In Story of Seasons: A Wonderful Life, players have a total of eight eligible candidates they can choose to spend their in-game life with. Unlike many farming games, the focus of A Wonderful Life is more family-centric - players and town residents age, and a large portion of gameplay in later years involves raising a child with one's spouse. This makes the choice of whom to marry all the more important, and begs the question whether the pool of bachelors or bachelorettes offers stronger options overall.
The recent release is a remake of Harvest Moon: A Wonderful Life, and offers a myriad of improvements to the game as a whole. One of the largest examples of this is the title's bachelors and bachelorettes, with several receiving desperately-needed redesigns alongside new cutscenes after marriage that help further each relationship's depth. Players must get married in SoS: A Wonderful Life at the end of the first year in order to continue, giving them a finite amount of time to decide which resident of Forgotten Valley is right for them - this is how they all compare.
Story Of Seasons: A Wonderful Life's Bachelors
One of the biggest redesigns in Story of Seasons: A Wonderful Life is Matthew - formerly Marlin - the reserved bachelor who lives and works with his sister Vesta on her farm. Matthew sometimes draws comparisons to characters like Shane from Stardew Valley, as he's quite cold and closed off towards the player when their relationship first begins. However, in Matthew's case, getting him to open up can feel quite rewarding, and players learn that past health struggles are a large part of what makes him so pessimistic and brooding. By the time marriage is on the table with enough hearts to propose, Matthew has gone through a satisfying evolution.
Another contender for Forgotten Valley's most brooding bachelor is Gordy, a sculpture artist with a fierce dedication to his craft. Gordy has also received a satisfying redesign, although he maintains a bit of the same intimidating nature he had in the original A Wonderful Life. As a bachelor, Gordy can be hard to romance - he's often lost in thought and is a man of few words, but the depths of his creative mind can be fun to discover over time. As an added bonus, if players romance the artist he'll make an abstract sculpture inspired by them.
Musician Gustafa is the polar opposite example of an artist in Forgotten Valley compared to Gordy. A lighthearted, yurt-dwelling hippie, Gustafa actually approaches the player first to extend a friendly introduction. This sets the tone for his general nature as a bachelor - he's easy to romance, enjoying simple gifts like flowers, and is much less closed off than some of the other bachelors in town. Arguably one of the best marriage candidates in SoS: A Wonderful Life, players will benefit from his artistic nature just as they do with Gordy, receiving serenades and a personalized song.
The youngest of the marriage candidates in Story of Seasons, Rock, is Forgotten Valley's resident himbo. He can be quite polarizing as a bachelor, presenting some of the game's funniest dialogue while simultaneously displaying grating amounts of unearned confidence. Rock also actively opposes the idea of ever holding a job or doing any labor - in fact, after players propose he even checks with them that his goal of never working is okay with them. Although childish and lazy, Rock has a certain sweetness and charisma that makes him the right fit for some.
Story Of Seasons: A Wonderful Life's Bachelorettes
The most closed off of the bachelorettes in Story of Seasons: A Wonderful Life, Nami, can be a bit difficult for players to get to know. She's a traveler who's taken up semi-permanent residence at the inn with selective gift preferences and a sharp tongue, but just as with the bachelors, breaking down her walls to learn more about her and her family can feel very worthwhile. She's another character who grows as a person after marriage, becoming much more open and affectionate.
Molly is a big-city girl looking for happiness in small-town life, and although she comes off as cool and confident she has many endearing insecurities beneath the surface that help give her character depth. The Bluebird Café employee is a hopeless romantic, and is easy to woo with flowers and fun daily chats. It's no wonder why Molly has been a fan-favorite since the original A Wonderful Life, with a bubbly and charming personality and an interesting backstory that makes her an excellent marriage candidate.
Lumina is new to the bachelorette pool in A Wonderful Life, having been aged up since the original version. Although this change may feel a bit strange for those who played the original, the addition of Lumina is an overall net positive. Residing in a mansion with her aunt, Lumina lives a fairly sheltered life, making her one of the most shy and naive characters. This can be quite adorable, especially as she slowly discovers what love feels like as she falls for the player. Lumina is a piano playing virtuoso that's sweet to the core, and presents a great new marriage option in Story of Seasons.
Cecilia is the Platonic ideal of the girl next door, literally residing on the farm adjacent to the player's alongside Vesta and Matthew. She loves plants and animals, giving her an instant connection with the player, a fellow farmer. In the original game, Cecilia is the default spouse for players if they haven't chosen one by the end of the year, and with good reason. She's quick to open up to the protagonist and has an extremely positive outlook on life that's great for raising a family together, and is an easy choice when it comes to settling down in Story of Seasons.
SoS: A Wonderful Life's Bachelorettes Are Better Than The Bachelors
Although players may get some artistic benefits and interesting evolutions from the bachelors in Story of Seasons: A Wonderful Life, the overall best pool of prospects is the game's bachelorettes. As a whole, the women in the game spend much less time being brooding and mysterious, and none of them have the annoying, unearned confidence of characters like Rock. The bachelorettes also trend on the sweeter side and show more growth and depth than their male counterparts, and considering much of the game revolves around building a life together these are excellent qualities to have.
Of course, marriage in A Wonderful Life will always come down to individual player preference. Some may enjoy breaking down the walls of characters like Matthew or laughing at Rock's airheaded musings. In many farming games, partner choice doesn't carry much weight as it's not an integral part of the narrative, but that is not the case here. Players will be selecting who will be by their side to raise their child and walk through life together, which can make it quite the daunting choice - if fans feel stuck, they may want to look towards the bachelorettes of Story of Seasons: A Wonderful Life.
Source: Nintendo of America/YouTube
