Rune Factory 2: A Fantasy Harvest Moon
Encyclopedia
Rune Factory 2: A Fantasy Harvest Moon, known as in Japan
, is a simulation/role-playing
video game developed by Neverland Co.
. It was published in Japan and North America
by Marvelous Entertainment and Natsume respectively for the Nintendo DS
handheld system
. Rune Factory 2 takes place in the same universe as Rune Factory: A Fantasy Harvest Moon, also for the Nintendo DS, but with different characters and a different storyline.
Rune Factory 2: A Fantasy Harvest Moon has gameplay similar to its predecessor. The game runs on its own clock and calendar; while the player is outside, one in-game minute passes every second. All four season
s are included, though there are only 120 days in the year, with 30 days per season. The weather varies from day to day - while it is typically sunny, there are occasional rainy days, and, rarely, storm
s might damage crops and force the player to stay indoors.
The player begins with two tools, the hoe
and the watering can
, allowing the player to till the land and grow various plants after the player purchases or obtains seeds. Each type of seed has a different growth rate and cost, and some plants can be harvested multiple times. In the beginning of the game, the player is given a farm littered with rocks, stumps, and various objects littered throughout. Once the seeds are sown, the player must water them daily, and after several days of growing, they will be able to be picked and either sold, given away, eaten, or stored. For the most part, each plant may only be planted in one particular season, and if, for example, a Spring plant is in the ground during Summer, it will die. Plants can be grown in certain areas outside the farm, where the climate is unchanging; however, these areas must be watered by the player, and usually contain enemies.
The player interacts with objects and townsfolk through dialogue similar to a visual novel
, including representing the townfolk with anime
-styled images to narrate the story. In addition, cut scenes occur at certain points in the storyline. While every NPC
has "Friend Points" that can be increased by visiting them and giving them items, seven female characters also have a statistic called "Love Points" that increases as the player shows them affection. When the Love Point total reaches ten, the player can then marry
the character and raise a child, who becomes the second protagonist. The child is unable to marry, but can conduct a "love ceremony" instead.
The player character has two types of statistics: ability statistics and battle statistics. The former show how well the player can execute a certain task, while the latter are standard role-playing game
statistics. These battle statistics can be improved either by defeating enough enemies to level up
or by equipping a particular weapon or piece of equipment. The player's skills include basic tasks such as farming, fighting, and mining, and they level up as the player carries out these tasks. A specific tool is usually required for every task; some tools can also be used as weapons.
While exploring, the player can fight monster
s to increase their strength, or befriend them and keep them as livestock, farmhands, or as battling companions. Items harvested from livestock kept in barns can be sold for money or used to cook.
Rune Factory 2 features festivals on specific days of the year. Most of the festivals are original ones from Harvest Moon and Rune Factory, though some are based on real-world festivals, such as New Year's Eve. Stores are not open on holidays.
The American pre-order bonus was a plush squirrel that was included in the box when ordered from participating websites.
, Monthly Wings, Dragon Age, and Dengeki Maoh
. If players pre-ordered the game in Japan, they would receive a free CD with three mini-dramas as well as an 18-page art book.
, and an aggregated score of 80.58% on GameRankings. IGN
has rated the game at 8.4/10, saying that "this sequel is not very far removed from its predecessor at all... that doesn't make it a bad game."
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
, is a simulation/role-playing
Role-playing game (video games)
Role-playing video games are a video game genre with origins in pen-and-paper role-playing games such as Dungeons & Dragons, using much of the same terminology, settings and game mechanics. The player in RPGs controls one character, or several adventuring party members, fulfilling one or many quests...
video game developed by Neverland Co.
Neverland Co.
Neverland Co., Ltd. is a Japanese video game developer founded on May 7, 1993. It has developed games for Super Nintendo Entertainment System, Dreamcast, GameCube, PlayStation 2, Game Boy Color, Nintendo DS, PSP and the Wii...
