Harvest Moon 3

The third entry in the down-home series of RPGs boasts a bevy of new options and features. You can play as a male or female farmer, get married, play with new pets and enjoy new minigames. Essentially a farming role-playing game, Harvest Moon 3 requires you to clear a patch of land, till the soil, plant seeds and tend the new shoots. Take a twice-weekly ferry to the mainland (the island locale is new to this game) to purchase animals and other supplies. Despite -- or perhaps because of -- the lack of swordplay, magic spells and other traditional RPG fare, the Harvest Moon series exerts its own unique charm that has won over thousands of would-be farmers worldwide.