# A Rune Factory 5 Thread



## Aloha (Nov 24, 2020)

For fans of Animal Crossing,I noticed some enjoy the (formerly known as before the company split,*Harvest Moon*) series a.k.a *Story of Seasons* series. If you enjoyed any of these games or other farming and more relaxing "casual" games,you might also enjoy Rune Factory 5. I guess I would call it the sibling series of HM/SOS. It has the farming and marriage aspect, but it also has an RPG element to it. You can go into different themed dungeons and fight monsters,capture monsters,and get resources from them such as eggs,milk,and wool.  

*This was a video of gameplay from the Nintendo mini direct (Japanese.)*Japan is getting the game on May 20th,2021,so I'm not sure how that translates to Western release date. 





The game in Japan will be releasing a special limited edition version of it like it did for RF4,and I'm hoping the limited edition will also drop for the West when it comes.It also comes with* DLC of the RF4 bachelor and bachelorette outfits for your character.*







Personally I'm really happy they're coming out with another game since RF4. I remember playing RF4 years ago in high school and RF is one of my favorite Nintendo series. Curious if anyone else here is getting the game; are there any fans of Rune Factory? What do you look forward to the most in the game?


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## Neb (Nov 24, 2020)

I really love the art direction for this game. It looks like a natural evolution from Rune Factory 4. If I can afford it, I’ll definitely import a limited edition copy!


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## Mairmalade (Nov 25, 2020)

Rune Factory is one of my favorite series with Frontier being my favorite of the bunch. This is one of my most anticipated games for 2021, and I've been eyeing 5 since it was announced in early-2019. It's a perfect blend of social simulation, dungeon crawling, and farming. While it might not be the same, I've no doubt we'll see a limited edition (art book is a staple item) with some DLC. The RF4 costumes are such a charming touch!   

The new world and characters are looking great from what I've seen so far. Combat looks more fluid too. 

I'm guessing we'll probably see a mid-summer release for NA/EU?


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## IonicKarma (Nov 25, 2020)

I’m super excited for Rune Factory 5!  Rune factory 4 was one of my favorite games of all time and I can’t wait to see what Rune Factory 5 has in store for us!

I hope we get a NA/EU release relatively soon after the JP release though it probably will be late 2021 or 2022 judging by other releases.  Still I’ll remain hopeful!

Also the RF4 costumes look great!  Can’t wait to get them, assuming NA gets them!


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## N a t (Nov 27, 2020)

I AM SO HYPE!!! I played the previously RF as well and I absolutely loved the game, I played through it multiple times and enjoyed it every time, having different character developments and storyline! I legit shed tears at some points. It was a wonderful game and I played the one before it as well, although not as much as the later one. I am very excited for a new and advanced version of the previous games! It looks beautiful! I like the direction of the RF games a bit more than the newer Harvest Moon games. I got one of the more recent HM games for my switch and literally resold it after playing it once. I just didn't enjoy it at all and I've been playing these games since my childhood..


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## Stella-Io (Nov 27, 2020)

I can wear Clorica's and Dolce's outfits? (if it gets a Western release that is) They even included Pico's outfit wow.

I'm so gonna get 5 when it comes out, I've been a Rune Factory fan for years. I played Frontier, 4, I have a second playthrou of 4 on my 3DS as Lest, I bought 4 special for the Switch and Tides of Destiny (Wii).


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## -Lumi- (Nov 29, 2020)

I am so excited for Rune Factory 5! I love how the game looks in the trailers and I love Rune Factory 4 to pieces. I’m definitely more interested in this game vs Pioneers of Olive Town.

I think it’s so fun that we’ll get more outfits this game! I love Dolce’s outfit  I’m really, really hoping they’ll follow the lead of Pioneers of Olive Town and include same sex marriage as that is my only gripe with Rune Factory 4. Let me marry Forte T_T


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## Stella-Io (Nov 29, 2020)

-Lumi- said:


> I’m really, really hoping they’ll follow the lead of Pioneers of Olive Town and include same sex marriage as that is my only gripe with Rune Factory 4. Let me marry Forte T_T



Omg I was playing as Frey and kept telling Forte I loved her. I thought at first she would react negatively to it since 1 she's a girl and 2 I had maybe 2 hearts with her (I told her veeery early on ingame) but she reacted well. I would love to marry Forte as Frey, she was the first one I wanted to marry. I know we can change our looks (like make Lest look like Frey) so it LOOKS like same sex marriage but it just isn't the same.


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## Holla (Jan 22, 2021)

I'm looking forward to this. Even more so than the new Story of Seasons. I really want to finish 4 if I can before this comes out though. I got stuck/bored in the 3DS version (rng related triggering of a certain arc) so I got special on Switch. I haven't gotten overly far in it yet though. Here's hoping I can make the time.


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## Holla (Mar 4, 2021)

Giving this a bump after seeing how disappointing the new Story of Seasons is looking. Though that’s only made me even more hype for this game as apparently the main team worked on this game and someone new took over SOS.

Just wish we had more than a Japanese release date of May to work with. Really hoping we get it this summer.


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## Peach_Jam (Mar 4, 2021)

I'm also wondering when they will announce a release date for everywhere else. I'm going to guess sometime in July/august, maybe later. Besides that, they've been oddly quiet with revealing any new features and such in the game 0: though I'm definitely still more excited for this than sos.


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## Jam86 (Mar 4, 2021)

i never even heard of rune factory til recently and i was curious so i watched the trailer for rune factory 5 and instantly decided to get it, it looks adorable 
is there a release date for it yet?