. It was published in Japan and North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
by Marvelous Entertainment and Natsume respectively for the Nintendo DS
Nintendo DS
The is a portable game console produced by Nintendo, first released on November 21, 2004. A distinctive feature of the system is the presence of two separate LCD screens, the lower of which is a touchscreen, encompassed within a clamshell design, similar to the Game Boy Advance SP...
handheld system
Handheld game console
A handheld game console is a lightweight, portable electronic device with a built-in screen, game controls and speakers. Handheld game consoles are run on machines of small size allowing people to carry them and play them at any time or place...
. Rune Factory 2 takes place in the same universe as Rune Factory: A Fantasy Harvest Moon, also for the Nintendo DS, but with different characters and a different storyline.
Gameplay
Season
A season is a division of the year, marked by changes in weather, ecology, and hours of daylight.Seasons result from the yearly revolution of the Earth around the Sun and the tilt of the Earth's axis relative to the plane of revolution...
s are included, though there are only 120 days in the year, with 30 days per season. The weather varies from day to day - while it is typically sunny, there are occasional rainy days, and, rarely, storm
Storm
A storm is any disturbed state of an astronomical body's atmosphere, especially affecting its surface, and strongly implying severe weather...
s might damage crops and force the player to stay indoors.
The player begins with two tools, the hoe
Hoe (tool)
A hoe is an ancient and versatile agricultural tool used to move small amounts of soil. Common goals include weed control by agitating the surface of the soil around plants, piling soil around the base of plants , creating narrow furrows and shallow trenches for planting seeds and bulbs, to chop...
and the watering can
Watering can
A watering can is a portable container, usually with a handle and a spout, used to water plants by hand. It has existed since at least the 17th century and has since been improved. It is used for many other uses too, as it is a fairly versatile tool....
, allowing the player to till the land and grow various plants after the player purchases or obtains seeds. Each type of seed has a different growth rate and cost, and some plants can be harvested multiple times. In the beginning of the game, the player is given a farm littered with rocks, stumps, and various objects littered throughout. Once the seeds are sown, the player must water them daily, and after several days of growing, they will be able to be picked and either sold, given away, eaten, or stored. For the most part, each plant may only be planted in one particular season, and if, for example, a Spring plant is in the ground during Summer, it will die. Plants can be grown in certain areas outside the farm, where the climate is unchanging; however, these areas must be watered by the player, and usually contain enemies.
The player interacts with objects and townsfolk through dialogue similar to a visual novel
Visual novel
A is an interactive fiction game featuring mostly static graphics, usually with anime-style art, or occasionally live-action stills or video footage...
, including representing the townfolk with anime
Anime
is the Japanese abbreviated pronunciation of "animation". The definition sometimes changes depending on the context. In English-speaking countries, the term most commonly refers to Japanese animated cartoons....
-styled images to narrate the story. In addition, cut scenes occur at certain points in the storyline. While every NPC
Non-player character
A non-player character , sometimes known as a non-person character or non-playable character, in a game is any fictional character not controlled by a player. In electronic games, this usually means a character controlled by the computer through artificial intelligence...
has "Friend Points" that can be increased by visiting them and giving them items, seven female characters also have a statistic called "Love Points" that increases as the player shows them affection. When the Love Point total reaches ten, the player can then marry
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
the character and raise a child, who becomes the second protagonist. The child is unable to marry, but can conduct a "love ceremony" instead.
The player character has two types of statistics: ability statistics and battle statistics. The former show how well the player can execute a certain task, while the latter are standard role-playing game
Role-playing game (video games)
Role-playing video games are a video game genre with origins in pen-and-paper role-playing games such as Dungeons & Dragons, using much of the same terminology, settings and game mechanics. The player in RPGs controls one character, or several adventuring party members, fulfilling one or many quests...
statistics. These battle statistics can be improved either by defeating enough enemies to level up
Level Up
Level Up was a UK children's TV programme that was broadcast on CBBC. It was launched on the 3rd April 2006, replacing Xchange. The show was an hour long and during the school year broadcasting from 7:30am until 8:30am...
or by equipping a particular weapon or piece of equipment. The player's skills include basic tasks such as farming, fighting, and mining, and they level up as the player carries out these tasks. A specific tool is usually required for every task; some tools can also be used as weapons.
