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: Grand Bazaar (August 2025)
• North America: Harvest Moon: Home Sweet Home Special Edition (October 2025) and Story of Seasons: Grand Bazaar (August 2025)
• Europe: Harvest Moon: Home Sweet Home Special Edition (October 2025) and Story of Seasons: Grand Bazaar (August 2025)

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! Daffodils may be fading, but now it's time for the tulips to wake up! Many of them greet folks walking down the sidewalk, including the group that was replanted from the neighbor down the street. Turns out his tulips were mainly red or yellow with red accents. The only flowers that have bloomed so far from saving all those bulbs he dug up have been the tulips. There is a lot of other foliage that appeared, but no blooms. Maybe they're summer alliums or daffodils that didn't have enough energy to bloom? The bulbs were simply in a large pile in his wheelbarrow and with no identification, so they could be anything.

Last weekend, I planted the horseradish rhizome that Mr.Fogu's coworker shared last year. It was stored in a bag in some wood shavings, though it still felt like it may have had a moisture problem over winter. It went into a container to ensure it doesn't spread all over, as horseradish is known to become rather invasive when left in the ground unchecked.

I also planted some of the schwartzenbeeren seeds obtained from the seed exchange with the sister-in-law a few weeks back. Wasn't expecting much, but they did sprout! Can't say the same for my zucchini though. Neither have made any indication of germinating. I might have some dud squash...

Indie Game Updates

Colonial farming game Echoes of the Plum Grove released a small update on Monday. New features include seasonal thunderstorms, a tree tapper for collecting sap during winter, and the ability to transfer items between storage chests. These features will also be included in the Switch version of the game once it passes through Nintendo's approval process.

• Echoes of the Plum Grove | Steam Store

Artisan Story launched on Steam Early Access last weekend. This farming and monster ranching game follows the story of twin artisans starting their crafter workshop. Collect craft materials from animals and crops, explore dungeons for goodies, and use resources to build weapons, clothes, decor, and more. There are also villager relationships, romance, and festivals to experience. This game was originally crowdfunded last October, with a full release planned by the end of 2025.

• Artisan Story | Steam Store

Azuma Delay

Marvelous has moved the release date for Rune Factory: Guardians of Azuma to June 5 from the originally scheduled date of May 30. The game's director, Shiro Maekawa, revealed yesterday that they have planned a release on the Switch 2 since the beginning of the game's development. Because they want everyone to play Azuma at the same time on all platforms, they have pushed the planned release date to coincide with the release of the Switch 2 console on June 5.

The Switch 2 Edition of the game will have a higher frame rate, greater graphics resolution, and support JoyCon 2 mouse controls when building and designing the game's villages. It also comes at a price upgrade of 1000円 more than the Switch 1 edition.

Owners of the Switch 1 version of Azuma played on a Switch 2 can purchase a separate upgrade pack from the eShop, with a price to be announced later.

The physical version Azuma SW2 game package from Marv EU on Amazon.uk discloses that the Switch 2 game is the Switch 1 edition with the upgrade pack included. The Switch 2 digital version can also be upgraded to the digital Deluxe version (swimsuits + Pilika + Cuilang + festival outfits + dark Woolby) for 1650円 more or the digital Premium version (deluxe + digital artbook + digital soundtrack) for 3850円 more through the eShop.

Marvelous USA and Marvelous EU ask that future Earth Dancers wait a bit longer for the final prices in regions outside of Japan.

Marvelous USA is now offering the physical bonus items in the Earth Dancer limited edition (artbook, fan, Woolby head plush, and CD soundtrack) as a separate $49.99 purchase for those who will get the digital version (e.g., on Steam) and don't need a physical copy of the Switch 1 edition. I'm still holding out for a Woolby-only option (fingers crossed). You can pick up the LE physical goods from the Azuma preorder page on the Marvelous USA website.

Marv EU SW Sale

Marvelous EU has a nice group of deals currently for Story of Seasons and Rune Factory games in the publisher's region. These discounts are not available in NA (Marvelous USA) and will expire on April 23:

• Farmagia = 50% off (€24.99)
• Rune Factory 3 Special = 75% off (€9.99)
• Rune Factory 3 Special Deluxe = 75% off (€12.49)
• Rune Factory 4 Special = 85% off (€4.49)
• Rune Factory 5 = 80% off (€9.99)
• Rune Factory 5 Deluxe = 80% off (€11.99)
• Rune Factory 5 Outfits DLC = 80% off (€2.49)
• SoS: A Wonderful Life = 60% off (€15.99)
• SoS: AWL Seasonal Outfits DLC = 50% off (€1.99)
• SoS: Friends of Mineral Town = 85% off (€4.79)
• SoS: Pioneers of Olive Town = 75% off (€9.99)
• SoS: Pioneers Expansion Pass = 75% off (€3.74)

New SoS:GB Trailer

This week, Marvelous released an extended trailer that included some of the footage used in last week's Nintendo Direct:

From looking at the trailer, it's pretty clear that this is Pioneers of Olive Town put into a Zephyr Town setting, with graphic and gameplay improvements. I would say that is a good thing. PoOT was a pretty game and had heart, even if there were some questionable gameplay components.

