii. Recently I have viewed the series from a remote staff position; so this time I returned as a producer,  wanting to involve myself closely with the work for the first time in quite a while. 

Were there any difficulties while developing [Animal Parade]?

Wada: There was a struggle when it came to reducing the game's load times. There is always going to be a load time, but Animal Parade's was made shorter and comfier after we rebuilt the system's mechanics from scratch.

Tell us about the kind of themes included in Animal Parade.

Wada: The original theme was to create a game that included elements from the DS titles while capturing an atmosphere similar to that of "A Wonderful Life"(※①). At first, Animal Parade was going to be named "The Town of Wind and Water" to convey the feeling we wanted. The other theme was that we wanted to create a game that included elements from "Tree of Tranquility" while making a title that was easy to play for those who have little experience with Bokujou Monogatari. Of course, we tried many new things with Tree of Tranquility; such as being able to keep ostriches, and being able to pet and care for (wild) animals. In Animal Parade, we wanted to bolster these features by making them cuter and adding variety to them, putting emphasis on making the game fun.

Cuteness is surely important, but even the way animals move is cute!

Wada: That's right. While making the game, the movement of the animals created by the staff healed* me just by looking at them. At the time, I had only been thinking about dogs. However, the world is not only made of dog lovers; there are cat lovers, too. So then...I decided to continue from there and put consideration into the idea of other [animals] too. Certainly, isn't it funny when you think of animals like a snake or a frog? The thought continued like that. There are people who like various kinds of animals, so we wanted to create something rich in variety that satisfies those people. Additionally, we thought it would be more fun to have a lot of tricks to learn, and prepared leveled performances with variations up to MAX level(※②). 

Even in the Circus, which has its first series debut [in Animal Parade],  the animals take an active role. How was this developed?

Wada: The circus was created not only from the idea of being something cute and soothing to the viewer, but also from the design point of adding an element to animals that make them more interactive and fun. To properly convey the full diversity of animals, we didn't just include small animals (such as pets), but also large animals from Africa like the giraffe and elephant. The theme of the circus in Animal Parade is, "it is a place where those who come to see it will be healed". Just looking at the circus tent from above and cheering "Good work!" makes one lonely. So, I decided I wanted to have fun alongside the animals' performance.

A lot of the same characters that appear in Tree of Tranquility also appear in Animal Parade.

Wada: The reason we reused the same cast of characters was because there were a lot of requests for those characters to return from users who liked them. I hope they are happy that these characters have come back, and I have worked with those requests in mind; however, the characters have been rebuilt from the ground up. The characters and designs are all the same, but events and dialogue related to the characters are starting from scratch. Furthermore, there were requests for new characters to be added, so I wanted to include those for [Animal Parade]. I will do my best to listen the voices of the users and work hard so that you will all be happy!

Now that new characters have appeared, everything seems to be getting more entertaining; Was there anything that concerned you, though?

Wada: When I decided that the original Tree of Tranquility cast should return, I wanted to make sure that the game expanded on these characters while retaining features of their past selves. [The idea] was not to distort the original designs just because new characters had been introduced to the work. For this reason, the new characters we introduced were non-human, such as the Harvest King and Harvest Goddess.

What's the concept for each character?

Wada: Harvest King's concept is "strong and handsome".  According to the character designer, he is a character designed with their preferences on "full throttle" (laughs). At first I was a little anxious, but when the design was completed, there was enough original works reproduced from the design that he became the first or second favorite character to come from Animal Parade. By the way, my personal favorite is the "Witch". Since the Witch in “Island of Happiness” was based on the character designer's preferences, this time the Witch is based on my own tastes. Basically, my type is "Tsundere" (※④), so this Witch also fits that trope! The core essence of "Tsundere" is a bit boring [to me], so I made the character design more aligned with a "cold, but gentle" feeling. Also, since each character is designed with a gender opposite in mind, the Harvest King is a marriage candidate along with the Harvest Goddess. Because of this, we couldn't introduce the Witch without having the necessary male equivalent. That’s how the Wizard was created in this circumstance. Since the Witch looks sweet, the Wizard was designed to look "cool". It's intriguing when there's gaps in content, so the character was created with a cool personality in mind, but also with a slow-paced, natural feeling. Fin(※⑤), who stays alongside the protagonist, appears in a number of important cutscenes and has a position as a helpful character. With Fin at their side, beginners will find it easy to play this game. Also, Fin is an apprentice Harvest Sprite; it would be nice if [Fin] and the player were able to get along in the world.

