Rune Factory: A Fantasy Harvest Moon (ds: 2007): Reviews

> Switch to Advanced Search

Games Homepage
Best of 2007 | 2006 |2005
Advanced Search

PS3 | PS2 | PS One | PSP

Xbox 360 | Xbox

Wii | DS | GBA | Cube | N64

PC | N-Gage | Dreamcast

How Metascores Are Calculated
Discuss Games In Our Forums

sort by name

sort by score

xx Age of Empires: Mythologies
64 Air Traffic Chaos
xx All Star Cheer Squad
51 Animal Paradise
xx Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader? Make the Grade
xx Army Men: Soldiers of Misfortune
xx Avatar: The Last Airbender - Into the Inferno
65 Away: Shuffle Dungeon
xx Back at the Barnyard: Slop Bucket Games
82 Bangai-O Spirits
xx Battle of Giants: Dinosaurs
xx Ben 10: Alien Force
83 Bleach: Dark Souls
xx Bolt
xx Brain Quest Grades 3 & 4
xx Brain Quest Grades 5 & 6
xx Bratz Girlz Really Rock
xx Bratz Kidz: Slumber Party
82 Call of Duty: World at War
87 Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia
xx Cesar Millan's Dog Whisperer
xx Cheetah Girls: Passport to Stardom, The
91 Chrono Trigger
xx Club Penguin: Elite Penguin Force
xx Colour Cross
64 Commando: Steel Disaster
xx Cradle of Rome
42 Crash Bandicoot: Mind over Mutant
xx Dancing with the Stars: Get Your Dance On!
xx Defendin' DePenguin
49 Digimon World Championship
62 Dinosaur King
81 Disgaea DS
xx Disney Fairies: Tinker Bell
80 Dragon Ball: Origins
80 Dragon Quest IV: Chapters of the Chosen
68 Drawn to Life: SpongeBob SquarePants Edition
xx Driving Theory Training
xx Dropcast
56 Dungeon Maker
64 Exit DS
66 Ferrari Challenge Trofeo Pirelli
84 FIFA Soccer 09
55 Flower, Sun, and Rain
73 Football Director DS
63 From The Abyss
41 Garfield's Fun Fest
79 GRID
xx Guinness World Records: The Videogame
79 Guitar Hero: On Tour - Decades
64 Harvest Moon: Island of Happiness
xx Hell's Kitchen
xx Hi! Hamtaro Ham-Ham Challenge
xx High School Musical 3: Senior Year
xx I Heart Geeks!
xx Igor The Game
xx Imagine Teacher
xx International Athletics
xx King of Clubs
79 Kirby Super Star Ultra
84 KORG DS-10 Synthesizer
xx Kung Fu Panda: Legendary Warriors
xx Last King of Africa
71 Legend of Kage 2, The
59 Legend of Spyro: Dawn of the Dragon, The
72 LEGO Batman
59 Line Rider 2: Unbound
72 Little League World Series 2008
70 Little Red Riding Hood's Zombie BBQ
80 Lock's Quest
56 LOL
75 Luminous Arc 2
xx Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa
xx Madden NFL 09
xx Make 10: A Journey of Numbers
xx Margot's Word Brain
xx Mary King's Riding School
63 Master of the Monster Lair
xx Mazes of Fate DS
75 Mechanic Master
70 Metal Slug 7
70 MLB Power Pros 2008
xx Monster Jam: Urban Assault
70 Monster Lab
xx Mushroom Men: Rise of the Fungi
xx My Chinese Coach
xx My Japanese Coach
xx My Make-Up
xx My SAT Coach with The Princeton Review
xx My Secret World by Imagine
xx My Stop Smoking Coach with Allen Carr
58 MySims Kingdom
69 Mystery Case Files: MillionHeir
82 N+
xx Nancy Drew: The Hidden Staircase
62 Naruto: Path of the Ninja 2
xx National Geographic Panda
xx Need for Speed Undercover
82 Ninjatown
61 PictoImage
71 Pipe Mania
50 Pirates: Duels on the High Seas
70 Pokemon Ranger: Shadows of Almia
71 Pop Cutie! Street Fashion Simulation
67 Populous DS
66 Prey the Stars
xx Price is Right, The
xx Prince of Persia: The Fallen King
73 Princess Debut
70 Puzzler Collection
64 Quantum of Solace
xx Quick Yoga Training
xx Rain Drops
xx Rayman Raving Rabbids TV Party
50 Red Bull BC One
68 Rhapsody: A Musical Adventure
xx Rhythm Heaven
xx Road To Vegas
xx Robocalypse
xx Rock Blast
xx Rock Revolution
xx Rock University Presents: The Naked Brothers Band - The Video Game
xx Rubik's World
54 Runaway: The Dream of the Turtle
xx Rune Factory 2: A Fantasy Harvest Moon
58 Shaun the Sheep
xx Shaun White Snowboarding
xx Sherlock Holmes: The Mystery of the Mummy
69 SimCity Creator
49 Sims 2 Apartment Pets, The
xx Six Flags Fun Park
xx Skate It
73 Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood
72 Spectrobes: Beyond The Portals
77 Spider-Man: Web of Shadows
xx SpongeBob SquarePants featuring NickToons: Globs of Doom
66 Spore Creatures
xx Star Wars The Clone Wars: Jedi Alliance
61 Star Wars: The Force Unleashed
51 Subbuteo
xx Suzuki Super-Bikes II: Riding Challenge
xx Tak: Mojo Mistake
65 Tecmo Bowl: Kickoff
xx Theresia
66 Time Hollow
xx Tom Clancy's EndWar
xx Tomb Raider Underworld
xx Tony Hawk's Motion featuring Hue Pixel Painter
51 Tornado
77 TouchMaster 2
77 TrackMania DS
69 Transformers Animated: The Game
xx Ultimate Band
65 Unsolved Crimes
82 Viva Pinata: Pocket Paradise
43 What's Cooking? with Jamie Oliver
57 Wordmaster
56 WWE SmackDown vs. RAW 2009
xx Zenses Ocean
xx Zenses Rainforest
75 Zubo