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## Sharksheep (Mar 4, 2021)

The new Story of Seasons doesn't sound promising. I haven't played Rune Factory since the first one on the DS so I hope this one didn't disappoint. I'm probably still going to wait until the reviews come in before buying


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## Burumun (Mar 4, 2021)

Jam86 said:


> i never even heard of rune factory til recently and i was curious so i watched the trailer for rune factory 5 and instantly decided to get it, it looks adorable
> is there a release date for it yet?


There is for Japan (May 20), for everyone else all we know is it should come out this year. 



Sharksheep said:


> The new Story of Seasons doesn't sound promising. I haven't played Rune Factory since the first one on the DS so I hope this one didn't disappoint. I'm probably still going to wait until the reviews come in before buying


If you want to check out one of the more recent ones and maybe need something to tide you over until either RF5 comes out, or until PoOT gets potentially gets a major upgrade, RF4 is basically the most popular game in the series, and got a port for Switch with extra content.


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## -Lumi- (Mar 4, 2021)

I’m so excited for Rune Factory 5! I wasn’t thrilled with the way the new SoS game was looking and I’m even less of a fan as time goes on. Probably better for my wallet, though.

I absolutely adore Rune Factory 4 and I’m really excited to play Rune Factory 5! I’m definitely ready for a newer art style (I put off playing Rune Factory 4 for a while because I didn’t like the way it looked ). I really hope we get a release date for an English version of the game soon!


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## TemalRustic (Mar 16, 2021)

Aloha said:


> For fans of Animal Crossing,I noticed some enjoy the (formerly known as before the company split,*Harvest Moon*) series a.k.a *Story of Seasons* series. If you enjoyed any of these games or other farming and more relaxing "casual" games,you might also enjoy Rune Factory 5. I guess I would call it the sibling series of HM/SOS. It has the farming and marriage aspect, but it also has an RPG element to it. You can go into different themed dungeons and fight monsters,capture monsters,and get resources from them such as eggs,milk,and wool.
> 
> *This was a video of gameplay from the Nintendo mini direct (Japanese.)*Japan is getting the game on May 20th,2021,so I'm not sure how that translates to Western release date.
> 
> ...



I'm totally up for all of it, I recently purchased and bought the game Rune factory 5 for my switch and it's a delight so far! then again, I am very into the harvest moon games and stardew valley so it was an awesome transition and place to start. The dragon is so totally cool and I love my character and farm, it's basically harvest moon meets fantasy. I also really enjoyed Phantasy where you take a more relaxed approach and do jobs everyday to progress, that was fun, it even had a field with a battle system and monsters, but thats for 3ds.


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## BlueOceana (Mar 24, 2021)

The Rune Factory series is my favorite, I'm really glad that they are making another game in the series. I have been excited since they told us about it. I hope it is even better then RF4, they did such a good job on it that I hope 5 is even better.


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## vanivon (Apr 9, 2021)

Sharksheep said:


> The new Story of Seasons doesn't sound promising. I haven't played Rune Factory since the first one on the DS so I hope this one didn't disappoint. I'm probably still going to wait until the reviews come in before buying



if you haven't played RF since the first game, you might want to check out Frontier (which stars the same protagonist and includes several RF1 cast members) or Oceans / Tides of Destiny to get more used to a console RF if you have access to a Wii or WiiU, since this is undoubtedly gonna play a lot more like those and a lot, lot lot less like RF1. or like burumun suggested, RF4's switch port is also a good option!


as for me, i'm so so SO excited for RF5, rune factory is my favourite game series in existence and i about lost my mind when they revealed it wasn't dead after all  i'm not much a fan of the way the 2d portraits look and kind of wished that instead of using them they just used the 3d models because they're very expressive from shown footage and they've done it before, but that's a minor nitpick. other than that the game looks completely fantastic to me and as soon as preorders go up for the english version i'm snatching the bonus edition up  in the meantime though, at least there's the Rune Factory 5 twitter posting clips and tidbits about the game in japanese,,,


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## HopeForHyrule (Apr 13, 2021)

As I recently discovered Rune Factory 4 Special (had never played Rune Factory before) and immediately became obsessed, I absolutely cannot wait for RF5.


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## mogyay (Apr 14, 2021)

WAIT I NEVER KNEW ABOUT DLC, DOES THIS MEAN I CAN MARRY LEON???

honestly though this is the thing i'm looking forward to most this year, i love rune factory & have played every game in the series and loved each one so much! i have rly high hopes for this game! i've been trying not to spoil too much about it though as i look going in semi blind to games!


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## vanivon (Apr 17, 2021)

mogyay said:


> WAIT I NEVER KNEW ABOUT DLC, DOES THIS MEAN I CAN MARRY LEON???


unfortunately no  the DLC is just the RF4 outfits, meaning you can put the player characters in all of the RF4 bachelor/ette (+ Lest & Frey's if you have a RF4S save file on your system) costumes. jury's out on whether cameo characters Doug & Margaret are marriable yet, but that DLC is just the outfits.

here are some recent posts from the RF game twitter!
first is showing off dungeon hazards like being chased by a large boulder and attacked by swinging blades (ft. lucy and cecile)

__ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1382242226693099523
then there's a few clips for marriage candidates!