From looking at the latest video, we can see:

• A new door in the kitchen area looks like the bathroom. In the remake, there is a cabinet, bookshelf, and wall calendar in the spot where the bath/toilet rooms were in the original. There is also an entrance to another space to the right of the new bathroom. In the original game, the entrance to the livestock barn is accessible from inside the farmhouse, which is now in the southeast corner in the remake. So, I'm unsure what that nook east of the new bathroom location is about. Kinda looks like an upstairs? Maybe? No preview videos have ventured into that mysterious area...
• There are turnips and cabbage (spring crops) growing in the field at the same time as asparagus, radish, and onion (summer crops). This is the same crop growth system from PoOT, where crops can carry over multiple seasons. The seeds sold at Miguel's booth at the bazaar note the seasons the crop will produce
• The original Grand Bazaar doesn't have flowers to grow. This new version does include flowers, such as the Buttercup, which has had a graphic upgrade.
• Golden crops; there's a Golden Strawberry shown in the field.
• Besides cows, chickens, alpaca, and sheep, the Buffalo from PoOT can also be raised on the farm.
• Beekeeping and mushroom logs are in, which weren't in the original game.
• Another neat new feature is the windscreens used to protect plant places. Since Zephyr town can be a bit blowy at times, the windscreens can be placed to protect your outdoor products from the negative effects of windstorms. Interact with the windscreen sign next to the field to place the barriers to protect the fields, mushroom logs, and bee hives/flowers for one stormy day.
• The basement greenhouse is back, but its field size has been reduced to 45 from the original 54 squares of soil. There are four objects in each corner with an unknown purpose; I'm assuming those are the seasonal controls (i.e., Sun Stones) that determine the conditions of the cellar, but that's my guess.
• Another thing that decreased in size is the rucksack. The original had a maximum of 36 slots of space, whereas in the remake, there appears to only be 32 slots. On the other hand, a new function added to the game is the global storage access. Small windy boxes around the world connect to the storage in the farmhouse, allowing you to pull out what you need when necessary instead of having to haul everything around in the rucksack. So it's not too much of an issue that the rucksack is smaller in SoS: GB, but it's noticeable.
• The flower vase has moved from a shelf in the southeast corner of the farmhouse to a table next to the front door.
• Arata is freak'n tall.
• The last scene shows the city where Freya and Jules (Ivan) work can be viewed from a distance. That's where the bazaar visitors come from too.

Siliconera interviewed Director Nakano about the improvements Marvelous made to the remake of Grand Bazaar. He notes that they had considered adding a shipping bin but decided to improve the bazaar mechanism instead to make it more enjoyable for players. Another improvement are new locations to explore, such as a mountain area, which you can see briefly on IGN's hands-on preview video. There's also an art world map on the promotional page for the digital artbook on Nintendo's website that hints that there's a new coastal area.

Siliconera's interview also confirms there is only one kid, with the child taking on the physical traits of the player and partner, just like in PoOT. Though while Nakano claimed that pet herding is something they added to the remake, it existed in the original game, with dogs herding the larger livestock and cats herding the chickens.

Another thing I've noticed from checking out the content from influencers who were invited to visit Marvelous HQ for a hands-on preview is that the snowboard and skateboard track next to the hotel has been replaced with what appears to be the Nature Sprite's hut; see Noisy Pixel's preview with the map of Zephyr Town. I remember that there was always some grumbling with the Winter 20 Snowboard Festival, as it was difficult to get a good score to win the festival if you finished at all. Any crash or bump into an obstacle would disqualify your festival attempt. We'll have to see if the snowboard moved to another spot or dumped altogether.

Another influencer noted that there is no selling of farm animals. They're "donated" to a stall at the bazaar to remove them from your farm, similar to donating unwanted animals to the Chief Sprite in PoOT. This includes removing unwanted pets from your farmhouse, which wasn't something players could do in the original DS game.

Until next time!

- Cher
(10 days to go until Last Frost! Almost plant'n time!)

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