Summary
TheRune Factoryfranchiseoriginated as a spin-off of the farming simulator role-playing gameStory of Seasons(formerly known asHarvest Moon), in celebration of its tenth anniversary.Rune Factory’s first entry, which is subtitledA Fantasy Harvest Moon, won over gamers with its combination of ancestral farming and social interaction mechanics with dungeon crawling and fantasy elements.
As fans keep their fingers crossed for news of another installment in the franchise after the divisiveRune Factory 5’s release and the more positively receivedRune Factory 3 Special, let’s revisit the franchise’s previous entries. While not every game is of the same level, the JRPG sim series is generally quite consistent, with most projects offering something of value. That said, which is thebestRune Factorygame?
Updated July 03, 2025 by Mark Sammut:Marvelous' Rune Factory has amassed a dedicated following over the last two decades, and the series has enjoyed a fairly active few years. Since the start of the decade, Rune Factory 5 and Rune Factory 3 Special have been released, both of which are more than capable of satisfying a craving for relaxing action RPGs with farming sim elements. How does the future look for the series?
Rune Factory’s first spin-off entry and the second to feature 3D graphics,Rune Factory: Tides of Destinyventures the farthest from the franchise’s roots. Rather than kicking things off with an amnesiac main character, the game’s two protagonists are suddenly whisked away fromtheir island homeand become stuck together in one body. On top of an intriguing plot and fresh aquatic setting, the title is also credited with having the best combat system in the series.
However,Tides of Destiny’sabysmal farming system and its lack ofRune Factory’s iconic character portraits drown out the game’s better qualities. This spin-off is difficult to place since it falls well short in one of the franchise’s main appeals: farming.Rune Factory’s holistic genre-blending approach is among its strongest features, allowing players to indulge in various mechanics rather than focusing exclusively on one or two aspects.Tides of Destinydoes not quite deliver that experience.
As the game that started it all, there’s no way not to look back on this title fondly. Without it, all theRune Factorytitles fans know and love today would not exist. But nostalgia aside,Rune Factory: A Fantasy Harvest Moonis easily the roughest title in the franchise asRune Factorybegan figuring itself out.
It is by no means a bad game, but it serves best as a launching pad for the rest of the series rather than being one of its gems, its successors all making improvements and adding ingenious spins to its delightful formula.
This game, unfortunately, disappointed many fans upon itshighly anticipatedrelease. Its biggest letdowns are its graphics and an unstable frame rate resulting in lagging gameplay and longer loading times. Although pastRune Factorytitles had explored 3D graphic styles,Rune Factory 5’s attempt fell flat. While its character models are lovely, the exterior world is far too sprawling and lacking in detail which gives the game an empty, sparse atmosphere in sharp contrast to its formerly rich and cozy aesthetic.
All of its negatives aside though,Rune Factory 5still delivers the fun gameplay and charming characters the franchise is known for. It also added many quality-of-life mechanics and was the first entry to allow players to marry romanceable characters of the same sex. In this day and age, this release is among the better gateway options for newcomers to the series, even if it is not quite fantastic.
Rune Factory 2marks the moment thatRune Factorytruly became its own franchise, independent ofStory of Seasons, with the references to the origin series that feature inRune Factory: A Fantasy Harvest Moonbeing dropped.Rune Factory 2remained quite similar to its predecessor, with the exception of its integral children mechanic and its inclusion of marriage rivals.
Havingchildren is an established element of the franchisebut this entry requires bearing a child to trigger the second half of the plot, wherein the protagonist’s child takes over as the main character. These additions remained the most dynamic mechanics related to offspring in the series.
Rune Factory: Frontieracted as a direct sequel toRune Factory 1and the franchise’s first foray into the realm of 3D design. Visually, the game is one of the most stunning in the series and is everything that fans wishRune Factory 5was. The dimension anddepth of 3D graphicsare achieved while maintaining the lush and ornate trademark quality of the franchise’s usual 2D settings.
Despite its fondly regarded beauty,Rune Factory: Frontieris dragged down by its new Runey system, which is the bane of many players’ existences, as well as a lackluster story.
Despite being one of the older entries in the series,Rune Factory 3features what is arguably the franchise’s coolest gameplay mechanic, the ability to transform the protagonist into one of the monsters that players usually battle against. This unique mechanic is a major aspect ofRune Factory 3’splot which revolves around uniting the worlds of monsters and humans together, creating a game that was innovative and entertaining in both its story and its gameplay.
Rune Factory 3also showcases some of the best character designs and outfits in the franchise, partly thanks to thefictional town’s zany fashiondesigner. In further affirmation of its exceptionality, a remasteredRune Factory 3 Specialwas released for the Nintendo Switch, and it was also well received. If a new player is planning to pick this entry up, they should go with theSpecialedition.
Originally released in 2012 asRune Factory 4, a remastered version of the title was released asRune Factory 4 Specialin 2019 for the Nintendo Switch. The revamped game managed to revitalize theRune Factoryfranchise, leading to the release ofRune Factory 5just a few years later, a game that fans never thought would come to fruition. With such a significant role in maintaining the series, it’s no surprise that the game is the best of the bunch.
Of the character-oriented franchise,Rune Factory 4is the entry that offers the longest dialogue script and the most opportunities for character interaction, with the cast of the game constantly having special dialogue triggered with NPCs and the protagonist. The title was also the first to massively expand on itsromance components, expanding on dating and post-marriage mechanics. It is the epitome of heartwarming, cozy gaming.
Rune Factory’s Future
Marvelous has confirmed that twoRune Factoryprojects are in development. Unsurprisingly, one of them is the next mainline entry in the series,Rune Factory 6. Almost nothing about the game has been revealed by this point, with its existence being the only available information. At the very least, this reveal showed that Marvelous plans to double-down on the franchise, so fans won’t have to wait almost a decade for a proper sequel like they did withRune Factory 5.
Perhaps more interestingly, the company also announcedRune Factory: Project Dragon, the franchise’s first spin-off game since 2011’sTides of Destiny. Even if the latter is polarizing, the series has a fine track record when it comes to spin-offs, and they tend to provide an avenue for exploration or expansion.Project Dragonwill have a Japanese aesthetic since it will be set in the Lands of the East.
