The Ushi No Tane websites specialize in information, FAQs, and guides about the Nintendo console versions of the Harvest Moon, Story of Seasons, and Legend of the River King video games. These game genres are created and published in Japan by Marvelous (JP). In other regions, you'll find Natsume, XSeed Games/Marvelous (USA), Marvelous (EU), and Rising Star involved in the series' release.

The latest version of the mainstream farming series that have been released in various regions of the world are:

• Japan: Story of Seasons: A Wonderful Life (January 2023)
• North America: Harvest Moon: The Winds of Anthos (September 2023) and Story of Seasons: A Wonderful Life (June 2023)
• Europe: Harvest Moon: The Winds of Anthos (October 2023) and Story of Seasons: A Wonderful Life (June 2023)

The latest version of River King, in all regions of the world, is River King: Mystic Valley (JP 2007, NA 2008, EU 2009).

Since 2000, Ushi no Tane has been run by a grouchy old lady who happens to be fond of video game agriculture along with two feline helpers: Intern Captain Bootu and Intern Hondo Mewnaka. The website is not officially affiliated, sponsored, endorsed, or employed by the developers of Harvest Moon, Story of Seasons, or River King. This is simply a fan site.

Latest Farming Video Game News

Happy Farm'n Friday! Some of the iris started to open their blooms this morning. This fellow was planted a long time ago by the mailbox, then replanted in a bit better spot a few years back. For whatever reason the iris decided that this year was going to be its year to show off.

There's a purple-on-purple bearded iris rhizome in that spot too, but it bloomed back in 2016 and hasn't bloomed since. This year we started adding some low-nitrogen fertilizer once a month to the iris bed because last year there were no blooms at all, so maybe that helped to awaken this lavender-on-purple fellow.

Maybe next year some of the others will pop up too? I need to learn more about caring for these temperamental beauties.

Doraemon PS4 Update

A preview of the Ps4 version of Doraemon: Story of Seasons was in this week's Weekly Famitsu (May 7 issue), including comments from several producers of the game:

• Koiji Nakajima from Bandai Namco noted that they received requests for a Playstation version of the game soon after the Nintendo Switch version was announced, but could not work on a port until the overseas versions were released. The Ps4 version contains the same content as the Switch version. After the release of the Ps4 version, a free update will be available for both Switch and Ps4 version.
• Hikaru Nakano from Marvelous (the director of SoS:FoMT) writes that combining the Doraemon world with the Bokujou Monogatari series worked out very well. He is glad that Playstation players will also be able to enjoy this game and notes now that SoS:FoMT is for sale, they are preparing to develop a new entry into the Bokumono series.
• Shuhei Yamashita from Brownies is glad he was able to work on this project. They had some challenges with porting the game to different hardware but were able to succeed. The free update will contain new content, though he can't comment on the exact contents yet.

The Famitsu article notes that the development of the Ps4 version is 85% complete. The game is scheduled to be released in Japan on July 30, and then on September 4 for NA and Europe.

May Bokumono Mobage Events

New month, new events taking place in the online Bokujou Monogatari game on the Mobage social game paltform.

• A Mother's Day Carnation competitive harvest event begins on the 1st. Players will harvest Mother's Day flowers and trees, and cares for ducklings and flowery red pandas. In-game prizes will be awarded based on the number of points a player earns.
• A hungry animal event begins on the 11th. Players will grow crops to feed to one of three randomly appearing animals on their farm. Prizes will be awarded based on how many of each animal is fed by the player, along with the help of other players on their teams.
• Then finally, on the 21st, a hungry animal event begins. Players will grow crops to feed to one of three randomly appearing animals on their farm. Prizes will be awarded based on how many of each animal is fed by the player, along with the help of other players on their teams.

PS Plus for May

For those who are members of Sony's Playstation Plus program, this month's free Ps4 games are Cities: Skylines and the standard edition of Farming Simulator 19. Woo, free farm'n! The digital version of Farming Simulator 19 will be free starting May 5 for PS+ members and remains available until June 1.

FarmCon Changes to Digital

The annual Farming Simulator convention, FarmCon 20, is scheduled to take place on July 18 and 19 in Lauingen, Germany. Because of the ongoing Coronavirus situation, GIANTS Software has changed the format of the farming video game convention. The show will now take place as a digital livestream on July 19. Farmers who had purchased tickets to attend the show will receive a refund.

• Important Announcement: FarmCon20 Goes Digital

The final round of the Farming Simulator League (FSL) will also not take place at FarmCon as scheduled. The event is being rescheduled for a future date and updates will be announced on the FSL website.

Until next time!

- Cher
(It's finally going to rain this weekend!)