Spoiler: i'm posting them all under a spoiler tag to save space



Priscilla (CV: Inori Minase)

__ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1381517442069987332
Martin (CV: Jun Fukuyama)

__ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1381517694143447042
Scarlett (CV: Aya Suzaki)

__ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1382967000180342785
Reinhardt (CV: Natsuki Hanae)

__ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1382967245761044482(he "likes to eat farm tools and failed dishes," according to google translate. thanks, google translate.)


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## Merielle (Apr 17, 2021)

RF4 Special is the first Rune Factory game I've played, but I'm really enjoying it and looking forward to RF5!  I'll definitely be getting it whenever it gets a release in the West.  The art style for this game looks beautiful as well!
I'm really hoping they won't gender-lock the marriage candidates this time around, though.  I know the recent Story of Seasons games have same-gender marriage, and I was pretty surprised that it wasn't also a possibility in RF4.  (Especially since once the girls' friendship levels are high enough, they show clear interest in Frey; I assume it's the same way with the bachelors if you're playing as Lest.)

Personally, I was really hoping that Arthur would be one of the cameo characters, but it looks like that won't be the case. ;-; Oh well.  So for now, I guess I'm mainly waiting for more information on RF5's bachelors—it's nice to know who I'll be going for ahead of time, ahaha.


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## Burumun (Apr 17, 2021)

Merielle said:


> I'm really hoping they won't gender-lock the marriage candidates this time around, though. I know the recent Story of Seasons games have same-gender marriage, and I was pretty surprised that it wasn't also a possibility in RF4. (Especially since once the girls' friendship levels are high enough, they show clear interest in Frey; I assume it's the same way with the bachelors if you're playing as Lest.)


RF4 was originally released in 2012, while the first SoS with same-sex marriage was SoS:FoMT, which came out last year. They did add new stuff for RF4S, but I assume adding in same-sex marriage would have required too much of an overhaul, unfortunately. Either way, I agree, hopefully RF5 will have it, although I am already concerned the clothes seem to be gender-locked.


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## Blood Eclipse (Apr 21, 2021)

I hope this gets an English translation. I've been following this game since I first heard of it.


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## vanivon (Apr 21, 2021)

Kuriboh said:


> I hope this gets an English translation. I've been following this game since I first heard of it.



it definitely will be! xseed already confirmed the localization (and i can't imagine it not getting one after that + after every other RF game getting localized), they just haven't said anything really since the game reveal


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## vanivon (May 15, 2021)

just watched the rune factory 5 livestream that went on! playback is available here.





i joined about halfway through so i missed a chunk of it, but here’s some tidbits i caught (I’ll update with more as I rewatch what I missed):

you can have a farm on top of a dragon’s back. yes, really. also can put animal barns there
you can earn crystals to feed the dragon to unlock changes for your farm (I believe the ones they demonstrated during the live were making it rain & increasing your farming space?)
slumber parties are a returning town event type. fuqua has a kigurumi 



wedding cutscenes specific to each character are back! I think the last time the series had those was in frontier back in 2008? i know oceans had cutscenes specific to each season, but not character. and 4 had proposal event cutscenes, but not wedding ones...... 
companions are immune to dungeon hazards. the only character in danger of being crushed by a Boulder or something is the protagonist.
you can put ludmilla in a pumpkin head 


doug has pants now. very important change from his rf4 design
free dlc will be released on the series’ 15th anniversary (august 24th) to let you unlock costumes of the oceans protagonists. dlc for the other past protagonists (raguna, kyle, & micah) + their Main Leading Ladies (mist, mana, & shara) will be on sale for 330 yen each. rf4 ones are still locked to having rf4s save data. no idea how they’ll implement these in the localisation.



Spoiler: the dlc costumes














Spoiler: Nintendo dream cover ft the protagonists + ludmilla & lyka


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## Licorice (May 15, 2021)

I can’t wait for this to come out so I can have a furry husband.


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## -Lumi- (May 15, 2021)

I really hope we hear information about an English version of the game soon! I love seeing the Japan updates as well but I'd love updates about an English version.


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## vanivon (May 19, 2021)

Rune Factory 5 is now out in Japan!

the official twitter posted a picture of protagonists Alice & Ares by series artist Minako Iwasaki to celebrate!

__ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1395033518103621633
they also postsed a reminder for JPN players to get the Oceans protagonist costumes. the clip of Alice riding on a golem is such a cute reference. i love oceans


__ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1395033911281864707
also, someone posted the opening for the game on YouTube! 


Spoiler: RF5 opening video







minor gripe in the fact that it including interaction between the protags & bachelor/ettes confirms the suspected No Same-Gender Marriage once and for all but it's sooooooooooooooooooo cute and i think this is my favourite OP in the entire series now


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## IonicKarma (May 19, 2021)

vanivon said:


> Rune Factory 5 is now out in Japan!
> 
> the official twitter posted a picture of protagonists Alice & Ares by series artist Minako Iwasaki to celebrate!
> 
> ...


omg im so Jealous.... Wish I could read Japanese well enough to play this before it gets localized haha...