Stars indicate the most critically-acclaimed games.

Rune Factory: A Fantasy Harvest Moon


8.7

based on 20 reviews
Read critic reviews
How did we calculate this?

based on 34 votes
Read user comments
Rate this game

GameFAQs

Official Website

You awaken to find yourself in an unfamiliar village with no memory of who you are or how you arrived. Mist, a beautiful young woman comes to your aid and helps you start to build a life for yourself…on a farm. Till the land, grow crops, raise animals, catch fish and battle monsters! Battling against fierce beasts is very important for your survival, but making friends with them is essential for your farm life. Build skills and learn magic as you save your neighbors and uncover the secrets of your forgotten past...Befriend wandering monsters to help with your farm, each with their own special abilities. Upgrade your skills as you use and create hundreds of items and tools. Communicate and exchange items via Wi-Fi. Grow crops, make friends and fall in love. [Natsume]

PUBLISHER:	Natsume
DEVELOPER:	Neverland
GENRE(S):	Role-Playing Game, Simulation
PLAYERS:	2
ESRB RATING:	E (Everyone)
RELEASE DATE:	August 14, 2007

All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...

Cheat Code Central

Series fans will find that Rune Factory far exceeds their expectations. The inclusion of combat, magic, and other RPG elements greatly expand on an excellent game design that will feel familiar, if not significantly improved, to many players.

GameBrink

A great game with an overwhelming amount of things to do giving you a lot of freedom to explore the little world and follow the main story at your own pace. [JPN Import]

GameZone

This game earns a spot next to Advance Wars DS and Castlevania: DoS as an essential title in the library of anyone who enjoys top-notch single-player experiences on DS.

GameShark

It’s unlikely that Rune Factory is going to make converts out of anyone who doesn’t already enjoy the series but it will certainly please longtime fans, especially those who felt like the series was growing stale.

GamingTrend

The good news is Rune Factory is long on farming, exploration, and relationships and short on the sillier aspects of the franchise. It may not be everyone’s cup of tea, but the game is long, varied, and a great deal of addictive fun to play. Pick this one up especially if you have a long trip coming up.

AtomicGamer

In the end, this meshing of two different styles of gameplay is what makes Rune Factory a worthy pickup for previous Harvest Moon-ers.

Deeko

Rune Factory might not be perfect, but it's the first Harvest Moon game to be released on the DS that doesn't feel old hat.

IGN

For Harvest Moon fans, Rune Factory is exactly what you’ve been waiting for. The game balances a classic farming system (with some changes for the better) along with a full dungeon-crawling aspect, monster collection, and all the added goodies you’d expect from the franchise.

The Onion (A.V. Club)

Exploring Rune Factory's rural village of Kardia is like shaking a snow globe; the town is small but nuanced, perfectly preserved yet dynamic.

NGamer UK

Very fun indeed. [Dec 2007, p.62]

GamerNode

Rune Factory does a good job of changing up the Harvest Moon formula many have grown bored with. Veterans may not like the changes at first, but give them a chance and you’ll likely find yourself enjoying it.

G4 TV

The new elements all mesh perfectly to provide a more well-rounded farming RPG experience, and, as odd as that sounds to non-fans, this is an excellent DS adventure.

RPG Fan

Rune Factory is a great portable action RPG/sim with a vast array of activities and a great addictive vibe.

GameSpot

Despite a totally different visual style and the introduction of combat, Rune Factory still delivers a relatively straight-ahead Harvest Moon experience.

Pocket Gamer UK

Rune Factory is an impressive advancement for the Harvest Moon series but you have to be committed to get the most out of the experience.

