Part of the 2nd 9 Days of Heck event. Road Runner cartoons? ROAD RUNNER CARTOONS!? HAHAHAHAHAHA!
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Year: 1996
Played on: PC
Also on: Linux, MS-DOS
Developer: DigiFX Interactive
Publisher:Merit/ Virgin
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He always was a kidder…..
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Date posted: October 27, 2018
PREMISE
You know, I don’t play a lot of point-and-click adventure games. However, I know some things about them. I knew which one’s were considered the best without playing them (King’s Quest, Grim Fandango, Maniac Mansion) the list goes on and on! However, I was never really good at them- I always looked up a guide, no matter what!
One day, back in high school, I was looking up violent video games (as high schoolers do!) and came across a point and click that immediately grabbed my attention- 1996’s Harvester, by the defunct DigiFX Interactive.
Gory. Horrifying. Sickening. These are only some of the many thing I saw about this game. It was, right then and there that I knew I had to one day play this game.
Years later, guess what pops up on Steam for the low price of fifty cents?
Bought it. Played it. And boy, did I f@#king enjoy it!
Harvester is a game like none other I played. It’s violent, weird, funny and even satirical. It’s an adventure game that I think everyone- yes, everyone- needs to play. Let me explain why this off-kilter experiment needs to be played!
The premise is not that simple. The main protagonist, Steve (an all around kidder), wakes up in a strange 1950’s city called Harvest, with no recollection on how he arrived there. All he knows is that there’s something wrong with this quaint little small town and it denizens, and that the weird looking building in the center of town, called the Lodge, is where the truth lies…
PROS
The town of harvest is brought to life with an insane array of different characters,each with their own, twisted and bizarre motivations. There’s Steve’s “Mom”, who’s obsessed with baking cookies. Your father never leaves his room, and your brother is glued to the TV, watching violent westerns. There’s a strange paper boy who takes papers instead of delivering them. The neighbor is obsessed with meat- and he’s soon to become your father-in-law! This is only a small taste of the strangers you’ll meet. Indeed, Harvester has some of the strangest, off-kilter, and downright sickening cast of characters in video game history!
The fact that most of the game uses FMV’s and digitized sprites (think Mortal Kombat) just adds so much to the game, it’s not even funny (except when it is!). It makes everything feel more violent, more real, and even more uncomfortable- indeed, Harvester is one of the few games that manages to make my skin crawl- then something happens that makes me laugh out loud. It’s just horrifyingly brilliant and yet, disgusting!
Unlike other violent games of that era, Harvester seems to have some good satire about violence in media and how it affects a person, psychologically. The whole game’s theme seems to be about violence in games and television, and whether it not has an adverse affect on your mind. Some say it’s shoehorned in, so don’t take it from me!
By the way- do your self a favor, and go into this game blind! Don’t look up any screenshots, and look for a spoiler free walk-though, if need be. The less you know, the better experience you’ll have! Trust me! I work for the lodge!
CONS
The combat is atrocious, and easily the worst part of the game. It simply does not work, and hampers down an otherwise solid experience. Attacks never land. Melee is awful. Ranged weapons are hard to come by. Save often, before choice encounters, making sure you have good health and enough ammo- it the only way to proceed!
Some of the puzzles, in typical point-and-click adventure fashion, can be quite confusing. There’s one where you have to move a cabinet that’s simply mind boggling. Others really force you to think outside the box. Yeah, you might want to look up that spoiler-free walk-though….
Now your final warning. This game is violent. Incredibly violent. It’s been considered one of the most violent games of all time for a good reason! This is true for most of the cut scenes, and almost the entirety of the last act,- which I won’t spoil. It can also be downright disgusting at times- not good idea to nibble on anything while playing…
This is NOT a game for the faint of heart, or weak of stomach! You have been warned!
-Banned in Germany!
-Censored in Europe!
-Kurt Kistler, the guy who played Steve Mason, was once arrested for possessing child pornography. Yeah, I didn’t think this game couldn’t get any creepier either!
FINAL VERDICT
I unironically think that Harvester is a must-play. It’s off the wall, silly, violent, and cheesy as all hell- pretty much everything I’d want in a game, really! I recommend this to anyone who wants an experience that is not like any other I have seen in gaming. It’s disgusting, vile, disturbing, hilarious, and out there- and I would not have it any other way! Now if you excuse me, I’m going to go watch some roadrunner cartoons….
Agree? Disagree? Good! Leave a comment about how terrible my taste is in the comments below!
Gamer's Edge 
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