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## mirukushake (May 19, 2021)

Really torn on whether to get this or not. I _want_ to like RF but I just couldn't get into 4(S). So far it looks like it has FPS/lag/loading problems similar to Olive Town (although not quite as bad), but the characters and gameplay seem good from what I've seen. Unfortunately the base camera settings give me really bad motion sickness, so I'll wait until later in the day to try to find a Let's Play with the automatic camera movements turned off before I decide to buy... Don't want to pay 7000 yen to barf :/


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## vanivon (May 19, 2021)

rf5 update: some people have been reporting (minor) glitches and bugs so far, and honestly they're all really funny so i want to share some



Spoiler: water leaking from player house













Spoiler: people clipping through floor if you warp to town













Spoiler: log













Spoiler: whatever is happening to this person's ares





__ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1395145272171261952

__ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1395145936255389702


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## mogyay (May 20, 2021)

i'm not surprised by the same sex marriage option since they were tight lipped about it & also that none of the previous ones have had the option but i also saw it was confirmed that they didn't give the option to change appearance to the male/female protag which kind of major sucks


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## IonicKarma (May 20, 2021)

mogyay said:


> i'm not surprised by the same sex marriage option since they were tight lipped about it & also that none of the previous ones have had the option but i also saw it was confirmed that they didn't give the option to change appearance to the male/female protag which kind of major sucks


Wait you can't change the appearance at all in this game?  Aww... I love that feature about RF4, was great being able to fake same sex marriage even if they still used the pronouns from the original gender.


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## vanivon (May 20, 2021)

mogyay said:


> i'm not surprised by the same sex marriage option since they were tight lipped about it & also that none of the previous ones have had the option but i also saw it was confirmed that they didn't give the option to change appearance to the male/female protag which kind of major sucks


WAS THAT CONFIRMED...... booooooooo. weird they didn’t include the sprite swap since it was a rf4 feature 

Honestly while I did have an inkling as more info got released I am surprised it didn’t pop up, since the series producer has said on-the-record that (at least in reference to story of seasons, which he was series producer of until he stepped down to focus on RF), he’s aware it’s a feature a Lot of players want and it was something he said they were definitely thinking about with how to implement it — which they did do by the last game he produced. although he said he’d rather have specific gay and bi characters instead of making everyone available to the player & mineral town (and now olive town) did the latter....maybe we’ll get there by rf6 via the former method? a girl can hope and dream


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## mogyay (May 20, 2021)

IonicKarma said:


> Wait you can't change the appearance at all in this game?  Aww... I love that feature about RF4, was great being able to fake same sex marriage even if they still used the pronouns from the original gender.



tbh my source is just this post here so hopefully there's an option to change appearance still 

	Post automatically merged: May 20, 2021

it's not been out long so hopefully there's still things that have been overlooked, it was only a feature later on in the game in rf4 so maybe we should remain hopeful


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## IonicKarma (May 20, 2021)

mogyay said:


> tbh my source is just this post here so hopefully there's an option to change appearance still


Ya I really hope so... Maybe they just didn't unlock it yet?  You did have to beat the game (or at least the 2nd arc of the game) to be able to change your appearance in RF4, and even then, technically your gender doesn't change, just your appearance.  Then in future playthroughs, it was unlocked automatically.  Maybe they just haven't gotten to the point of the game where you could do that yet?


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## mogyay (May 20, 2021)

IonicKarma said:


> Ya I really hope so... Maybe they just didn't unlock it yet?  You did have to beat the game (or at least the 2nd arc of the game) to be able to change your appearance in RF4, and even then, technically your gender doesn't change, just your appearance.  Then in future playthroughs, it was unlocked automatically.  Maybe they just haven't gotten to the point of the game where you could do that yet?


yes i hope so, the source they linked is in japanese so maybe someone would be able to translate for us and advise how they came to this conclusion. changing appearance is like such a simple thing to implement as well, it'd be crazy if they didn't have that as a feature


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## IonicKarma (May 20, 2021)

mogyay said:


> yes i hope so, the source they linked is in japanese so maybe someone would be able to translate for us and advise how they came to this conclusion. changing appearance is like such a simple thing to implement as well, it'd be crazy if they didn't have that as a feature


the source they linked just says you can't change gender and thus you who can marry, doesn't say anything about appearance so there's still hope

EDIT: Just kidding, read the part above, it does say you can't change appearance...


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## mogyay (May 20, 2021)

IonicKarma said:


> the source they linked just says you can't change gender and thus you who can marry, doesn't say anything about appearance so there's still hope


ooo thank u!!!! sorry for stressing ppl haha, will keep an eye out for more solid info then!! i suspect ppl will be charging their way through the game so we'll know soon enough haha


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## IonicKarma (May 20, 2021)

mogyay said:


> ooo thank u!!!! sorry for stressing ppl haha, will keep an eye out for more solid info then!! i suspect ppl will be charging their way through the game so we'll know soon enough haha


Ya I'm really hoping, i reread the stuff and there is a passage that mentions that you can't change appearance, but maybe it just means at the beginning and they haven't unlocked it yet? idk...


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## -Lumi- (May 20, 2021)

Aww wait, so there’s no same sex marriage in this game? I’m honestly so bummed. We saw the two newest Story of Seasons games have same sex marriage I was really hopeful this one would. 

Especially since some of the bachelors/bachelorettes aren’t even fully human it always feels extra frustrating. Rune Factory 4 said it was wrong for me to marry Forte but they’re fine with my husband being part horse or whatever Dylas is?? 

I’m so bitter if that’s the case it may not be a day 1 buy anymore. :/


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## mogyay (May 21, 2021)

an update!!!

defo better than nothing but still rly disappointing, they should just make it an option from the beginning, i usually try romance early so i don't lose interest in the game when the plot ends


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## IonicKarma (May 21, 2021)

mogyay said:


> an update!!!
> 
> defo better than nothing but still rly disappointing, they should just make it an option from the beginning, i usually try romance early so i don't lose interest in the game when the plot ends


Oh so it is just like Rune Factory 4 then and people just hadn't gotten that far yet.  Glad you know we still have at least that!  Hopefully it will carry over to new playthroughs as well so you can just immediately swap to the other gender.


