Software:Rune Factory 2

From HandWiki
Short description: 2008 video game
Rune Factory 2:
A Fantasy Harvest Moon
Developer(s)Neverland Co.
Publisher(s)
Director(s)Masahide Miyata
Producer(s)Yoshifumi Hashimoto
Artist(s)Minako Iwasaki
Composer(s)Tomoko Morita
SeriesRune Factory
Platform(s)Nintendo DS
Release
  • JP: January 3, 2008
  • NA: November 18, 2008
  • EU: October 8, 2010
  • AU: November 18, 2010
Genre(s)Simulation, role-playing
Mode(s)Single-player

Rune Factory 2: A Fantasy Harvest Moon[lower-alpha 1] is a simulation role-playing video game developed by Neverland. It was published in Japan, North America and the PAL regions by Marvelous Entertainment, Natsume Inc. and Rising Star Games respectively for the Nintendo DS.

Gameplay

The bottom screen of Rune Factory 2: A Fantasy Harvest Moon shows the protagonist battling an enemy in a cave, while the top screen shows a map of the location.

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 seasons 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, storms 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 monsters 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.

Plot

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 seaside town of Alvarna, which has a variety of locations, including shops, houses, and other facilities. There are several monster-infested 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/Story of Seasons and Rune Factory, though some are based on real-world festivals, such as New Year's Eve. Stores are not open on holidays, with the exception of the bathhouse, which is closed on Mondays.

Story

A boy 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/Story of Seasons's creator, Yasuhiro Wada, Rune Factory 2 does not borrow the Harvest Moon(Bokujō Monogatari) 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.[1] Despite this, Natsume Inc. applied the subtitle A Fantasy Harvest Moon to Rune Factory 2.[2]

The American pre-order bonus was a plush squirrel that was included in the box when ordered from participating websites.[2]

Manga

Rune Factory 2 has had multiple manga series to help promote the game, in such magazines as Dengeki Nintendo DS, 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.

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

Reception
Aggregate score
AggregatorScore
Metacritic77/100[3]
Review scores
PublicationScore
GameSpot6.5/10[4]
GameZone9/10[5]
IGN8.4/10[6]
NGamer81%[7]
Nintendo Power7/10[8]
ONM71%[9]

Rune Factory 2 received "generally favorable reviews" according to the review aggregation website Metacritic.[3] IGN said that "this sequel is not very far removed from its predecessor at all... that doesn't make it a bad game."[6]

Notes

  1. ↑ ルーンファクトリー2 (Rūn Fakutorī 2) in Japan

References

  1. ↑ Riley, Adam (June 6, 2007). "C3 Exclusive Interview | Yasuhiro Wada: Rune Factory & Magical Melody on Wii, Harvest Moon". Cubed3. http://www.cubed3.com/news/7745/1/c3-exclusive-interview-yasuhiro-wada-rune-factory-and-magical-melody-on-wii-harvest-moon.html. Retrieved January 4, 2017. 
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 IGN staff (October 21, 2008). "Natsume's Rune Factory 2: A Fantasy Harvest Moon for DS Goes Gold". IGN. http://www.ign.com/articles/2008/10/21/natsumes-rune-factory-2-a-fantasy-harvest-moon-for-ds-goes-gold. Retrieved January 4, 2017. 
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 "Rune Factory 2: A Fantasy Harvest Moon for DS Reviews". Metacritic. https://www.metacritic.com/game/rune-factory-2-a-fantasy-harvest-moon/critic-reviews/?platform=ds. Retrieved January 4, 2017. 
  4. ↑ Stella, Shiva (December 18, 2008). "Rune Factory 2: A Fantasy Harvest Moon Review". GameSpot. http://www.gamespot.com/reviews/rune-factory-2-a-fantasy-harvest-moon/1900-6202543/. Retrieved January 5, 2017. 
  5. ↑ Hollingshead, Anise (December 7, 2008). "Rune Factory 2: A Fantasy Harvest Moon - NDS - Review". GameZone. Archived from the original on December 10, 2008. https://web.archive.org/web/20081210001304/http://nds.gamezone.com/gzreviews/r35759.htm. Retrieved January 5, 2017. 
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 Thomas, Lucas M. (December 8, 2008). "Rune Factory 2: A Fantasy Harvest Moon Review". IGN. http://www.ign.com/articles/2008/12/09/rune-factory-2-a-fantasy-harvest-moon-review. Retrieved January 4, 2017. 
  7. ↑ "Review: Rune Factory: A Fantasy Harvest Moon". Nintendo Gamer: 62. October 2010. 
  8. ↑ "Rune Factory 2: A Fantasy Harvest Moon". Nintendo Power 237: 90. January 2009. 
  9. ↑ "Rune Factory 2: A Fantasy Harvest Moon Review". Official Nintendo Magazine: 83. October 2010. 
  • MobyGames is a commercial database website that catalogs information on video games and the people and companies behind them via crowdsourcing. This includes over 300,000 games for hundreds of platforms.[1] Founded in 1999, ownership of the site has changed hands several times. It has been owned by Atari SA since 2022.

Features

Edits and submissions to the site (including screenshots, box art, developer information, game summaries, and more) go through a verification process of fact-checking by volunteer "approvers".[2] This lengthy approval process after submission can range from minutes to days or months.[3] The most commonly used sources are the video game's website, packaging, and credit screens. There is a published standard for game information and copy-editing.[4] A ranking system allows users to earn points for contributing accurate information.[5]

Registered users can rate and review games. Users can create private or public "have" and "want" lists, which can generate a list of games available for trade with other registered users. The site contains an integrated forum. Each listed game can have its own sub-forum.