While exploring, the player can fight monster
Monster
A monster is any fictional creature, usually found in legends or horror fiction, that is somewhat hideous and may produce physical harm or mental fear by either its appearance or its actions...
s to increase their strength, or befriend them and keep them as livestock, farmhands, or as battling companions. Items harvested from livestock kept in barns can be sold for money or used to cook.
Setting
The game has several different areas. The main area is the player's farm, where they do most of their farming and living in. The player's house has the basic amenities, including a refrigerator, a bed, a table, and others. The player has a diary that they can use to save their progress, and a mailbox from which the player may occasionally receive mail. Just south of the farm is the town, which has a variety of locations, including shops, houses, and other buildings. There are several monster-infisted dungeons throughout the game, each based in one of the seasons. The player can find land fit to farm with, as well as monsters that can be fought or captured.Rune Factory 2 features festivals on specific days of the year. Most of the festivals are original ones from Harvest Moon and Rune Factory, though some are based on real-world festivals, such as New Year's Eve. Stores are not open on holidays.
Story
A man with amnesia wanders to a town named Alvarna. He meets a girl named Mana who gives him a farmland and tools to use and names himself "Kyle" (which can be changed). Upon developing his life with a new identity, he is married to a chosen bride and conceives a child with her; a son or daughter depending on the player's choice named "Aaron" or "Aria" respectively (which, again, can be changed). Later he helps build a school for the town. One day, he regains his memory and remembers why he came to Alvarna, and why he felt so strongly to build the school. He then leaves his family in the middle of the night. A few years later, his child following clues left behind by the father, learns about the existence of Fiersome, a dragon who was sealed 1000 years ago. The child also discovers the father left so he could merge himself to Fiersome to restrain the dragon's powers. The child defeats and seals the dragon away with the spell Dragon Break. Upon doing so, the father's spirit is sealed along with the dragon's. The child continues to find a way to separate the father's spirit from Fiersome back home and finds the spell Omni-Gate which manages to bring the father back home and reunites him with the family and friends he left behind.Development
According to Marvelous's managing director and Harvest Moon's creator, Yasuhiro Wada, Rune Factory 2 does not borrow the Harvest Moon name for the Japanese release. This was done in order to grow Rune Factory as an independent series and Marvelous will continue to do this with all future installments including Rune Factory Frontier. Despite this, Natsume applied the subtitle A Fantasy Harvest Moon to Rune Factory 2.The American pre-order bonus was a plush squirrel that was included in the box when ordered from participating websites.
Manga
Rune Factory 2 has had multiple manga series to help promote the game, in such magazines as Dengeki Nintendo DSDengeki Nintendo DS
is a Japanese gaming magazine published by ASCII Media Works . The magazine mainly covers information pertaining to the Nintendo DS, but also carries information on the Wii as well. The magazine was originally named Dengeki Super Nintendo and first went on sale on December 26, 1992...
, Monthly Wings, Dragon Age, and Dengeki Maoh
Dengeki Maoh
is a Japanese seinen magazine published by ASCII Media Works . It first went on sale on October 27, 2005 and is sold every month on the twenty-seventh. The magazine features information on video games, manga, and light novels...
. If players pre-ordered the game in Japan, they would receive a free CD with three mini-dramas as well as an 18-page art book.
Music
Sometime after the release of the game in Japan, a CD with all the background music, three mini-dramas, and the two theme songs was released with a novel based on the game following sometime after.Reception
Rune Factory 2 received generally favorable reviews, earning an aggregated score of 77/100 on MetacriticMetacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
, and an aggregated score of 80.58% on GameRankings. IGN
IGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
has rated the game at 8.4/10, saying that "this sequel is not very far removed from its predecessor at all... that doesn't make it a bad game."