The number of different festivals included in Animal Parade has also increased considerably.

Wada: In the newest titles, the amount of events you can view to interact with residents (such as love events between marriage candidates) is quite substantial. In Animal Parade, we wanted to enrich these events with new experiences, enhancing the events and festivals that everyone enjoys! [The work] contains a lot of new mini-game styled festivals. Each season holds different kinds of festivals, so please view them all.

With the amount of events involving residents also increasing, it seems you can fully enjoy the peaceful life and atmosphere there.

Wada: Correct. Not only are there rival events, but there are also rival marriages,  regular events involving residents, and even events that can be enjoyed after marriage. As an example: when you get married, your game doesn't end, and you can enjoy your spouse working on the farm with you or talking a walk with you. At most, the number of events is usually around 500 or so, but for Animal Parade there are 2000-3000 in total when you include the event variations.

It does seem like it will be hard to view them all (laughs). But, it looks satisfying; like each day will be fun.

Wada: We tried to create scenes from various world-wide perspectives, so it would be good if you interacted with the (game) world on a daily basis. Like past Bokujou Monogatari titles, we incorporated a lot of things into the environment like festivals(※⑥). Unfortunately, the things that we couldn't fit into festivals are now put into sub-events. I want everyone to be surprised; there are various new twists that this work brings forth, so please check it out.

You'll want to explore around the area with the new camera - it's packed with fun!

Wada: Anyway, I wanted have a look around the continent. I had the idea that you could a lot of interesting things using the camera! It was due to that idea that the self-timer was created. For example, you can create an interesting photo if you take a picture while running in the shot. With that feeling, we expanded more on the [camera's] features.

Please give a message to your fans who haven't played Animal Parade yet.

Wada: Now more than ever, the work has been completed in such a way that it will satisfy everyone's taste! It's a game that is very close to the original ideal that I wanted when I intended to create the Bokujou Monogatari series. I tried playing all of my previous works up to this point, and it was interesting to have been touched by each one. With that said, please rest assured that it's a game you can play even if you have little experience with the series.

『わくアニ』を基盤にして 『牧場物語』の最終形を目指す Aiming for the final form of Bokujou Monogatari based on Animal Parade

I want to ask about Bokujou Monogatari as a whole. What kind of work are you going to create in the future?

Wada: The entire concept of Bokujou Monogatari is being able to do many things in a heartwarming world, making it the ultimate garden toybox that can be enjoyed by each and every person. In real life, I want to create works that make you realize things must be obtained through hard work and don't come easily. I feel that Animal Parade's direction represents the final form of Bokujou Monogatari. If we can improve the form and atmosphere of this work, it will become even better than before.

What kinds of things do you want to improve?

Wada: I don't want there to be any load times, and I'd like to remove the restrictions on the number of animals that you can keep and raise on your farm. I want to keep at least 100 animals (laughs). After that, I want to improve the characters. As it is now, we are making a system that actually feels like you are communicating with the characters in the game. Also, for the animals - rather than making them realistic, a caricature is simple and easy to understand. I want to be able to do many things with them as well. Furthermore, I'd like to be able to expand the types of cooking recipes available. Right now you can only cook using a recipe, otherwise experimenting with the ingredients will cause the dish to fail. Overall, the goal is to grow and allow players to try many new and different things.

Please leave a message for series fans!