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## vanivon (May 21, 2021)

haha i opened the thread just to report on sprite swapping only to see someone beat me to it! yeah, it’s exactly like RF4 in that case — but hopefully, like RF4, once it’s unlocked in one playthrough it’s unlocked for All Of Them. i’m sure it will be, but you never know! i also wonder what else you unlock along with the sprite swap option...... probably just the other RF osts and the typhoon summoning / pushing back but for now it’s a mystery 

on that note though, immersion break warning for sprite swapping: weddings are, as it turns out, fully voice-acted cutscenes. which is really cute in theory & i’m glad to have wedding cutscenes back, but also if you sprite swap it’s going to throw you off hard for 40 seconds or so unless there’s a way to skip it.


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## IonicKarma (May 21, 2021)

vanivon said:


> haha i opened the thread just to report on sprite swapping only to see someone beat me to it! yeah, it’s exactly like RF4 in that case — but hopefully, like RF4, once it’s unlocked in one playthrough it’s unlocked for All Of Them. i’m sure it will be, but you never know! i also wonder what else you unlock along with the sprite swap option...... probably just the other RF osts and the typhoon summoning / pushing back but for now it’s a mystery
> 
> on that note though, immersion break warning for sprite swapping: weddings are, as it turns out, fully voice-acted cutscenes. which is really cute in theory & i’m glad to have wedding cutscenes back, but also if you sprite swap it’s going to throw you off hard for 40 seconds or so unless there’s a way to skip it.


In RF4 if you sprite swapped to the opposite gender main character, it also swapped all of their voices to the new one as well!  Hopefully its like that in this game too so the only thing that doesn't get swapped are the pronouns.


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## vanivon (May 21, 2021)

IonicKarma said:


> In RF4 if you sprite swapped to the opposite gender main character, it also swapped all of their voices to the new one as well!  Hopefully its like that in this game too so the only thing that doesn't get swapped are the pronouns.


oh no yeah I know about how it worked in rf4!  But I mean like, the weddings are actually animated cutscenes not like, sprite-based ones the way the rf4 weddings were hold on



Spoiler: I mean like this











so these are definitely an immersion-breaker but other than weddings it should hopefully be a full swap a-la RF4


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## IonicKarma (May 21, 2021)

vanivon said:


> oh no yeah I know about how it worked in rf4! ☺ But I mean like, the weddings are actually animated cutscenes not like, sprite-based ones the way the rf4 weddings were hold on
> 
> 
> 
> ...


oh wow, ya I guess the won't replace those cause they aren't a sprite. guess I have to just close my eyes during that haha


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## vanivon (May 24, 2021)

RF5 will be getting what appears to be multiple upcoming patches in the near future! looks like the bugs extended a lot further than the funny graphical glitches i've posted about here.

__ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1396739180391108609





i don't want to count my chickens before they hatch (or give anyone either in this thread or my harvest moon discord gc where i've also linked this tweet false hope), but it's entirely possible actual m/m and f/f relationship allowance could very much be included in a future patch along with bug fixes -- i've seen enough people asking about them both on the JPN and EN sides through trawling the #RuneFactory hashtag and on HAKAMA's tweets in English about the game.

and with that out of the way, here's some other RF5 stuff! 

1.) someone did an unboxing of the premium box, and it's very pretty.





2.) a friend sent me a ZIP with all the sprites & images in the game so i've been going through them! here are some things i learned while browsing:


Spoiler



- every marriable character (and the protagonists) have their own unique swimwear and pyjamas. this is a step up from RF4, where characters would share swimsuits and PJs.
- the male child and female child option each have 3 hairstyle variants... and alongside that, for the first time in a RF game with 2d portraits, their hair / eye colour depends on your spouse. this was only ever previously before seen in oceans, which was all-3D! so... there are a lot of child sprites in the files. like, a lot. there are literally 1404 child sprites in my folder to factor in all those variants.
- on that note, each child variant has its own unique PJ & swimsuit colour or pattern. small detail, but i thought it was cute!
- every romanceable character has at least one unique / more dynamic sprite as compared to the basic happy / sad / blushing / angry expressions. 
- update: i just counted their map sprites in the folder there are _78 _unique variants of Child based on who you marry, which kid you pick, and what hairstyle they have.
- one of the enemies / befriendable monsters new to the game is this really cute frog & its variants 




if anyone wants to see any sprites of any characters, i'd be happy to share them! and that's it for this RF5 update tune in next time after the patch goes live


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## Peach_Jam (May 27, 2021)

I'm beyond excited for this game and have been since they announced it (over 2 years ago), so I really hope a western release date is announced soon ;u;


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## vanivon (Jun 14, 2021)

game delayed til 2022 :’’’’) but at least we finally have an English trailer!

__ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1404234864002543617it probably got delayed partly due to the bug fixes the JPN version has needed to go through and also XSEED needing to devote more time & translation to story of seasons pioneers of olive town than expected due to the dialogue patch


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## Burumun (Jun 14, 2021)

vanivon said:


> game delayed til 2022 :’’’’) but at least we finally have an English trailer!
> 
> __ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1404234864002543617it probably got delayed partly due to the bug fixes the JPN version has needed to go through and also XSEED needing to devote more time & translation to story of seasons pioneers of olive town than expected due to the dialogue patch


Early 2022 at least, so hopefully the delay won't be too bad.