Zentendo

Those who adore the franchise will most likely find this title worthwhile due to the steps it takes to advance the series into foreign territory, but these gamers have also stuck with the Harvest Moon games for a reason: they can cope with a bevy of flawed design choices to appreciate the redundancy of farming these casual titles provide.

Nintendo Power

The play control is responsive, but sword swinging is hesitant and Raguna is unable to fight and walk at the same time. [Sept 2007, p.88]

GameSpy

Rune Factory is a good experiment which introduces new concepts and refreshed gameplay , but it doesn't do a good job of using the DS' many capabilities.

AceGamez

It's safe to say that if you've never enjoyed the sedate pace of the Harvest Moon formula then Neverland's latest simply isn't for you - but if you're a fan of the series who's looking for a unique twist on the usual procedure then you need look no further than Rune Factory.

Game Informer

Just way more trouble than it’s worth.

The average user rating for this game is 8.7 (out of 10) based on 34 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

Ike J. gave it an8:
This is my first Harvest moon game, and I absolutely loved it. From the start to finish, it was an excellent game, in my opinion. The main gameplay is fun. The characters are decent, a huge variety of gameplay, good amount of weapons, items, good music, and stuff like that. A few of my main complaints are the top screen, which is barely used at all. Also, the person who said that the game didn't explain enough, and couldn't figure out how to remove stumps, the description of the item clearly says "cannot remove stumps". Anyway, the game's visuals look great with the 2D background. I do wish there was more content, and I found the story to be a bit lacking, so I can't give it a higher mark than an 8.

Ambi H. gave it a7:
I liked the game. It was difficult at first but (mainly because I read walkthroughs online *Thank you Freyashawk*) I got used to it. I have a couple complaints though. The Harvest Moon Part of it is shambles… It’s now a dungeon game with good anime graphics but very few Harvest Moon aspects. I agree with Trevor R. that the love part stinks. It would be nice if there were some heart events. Instead you merely talk to the bachelorettes and give them gifts. It would also be nice to be able to play a girl in the game. It’s a tad weird playing a guy marrying girls when you are female. Josh H. has not played that many Harvest Moon games, or as far as I can tell by his reply. Marriage is a small and not needed in this game. At least in other HM games it was important and fun. As my last rant I would like to say that all of the characters, if you don’t speak to them and including yourself, have nasty little sticks for legs. Overall I enjoy the game but believe that it should not have been put into the Harvest Moon Series. And, Assassin Deathclaw, I agree, you should have a gender choice. Try Harvest Moon DS Cute.

Carajie S. gave it a7:
This game is Extremly fun and I hate to say this but I do have some complaints. First of all in Harvest Moon you only had to buy the house upgrades but now not only must you save up 200,000 gold but get 2,000 peices of wood with it. I also have to add that my monsters *STILL* hate me and its almost been half a year in the game. I have, fed them, brushed them, and used the collecting basket but their friendship points are, still 0. I am happy however that there is no sprite collecting because I have never been able to collect all 60 sprites in Harvest Moon which meant that I never got married in the game. This game was great but I do not think it was the greatest game Natsume has made so far, I will be waiting for their next great game though.

Koda D. gave it a10:
This game rocks! Seriously, the characters sre gorgeous. And the storyline rocked. I can't wait to see the second game.

Slytail L. gave it a0:
I played it for about an hour, but then I couldn't put it down fast enough. I got the plant/water/sleep cycle down, but then the game just stopped making sense. You'd think you'd be able to go into the sad looking town, visit the blacksmith, and buy a tool... NOOOO, you have to hunt down the right non-related person to speak to, and in the right conditions to get any particular tool. And don't get me started on the Rune Point idea. Unless you like mindless tedium, go somewhere else to have fun.

Sprocketeer S. gave it a6:
This is my first Harvest Moon game. Although the farming and collection components in the game are really fun, there have been too many problems for me to ever enjoy the game for a period of time. Being new to the series, I did not know about many of the series conventions. For example, I was completely stuck on how to remove stumps from my farm for the first year. The game and handbook give you very little feedback on how to actually play the game. I needed to refer to internet FAQs many times to learn basic skills. Second, the battle system and cave levels are very annoying. The weapons are slow and take up energy so you have to conserve the amount of times you can use them. At times the caves are too easy, I just breeze through slightly bored and then for no reason I get stuck and will not be able to advance for long periods at a time. Right now, I cannot finish the Moonlight Cave boss. I can wipe out the entire cave without difficulty, but no matter how many strategies I come up with, I keep losing. Some parts of this game turned out to be really fun, like cooking and collecting monsters, but the constant frustrations have made me stop playing.

C S gave it a10:
I have had a hard time finding an engaging, in depth game on DS, but this is it! This is the most addictive game that I have ever played on ANY system. It is interesting, the side quests are abundant and the farming aspect is actually extremly enjoyable.