Rune Factory 4
A fantasy farming and dungeon-crawling RPG with marriage and crafting.
Rune Factory 4 is a role-playing simulation game that came out in 2012. It was made by Neverland and published by Marvelous AQL, and it’s the sixth game in the Rune Factory series. The game launched on the Nintendo 3DS in Japan in July 2012, then in North America in October 2013, and finally in PAL regions in December 2014. A better version called Rune Factory 4 Special came out for the Nintendo Switch in Japan in July 2019 and worldwide in February 2020, with later releases on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Windows in 2021.
The game brings back features from earlier Rune Factory titles, like farming, exploring dungeons, and getting married. Crafting is a big part of the experience—players make all their own equipment, from shoes to different weapons. By mixing materials with various stats, players create new gear, and this matters more for character growth than the usual leveling system found in most RPGs. A new addition is the ability to issue "Orders." As the prince or princess of Selphia, players can use these to request town events, like a harvest festival, or even stop a storm from ruining their crops.
The story starts with the player choosing between two lines of dialogue, which also decides their character’s gender. The default names are Lest for a male and Frey for a female. They’re traveling by airship to Selphia to meet its "God" and deliver a gift, but rogue soldiers attack the ship. During the fight, the player gets hit in the head and later finds out they have amnesia, just like in all previous Rune Factory games. They end up in the town of Selphia and meet Ventuswill, or Venti, one of the four Native Dragons. Venti mistakes them for a royal who was supposed to arrive and help run the town. Even though the real prince, Arthur, shows up, he’s happy to let the player take over his job. Characters from earlier games—Barrett from Rune Factory 2 and Raven from Rune Factory 3—appear as cameos and can join the player’s party for dungeon trips. The game has three story arcs.
In the first arc, the player helps Venti rescue four guardians who were collecting runes to keep Venti alive but have become corrupted. Each time a guardian is saved, Venti slowly starts to die. After saving three, the player looks for the Rune Spheres they lost earlier to save the last guardian without killing Venti.
Quick Facts
- Title
- Rune Factory 4
- Developer
- NeverlandRune Factory 4 Special developed by Hakama
- Publisher
- JP · Marvelous AQL · WW · Xseed Games · EU · Marvelous Europe (Special)
- Director
- Masahide Miyata · Shinichi Manabe
- Producer
- Yoshifumi Hashimoto
- Artist
- Minako Iwasaki · Takitaro · Masato Yamane · Oyaji
- Composer
- Tomoko Morita
- Series
- Rune Factory
- Genre
- Role-playing game
- Modes
- Single-player
- Platforms
- Nintendo 3DS · Nintendo Switch · Windows · PlayStation 4 · Xbox One
Facts from the source article.
Lore & Background
Rune Factory 4 continues the series' blend of farming, dungeon exploring, and marriage. Crafting is central to character progression, allowing players to create all equipment from shoes to weapons using materials with various stats, more so than traditional leveling. The game introduces an 'Orders' system, letting the player, as prince or princess of Selphia, request town events or protect crops from storms. The story begins with the protagonist—default names Lest (male) or Frey (female)—traveling by airship to Selphia to deliver a gift to its god, but after an attack by rogue soldiers, they develop amnesia and land in Selphia. Mistaken for royalty, they meet Ventuswill (Venti), one of the four Native Dragons, and the actual prince Arthur allows them to take his role. The game features three story arcs: rescuing corrupted guardians, confronting the Sechs Empire and its leader Ethelberd, and seeking to bring Venti back to Selphia. Characters from Rune Factory 2 and 3, Barrett and Raven, appear as cameos and can be recruited.
Reader's Guide
Rune Factory 4 became the best-selling game in the Rune Factory series, with Japanese sales exceeding 150,000 copies, surpassing Rune Factory 2. Profits were well above expectations for Marvelous AQL, leading to an upward revision of profits by 106.7% for the second financial quarter of 2012. The game's success prompted an enhanced version, Rune Factory 4 Special, released for the Nintendo Switch in 2019 and later for other platforms. Producer Yoshifumi Hashimoto emphasized the theme of 'passionate love, sweet marriage', expanding dating events and family adventuring scenarios to offer players a choice beyond combat or farming. Development focused on making farming satisfying despite its repetitive nature, drawing inspiration from games like Pikmin and DokiDoki Panic, and running the game at 60 frames per second for immediate controller response. The localization faced delays: Xseed Games handled the North American release in October 2013, while the European release was initially cancelled due to Neverland's bankruptcy, but eventually released via the 3DS eShop in December 2014.
Did You Know?
- Rune Factory 4 is the sixth game in the Rune Factory series.
- The game's protagonist develops amnesia, as in all previous Rune Factory games.
- Ethelberd, the ruler of the Sechs Empire, previously appeared in Rune Factory: A Fantasy Harvest Moon.
- The enhanced version Rune Factory 4 Special adds a Newlywed mode using Live2D technology.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Rune Factory 4?
Rune Factory 4 is a fantasy farming and dungeon-crawling RPG developed by Neverland and published by Marvelous AQL. Released in 2012 for the Nintendo 3DS, it serves as the sixth main entry in the Rune Factory series.
What platforms can I play Rune Factory 4 on?
The original 3DS version launched in Japan in July 2012, North America in October 2013, and PAL regions in December 2014. The enhanced Rune Factory 4 Special later arrived on Nintendo Switch in 2019–2020, followed by PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Windows ports in 2021.
What are the main gameplay activities in Rune Factory 4?
You manage a farm, battle monsters in underground dungeons, craft tools and weapons, and build relationships with villagers. The game also lets you marry one of several romanceable characters and start a family.
What is Rune Factory 4's story about?
You play as a young dragon who has lost their memory and was raised by a human in the mountains. After being sent to a human village, you piece together your past while uncovering a larger threat to the world.
How does Rune Factory 4 Special differ from the original?
Rune Factory 4 Special is an enhanced re-release that adds new story content, additional characters, and quality-of-life improvements over the 3DS original. It first appeared on Nintendo Switch in 2019 and 2020 before expanding to other platforms in 2021.
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