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## IonicKarma (Jun 14, 2021)

I'm sad we have to wait so long for it but at least (hopefully) we will get a version with the bugs fixed at least


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## mogyay (Jun 14, 2021)

i've waited what feels like a billion years so i feel like i can wait until 2022 but i am very sad about the delay


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## Trent the Paladin (Jun 14, 2021)

I’ll be ready for Rune Factory 5 in 2022 at least.  Maybe by then I won’t have to find other games to fill the desire.


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## Mairmalade (Jun 14, 2021)

My heart breaks for you all - RF5 was one of my most anticipated releases for 2021 so I'm also sad to see it being delayed until early 2022 (whatever month that may be). Though as Karma mentioned, the delay could be imposing much-needed fixes and I'd take a delay over an unfinished/unpolished release any day. 

The English voice acting in the new trailer sounds pretty OK so far. Something to look forward to next year now I suppose.


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## vanivon (Jun 16, 2021)

the first official rune factory 5 localisation blog post is out! this one is primarily about the name changes they had to make, which are:

lyka > ryker (due to the similarity between lucas & lyka’s names)
doug > darroch (due to EN already having a dwarf named doug. poor xseed they apparently have the exact same speaking pattern too so it was hard to pick their lines apart)
gandage > gideon (due to pronunciation worries / unfamiliarity to an English audience)


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## vanivon (Sep 23, 2021)

so, great news:







It looks like EN rf5 is adding gay marriage proper? there were no cutscenes or stills for same-gender weddings in JPN, so even if you sprite-swapped you’d still only get ares if you were marrying a girl and alice if you were marrying a guy during the wedding cutscenes


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## Peach_Jam (Sep 23, 2021)

Western release date is March 22, 2022 :]


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## Merielle (Sep 23, 2021)

Looks like same-gender marriage is going to be added to the JP version soon too! c: From the localization blog:


> Our second announcement is something that we’ve been working toward for many years: _Rune Factory 5_ will be the first game in the series to include same-sex marriage. This means that from the start of the game you can marry any of the 12 wonderful marriage candidates as Ares or Alice without avatar-swapping or other conditions.  This feature was not present in the Japanese release of the game in May of this year, but will be added to that version in a future patch. It will be included in our game from launch.



By the way, does anybody know if dual audio options for RF5 are confirmed yet or not?  I really like a lot of the Japanese VAs and I'd love to hear their work.  I missed the direct RIP


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## vanivon (Sep 23, 2021)

__ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1441177788514328587
new trailer! and second localisation blog!




Merielle said:


> By the way, does anybody know if dual audio options for RF5 are confirmed yet or not?  I really like a lot of the Japanese VAs and I'd love to hear their work. I missed the direct RIP


it’s not confirmed I don’t think, but RF4S had dual audio so I’m crossing my fingers for RF5 having it too. literally the only thing making me want to play an ares file at some point is getting to hear toshiyuki toyonaga so


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## Mairmalade (Sep 24, 2021)

Ahhhh, happy to see a solid release date for this! October is basically March, so it's right around the corner.  There doesn't seem to be much new content in the trailer, though I've spoiled myself by watching a few players play the Japanese version. 

The English voice acting sounds pretty solid!


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## Holla (Sep 27, 2021)

Finally a release date and it's only 3 days before my birthday! Really glad to finally have more news on this as I decided to skip over the latest Story of Seasons game.


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## Holla (Sep 28, 2021)

@-Lumi- Not sure if you've heard yet, but same sex marriage will be in the English game at launch (and added in a future update for the Japanese version). 

You can read more about it on the latest localization blog here!


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## moonshi (Oct 10, 2021)

Looks interesting! This got me interested in checking it out when it comes out. Was looking at this and harvest moon and I think i like this more. I bought a previous one for the 3ds but never got around to playing it.


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## BlueOceana (Oct 21, 2021)

Pre orders are available at Best buy and the XSeed store. The Xseed store has the wooly keychain too for an extra 5 dollars,


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## Regalli (Oct 23, 2021)

I was so excited seeing the same-sex marriage announcement that significant parts of the Direct didn’t fully process for me. It’s SO great! I’ve been playing RF4S lately and I love all the characters, but I’ve never been able to manage a Lest playthrough even with the avatar change because the game would keep reminding me it treats me as ‘male’ mechanically. Feels weird. Which is a shame, because I’d like to be able to marry Forte or Dolce or Clorica. I can ignore the misgendering and customize differently in SoS, but taking baths to restore stamina is a way bigger thing in Rune Factory and Lest and Frey are just enough more of characters to make it awkward.


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## dragonair (Oct 23, 2021)

aaaa, I'm so excited for this, I pre-ordered the Earthmate Edition!! I'm still really debating on who I want to marry but I'm so glad that I don't have to use more roundabout methods to marry a girl again.


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## Calysis (Oct 29, 2021)

I'm sooo heckin' ready for this. I absolutely loved RF4 & RF4S. I'm still in the process of trying to marry every bachelor in RF4S, but I've completed the game multiple times already. Still haven't played as Lest, but my next playthrough I definitely will!

I'm not sure who I'm going to pursue in RF5. I'm kindddd of thinking I'll pursue Martin the blacksmith first. I mean, someone who names their favorite tools sounds too cute to pass up!


