The phrase "Harvest Moon ripoff" gets thrown around a lot on the review page, but let me set the record straight: This is a ripoff of Harvest Moon, you know, in the sense that both Harvest Moon and Stardew Valley are games about farming. In reality, this game offers so many improvements over the Harvest Moon style that it's a wonder we haven't seen a game like this sooner. Yes, you plant crops, raise animals, ship produce and animal products and use the money to improve your house and buy gifts to impress the single women (or men) of the small town you live in. But the mechanics go so much deeper then that. There are dozens of plant types you grow, from vegetables to flowers, and even more things you can ship and sell, from minerals to fish to maple syrup to mayonnaise to even building materials, like cut wood or mined stone! There's a crafting system in the game that allows you to produce scarecrows, furnaces, syrup taps, fertilizer, and a host of decorative items. You can build multiple types of fences, paved pathways to map out your land, wells to provide locations to refill your water can, and even automatic sprinkler systems. The townsfolk are lively and every one of them have their own schedule and story lines, even birthdays. They aren't badly translated Japanese characters either (like Popuri or Wizard) They are realistic people with realistic goals and desires that make sense based on their home lives. The quiet bookworm lives in a trailer with her single, poor mom. The handsome, aloof man lives on the beach and surfs all day. The shopkeeper has trouble competing with the mega chain store just down the street, etc. The town, though small, has a ton of charm you'll fall in love with Combine this with a cooking system, movable furniture, an adventure mode in the mines, and even a collectibles minigame and you have one of the best farm games ever made. Don't call it a ripoff, baby. This game is an improvement over the HM series in every way!
Tropico 4 story is pretty unique. It basically re-uses a lot of the assest and building and mechanics from the last game, Tropico 3. But, Tropico 3 is basically an updated version of the first game. So Tropico 4 is an update of an update of the classic. Build farms, mines, factories, make money, and try to appease all the different factions long enough to stay in power to achieve your goals The formula is the same as the first game, which means you get that classic, tin-pot dictator city builder you want. However, in this game there are multiple additions to the types of industry and resource gathering you can do per island. There are more quests and objectives, including additional objectives that can pop up at any time during any mission. The different advisors and politicians in the game are all silly caricatures that are actually quite charming at times, especially the radio hosts Penultimo and Sunny. There's an actual story mode that stretches over 20 scenarios. And the game is quite funny, with some moments that are legitimately funny. Combine all of this with Modern Times, the best expansion ever made for the Tropico series, and you've got a really good game here that will keep you entertained for hours. In my honest opinion, this is the best the Tropico series ever got. If you're only going to pick up one Tropico game, make it this one. It contains everything that is great about Tropico, with enough updates and quirky charm of it's own to make it more than just a remake.