Wada: The theme of the series is roughly divided into "ranching" and "rural countryside life", but the core essence is being "the ultimate toybox".  Rather than experiencing things you're already able to do in real life, it's a place where you feel your dreams can come true. If you open the lid, you'll find there are happy things packed inside, but there are sad things as well. Moreover, I think that each of those things are experiences you can only get from these games, and all become important memories. Please experience the realism that you can only feel while playing Bokujou Monogatari for yourself.

Keywords:

(※①) “A Wonderful Life”......Software released for the Gamecube in 2003. The titles “Another Wonderful Life” and “A Wonderful Life: Special Edition” were also released in 2004. 

(※②) Level MAX......The level of pet acts goes up to 4. Each level has a different act, and the animal will perform in a cute manner. The motion animation team went to a zoo to study the movement of animals to use as a basis for the movement of the tricks! Furthermore, rather than animate literal movements of the animals, we tried to make them cuter. The [animals’] movement and appearance is a lot cuter than the original designs in Tree of Tranquility. By popular demand (?), the silkworm (which provides silk cocoons) also had its cuteness improved!

(※③) The Circus......It comes to Harmonica Town every month (season) on the 22nd. Many various animals will perform feats of amazing talent!

(※④)Tsundere.....They are people who appear to have a cold attitude at first, but will warm up to you when you get closer to them.

(※⑤)Fin......He's a Harvest Sprite created by the Harvest Goddess that's always by the protagonist's side. Since he's just an fledgling sprite, he has no ability to ring the Bells.

(※⑥)Festivals......Festivals are hosted by the residents of the town, and there are many different festivals each season. In previous Bokujou Monogatari titles, there were festival events like chicken fighting and tomato-throwing fights.  In Animal Parade, you're not only able to watch and enjoy the festivals, but you can also interact with residents more closely.

(*Throughout the article, Wada uses forms of “ 癒す “ or “to be healed”. There was no real direct translation for this. It’s a subculture thing in Japan. I hope you can understand what he was trying to convey.) 

[daylight]

Look!! A new game has been announced by Yasuhiro Wada (the creator of Harvest Moon) and Aksys, and it features… raising dragons and running a café!

“Little Dragons Café is the story of two children whose mother has fallen into a deep slumber. A mysterious man tells them she’ll only wake up once they’ve successfully raised a dragon. In the meantime, they’ve got to keep the family café running — which means planting crops, fishing, learning recipes, serving food to small-town neighbours.”

Apparently it’s due for a release for the Switch and PS4 by the end of summer 2018! I’m sorry but dragons…… I’m a fan…. 

Edit: just a quick note: Unlike hometown story, this is produced in cooperation with Aksys Games and Marvelous' Bokujou Monogatari Dev team.

[friends-of-mineral-town]

While at anime expo, I stopped by the little dragon Cafe booth and met Yasuhiro Wada! I didn’t expect him to be there, and I cried with happiness to met someone who made the games I’ve played since I was a kid. He was so humble and nice. He bowed to me, and was so happy that I was moved to tears to meet him. I took a lot of pictures, but my hand was shaky so this is the best one I took 🐤🐣🐄

[nintendocafe]

Aksys Games has announced a new title from the creator of Harvest Moon, Yasuhiro Wada. The game is called Little Dragons Café.

[satoshi-mochida]

Marvelous has updated the official Japanese website for Little Dragons Cafe with details on characters Miel and Lanchais.

If you missed our previous detailed reports on Little Dragons Cafe, catch them here, here, here, here, and here..

Get the details below.

Miel

A fortune-teller who has the utmost confidence in her fortune-telling. However, the truth is that her fortune-telling is famous for missing its mark. One day, she makes a big fuss after foreseeing the end of the world. While she is the only one going on about it, what will actually happen?

Lanchais

A girl who is followed by lots of bats. While she has the appearance of a child, she is actually an 800 year-old vampire. There seems to be someone she really wants to meet…

Little Dragons Cafe is due out for PlayStation 4 and Switch on August 24 in North America and August 30 in Japan. In Europe, it will launch this summer, but a specific release date has yet to be announced.

View the screenshots at the gallery.