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## Holla (Dec 7, 2021)

Just a couple more months to go. I really should finish 4 first but I don't know if I'll get the chance before 5 releases.


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## vanivon (Dec 8, 2021)

Holla said:


> Just a couple more months to go. I really should finish 4 first but I don't know if I'll get the chance before 5 releases.


if you get the chance I definitely recommend finishing 4 first! since while they can be played completely independently 5’s premise is based on the ending of 4 so it’s a nice bit of extra lore to have. 

104 days to go! I’ve been keeping a countdown ever since they announced the North American release date... finally almost down to double digits :’)


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## Foreverfox (Dec 8, 2021)

vanivon said:


> if you get the chance I definitely recommend finishing 4 first! since while they can be played completely independently 5’s premise is based on the ending of 4 so it’s a nice bit of extra lore to have.
> 
> 104 days to go! I’ve been keeping a countdown ever since they announced the North American release date... finally almost down to double digits :’)


I need to finish 4 too, so thanks for putting the recommendation out there! I'm MUCH further off from finishing than I think I realize though.


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## Meadows (Jan 3, 2022)

I enjoyed ruin factory 3, but never played 4.


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## vanivon (Jan 4, 2022)

Meadows said:


> I enjoyed ruin factory 3, but never played 4.


you should try 4 if you get the chance! it’s a really fun game & i really do recommend it if you’re planning on (or looking into) getting rf5 since like I said in previous posts while you can play any rf game completely independently without lacking anything (except maybe frontier) rf5’s premise builds on context the endgame story of 4 provides.

4 also has some references to 3 (Raven cameos in it and not only does she talk about sharance but she’s also an invaluable asset as a merchant + the multiplayer dungeon sharance maze returns as a solo postgame dungeon) so it’s a nice bonus for a rf3 player.

we are now down to 77 days until rf5 comes to North America btw! 2 and a half months......


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## Meadows (Jan 4, 2022)

vanivon said:


> you should try 4 if you get the chance! it’s a really fun game & i really do recommend it if you’re planning on (or looking into) getting rf5 since like I said in previous posts while you can play any rf game completely independently without lacking anything (except maybe frontier) rf5’s premise builds on context the endgame story of 4 provides.
> 
> 4 also has some references to 3 (Raven cameos in it and not only does she talk about sharance but she’s also an invaluable asset as a merchant + the multiplayer dungeon sharance maze returns as a solo postgame dungeon) so it’s a nice bonus for a rf3 player.
> 
> we are now down to 77 days until rf5 comes to North America btw! 2 and a half months......


Alright, thanks for the heads up.


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## zissou (Jan 6, 2022)

Ooh, I'm excited! ... even though I'm an imposter and bought RF4 for the 3DS wayyyy back in the day and didn't play more than 2 hours of it, tops. Oops.

I'm getting bored of ACNH these days, and am definitely looking for a more involved game — preferably with combat, life sim elements, crafting, and farming. Kind of like Stardew Valley and/or Fantasy Life. RF4 seems perfect to me, in theory (and then I don't have to wait until March for 5!) 

To those who have played it: What's the difficulty like? Did you find the gameplay loop addictive (in a good or bad way)? What are your favorite elements of the game?


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## vanivon (Jan 7, 2022)

zissou said:


> To those who have played it: What's the difficulty like? Did you find the gameplay loop addictive (in a good or bad way)? What are your favorite elements of the game?


there are 3 difficulty settings in RF4, so the difficulty really depends on what you prefer out of easy / normal / hard! i played on normal the entire way through in all 3 of my playthroughs and found it sufficiently challenging during the story (until i overlevelled my crafting skills and got OP, which is fun in itself imo.) the postgame dungeons are both Very Difficult but like, in a fun way.

RF is my favourite series so i am notably biased but i think the gameplay is _very _addictive as both a fan of farming sims and freeform RPG combat. the combat is really genuinely fun imo and it's 100% one of my favourite elements of both the game AND The series as a whole, i like the  combat and various weapon types you can use. the characters are also really fun -- not even just solely from a Marriageable Characters standpoint, rf4 has a lot of good characters with fun dialogue that are fun to get to know and while unlocking events is a bit of a chore the town as a whole really feels like a Community and it's nice. i also like the crafting it's fun :] it gets a little grindy to keep up with because you Do need to keep up with it (you are NOT going to be able to get by for long off gear you can buy from the merchants ingame) but getting the levels up and making a piece of armour or a new weapon that has incredibly good stats is really satisfying.

basically since you used stardew and fantasy life as your examples: i agree that rf4 seems perfect and esp since stardew is inspired by RF's sister series harvest moon i think it should hit the spot pretty decently with what you're looking for in a game : o


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## zissou (Jan 7, 2022)

@*vanivon*
Thanks for your in-depth response! :')

You've got me sold. There's something about a solid crafting + combat + farming loop that I find irresistibly satisfying. Plus, I love games that have a *~community~* vibe (and Stardew never did it for me, tbh). _And _a story! Sounds right up my alley.

After my applications are done at the end of January, I'll be back on this thread -- with a brand-new edition of RF4 Special for the Switch!


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## HopeForHyrule (Jan 16, 2022)

Just pre-ordered the Earthmate edition, so that'll make a nice birthday gift for myself this year.

I became obsessed with RF4 Special, so I've been really psyched for this one!