History

Logo used until March 2014

MobyGames was founded on March 1, 1999, by Jim Leonard and Brian Hirt, and joined by David Berk 18 months later, the three of which had been friends since high school.[6][7] Leonard had the idea of sharing information about computer games with a larger audience. The database began with information about games for IBM PC compatibles, relying on the founders' personal collections. Eventually, the site was opened up to allow general users to contribute information.[5] In a 2003 interview, Berk emphasized MobyGames' dedication to taking video games more seriously than broader society and to preserving games for their important cultural influence.[5]

In mid-2010, MobyGames was purchased by GameFly for an undisclosed amount.[8] This was announced to the community post factum , and the site's interface was given an unpopular redesign.[7] A few major contributors left, refusing to do volunteer work for a commercial website.{{Citation needed|date=June 2025} On December 18, 2013, MobyGames was acquired by Jeremiah Freyholtz, owner of Blue Flame Labs (a San Francisco-based game and web development company) and VGBoxArt (a site for fan-made video game box art).[9] Blue Flame Labs reverted MobyGames' interface to its pre-overhaul look and feel,[10] and for the next eight years, the site was run by Freyholtz and Independent Games Festival organizer Simon Carless.[7]

On November 24, 2021, Atari SA announced a potential deal with Blue Flame Labs to purchase MobyGames for $1.5 million.[11] The purchase was completed on 8 March 2022, with Freyholtz remaining as general manager.[12][13][14] Over the next year, the financial boost given by Atari led to a rework of the site being built from scratch with a new backend codebase, as well as updates improving the mobile and desktop user interface.[1] This was accomplished by investing in full-time development of the site instead of its previously part-time development.[15]

In 2024, MobyGames began offering a paid "Pro" membership option for the site to generate additional revenue.[16] Previously, the site had generated income exclusively through banner ads and (from March 2014 onward) a small number of patrons via the Patreon website.[17]

See also

  • IGDB – game database used by Twitch for its search and discovery functions

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Sheehan, Gavin (2023-02-22). "Atari Relaunches The Fully Rebuilt & Optimized MobyGames Website". https://bleedingcool.com/games/atari-relaunches-the-fully-rebuilt-optimized-mobygames-website/. 
  2. ↑ Litchfield, Ted (2021-11-26). "Zombie company Atari to devour MobyGames". https://www.pcgamer.com/zombie-company-atari-to-devour-mobygames/. 
  3. ↑ "MobyGames FAQ: Emails Answered § When will my submission be approved?". Blue Flame Labs. 30 March 2014. http://www.mobygames.com/info/faq7#g1. 
  4. ↑ "The MobyGames Standards and Practices". Blue Flame Labs. 6 January 2016. http://www.mobygames.com/info/standards. 
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Miller, Stanley A. (2003-04-22). "People's choice awards honor favorite Web sites". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. 
  6. ↑ "20 Years of MobyGames" (in en). 2019-02-28. https://trixter.oldskool.org/2019/02/28/20-years-of-mobygames/. 
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Plunkett, Luke (2022-03-10). "Atari Buys MobyGames For $1.5 Million". https://kotaku.com/mobygames-retro-credits-database-imdb-atari-freyholtz-b-1848638521. 
  8. ↑ "Report: MobyGames Acquired By GameFly Media". Gamasutra. 2011-02-07. https://www.gamedeveloper.com/game-platforms/report-mobygames-acquired-by-gamefly-media. 
  9. ↑ Corriea, Alexa Ray (December 31, 2013). "MobyGames purchased from GameFly, improvements planned". http://www.polygon.com/2013/12/31/5261414/mobygames-purchased-from-gamefly-improvements-planned. 
  10. ↑ Wawro, Alex (31 December 2013). "Game dev database MobyGames getting some TLC under new owner". Gamasutra. https://www.gamedeveloper.com/business/game-dev-database-mobygames-getting-some-tlc-under-new-owner. 
  11. ↑ "Atari invests in Anstream, may buy MobyGames". November 24, 2021. https://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2021-11-24-atari-invests-in-anstream-may-buy-mobygames. 
  12. ↑ Rousseau, Jeffrey (2022-03-09). "Atari purchases Moby Games". https://www.gamesindustry.biz/atari-purchases-moby-games. 
  13. ↑ "Atari Completes MobyGames Acquisition, Details Plans for the Site's Continued Support". March 8, 2022. https://www.atari.com/atari-completes-mobygames-acquisition-details-plans-for-the-sites-continued-support/. 
  14. ↑ "Atari has acquired game database MobyGames for $1.5 million" (in en-GB). 2022-03-09. https://www.videogameschronicle.com/news/atari-has-acquired-game-database-mobygames-for-1-5-million/. 
  15. ↑ Stanton, Rich (2022-03-10). "Atari buys videogame database MobyGames for $1.5 million". https://www.pcgamer.com/atari-buys-videogame-database-mobygames-for-dollar15-million/. 
  16. ↑ Harris, John (2024-03-09). "MobyGames Offering “Pro” Membership". https://setsideb.com/mobygames-offering-pro-membership/. 
  17. ↑ "MobyGames on Patreon". http://www.patreon.com/mobygames. 
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