Marvelous Entertainment announced in this week's issue of Famitsu magazine that a new game in their Rune Factory action/sim series is in the works.
Rune Factory Oceans marks a return to consoles for the franchise, which combines Harvest Moon-style
farm management with a fantasy RPG-style backdrop. The new game, which
is under development at Neverland Company, is getting a simultaneous
release on the Wii and PlayStation 3 February 24 in Japan -- and the PS3
version will support the PlayStation Move motion controller.
As in other Rune Factory games, the story features a boy (Azel) and girl
(Sonia) as they adventure around the world. In Oceans, though, you're
allowed to switch between the hero and heroine characters at any time,
letting you get a different perspective on matters. The setting's also
unique -- the game begins on an island, and you can borrow the help of a
giant named Yumil, who's so big and strong that he can literally dredge
up shipwrecks and sunken landmasses and stuff from the seabed. You then
use these new islands to expand your farming operation and discover new
adventures.
As before, the action sequences take place in realtime, with Azel and
Sonia able to upgrade their equipment via item forging. You'll also once
again have the option to find a marriage partner as the game's story
soldiers on -- but you'll have to make sure Azel and Sonia maintain
their friendship as they each court other partners, or else things might
go rather awry later.
No US release has been announced for Oceans yet.
Originally posted on 1UP.