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## mogyay (Jan 17, 2022)

i also pre ordered my copy yesterday! i bought the special edition with the sheep keychain plush! i'm so excited that i've even booked time off work for the release haha, i find it hard to imagine i'll enjoy it more than rf4 (i've always preferred the handheld games over the console ones) but i have high hopes!!! i'm also avoiding any spoilers/reviews/gameplay so have no idea what to expect really


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## Merielle (Feb 11, 2022)

I finally got around to pre-ordering my copy (Earthmate Edition!) today, and just wanted to say that dual audio was confirmed a few days ago! ^^


> Additionally, XSEED Games revealed today that players will be able to explore the world of *Rune Factory 5* with both English and Japanese audio languages and text in English, French, and German.


extremely relieved that I won't have to buy a Japanese copy too just for the voice cast


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## IonicKarma (Feb 11, 2022)

Merielle said:


> I finally got around to pre-ordering my copy (Earthmate Edition!) today, and just wanted to say that dual audio was confirmed a few days ago! ^^
> 
> extremely relieved that I won't have to buy a Japanese copy too just for the voice cast


Thanks for the reminder!  totally forgot to preorder!


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## Bluelady (Feb 12, 2022)

Well, there’s matchmaking quiz on the bachelors/bachelorettes. LOL

LINK

Who’d you get? How do you feel about your result(s)? 

I got Martin and Scarlett. I quite like Scarlett but am indifferent with Martin. He seems kind of a rude. I don’t know how I got the title of “Life of the Party”.  I’m introverted and socially anxious as heck.


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## Neb (Feb 12, 2022)

Aside from Ludmila none of the bachelorettes really grab my attention. The bachelors on the other hand… lordy. I’ll probably marry Ryker or Cecil. They’re both so cute.


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## mogyay (Mar 14, 2022)

Bluelady said:


> Well, there’s matchmaking quiz on the bachelors/bachelorettes. LOL
> 
> LINK
> 
> ...



reinhard & lucy! i know nothing about the characters yet so i can't really have any judgement yet but it says the rf4 equivalent is arthur which is .. disappointing lol. lucy on the other hand has xiao pai as rf4 equivalent who i liked a lot !! 

also i just want to express my disappointment that gideon/terry isn't available to marry , im happy theyre finally giving us older candidates but idk how i feel about lucas


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## Holla (Mar 17, 2022)

Just a few more days until release. I have mine preordered (the Earthmates Edition). Due to the mail It probably won't come until later in the week but at least it's a mid-week release so I should get it on or by next Friday. I am usually out of luck with Friday releases since mail isn't delivered on weekends. I'd almost call it an early birthday present for myself but considering I'll probably get it a few days late watch it show up on my actual birthday of all things.


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## DarkDesertFox (Mar 17, 2022)

A streamer I follow had a promoted stream where he was playing the game on Wednesday. If anyone wanted to check out some early gameplay of it, I linked to his past broadcast below. I could only listen to the stream since I was at work, but it sounded like he was having a fun time with it. I've never played a Rune Factory game before. I am interested in this one though.


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## mogyay (Mar 24, 2022)

my copy is coming tomorrow but i accidentally clicked on a rf5 stream on twitch right as they were saying its the worst rf game theyve played and the frame rate is terrible lol. im still excited but now im a little nervous, guess we shall wait and seeeee


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## Corrie (Mar 24, 2022)

mogyay said:


> my copy is coming tomorrow but i accidentally clicked on a rf5 stream on twitch right as they were saying its the worst rf game theyve played and the frame rate is terrible lol. im still excited but now im a little nervous, guess we shall wait and seeeee


I haven't played but I've heard its performance is bad which is a real shame. Apparently some bugs they never fixed too.


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## Sheep Villager (Mar 25, 2022)

After playing for 2 hours I have to say the performance is _rough_. I'm normally not the type to fuss about frames, but the issues on my end are so glaring it'd be easier for me to list things that _don't_ lag vs. those that do.

Hopefully others in this thread have better luck. My y1 switch in handheld is quite the experience...

I'm sure I'll get more used to it as I play. Kind of wish that wasn't something I'd have to say though.

On a positive note the dialogue has been pretty fun so far.


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## mogyay (Mar 25, 2022)

Corrie said:


> I haven't played but I've heard its performance is bad which is a real shame. Apparently some bugs they never fixed too.



as long as i stay indoors its fine, the actual town is so choppy, its distracting. i wish theyd just stuck with the rf4 format, i never enjoyed the platform rune factorys as much. on the plus side i am enjoying it and im liking all the characters so far, the world does feel kind of empty tho which is sad


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## mogyay (Mar 26, 2022)

mogyay said:


> as long as i stay indoors its fine, the actual town is so choppy, its distracting. i wish theyd just stuck with the rf4 format, i never enjoyed the platform rune factorys as much. on the plus side i am enjoying it and im liking all the characters so far, the world does feel kind of empty tho which is sad



just a follow up from my previous comment from playing more but i turned dynamic resolution off in the settings and the frame rate for me is now much better


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## Mairen (Mar 27, 2022)

Really glad to see other fans of this series here! I've been playing the game for a few days now and find myself growing more fond of the game the longer I play. I'm someone who's played each mainline game multiple times (1-4) and loved them all to bits. It can be a little laggy at times, but I survived the ps1 era of jrpgs, so this is nothing to me. As long as the game isn't entirely unplayable, you won't really see me complaining about framerates much. The characters are charming, the music is pleasant, and I quickly find myself being enchanted away into the routine of farming, dating, and dungeon-crawling. I cannot wait to enjoy more!


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