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: Home Sweet Home (August 2024) and Story of Seasons: A Wonderful Life (June 2023)
• Europe: Harvest Moon: Home Sweet Home (August 2024) 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

Cattle Country and HM:Lost Valley/Skytree Release Dates, New Farm'n Starsand Island, and SoS: Grand Bazaar News | Posted at 05:54 PM 02 May 2025

Happy Farm'n Friday! We have a birdhouse on the back of the house that is typically unused. Last year, a bird had started building a nest of moss and small twigs, but it was eventually abandoned.

Since I knew it was not in use, I figured I might as well empty out the nest in case another bird wanted to give it a try. Well, yea no that's not happening now! As I lifted the latch, the whole structure started to buzz. A colony of native black-tailed bumble bees had moved into the house, and they were not too keen on their front door being disturbed! Gratefully, these guys are not aggressive bees and were simply letting me know I was being a rude pest.

As I've lamented about the lack of pollinators in the yard in the past, I'm more than pleased to share some space with these fellows for the summer. There is a downside, though; we've another house construction project coming up, and there is concern that it might upset the bumbles, as it is their nature to stick around until autumn. I'll need to counsel with some bee experts on this one.

Another surprise this week was those bean seeds I planted about two weeks ago. The green beans had started to sprout, but the burgundy beans looked like they might be duds. In response, I started a batch of seeds indoors under the grow light, which is how the sister-in-law started her burgundy beans earlier this spring.

Guess what I see outside today? Yea, those dang burgundy beans have sprouted. Now, I have outdoor beans and indoor beans!

Cattle Country Dated

Yeee haw! Playtonic announced that Castle Pixel's country-western-themed farming and life-sim game Cattle Country will be released on May 27, 2025. Supported platforms are Nintendo Switch, PlayStation, Steam, and XBox.

Start a new homestead in the rugged outdoors, where you'll grow crops and raise cows. Players can also catch fish, forage for edibles, and even hunt squirrels and rabbits to collect food (if you want to hunt). There's also brewing, pickling, and other means to process goods into higher quality products to sell.

Besides the normal farming, the nearby town has many residents who will need assistance from the new farmer. The town bulletin board will have help requests posted and a calendar that tracks resident birthdays and festival dates. The game's Journal lists each resident and their likes/dislikes, so there's no need to guess what gift they appreciate. There's also a romance option, though having children is planned for a later addition to the game. Playtonic notes that most adults are valid marriage candidates (about 18), minus the two already married to other characters. The residents have some interesting backstories; why is banker Carl so shady with money...

There is a bit of danger in the west, as bandits have been known to pop up. Scare off the varments with a good 'ol shootout. If that isn't your thing, the combat can be disabled in the game's settings. Besides the bandits, there are many mini-games, such as playing cards, letter shuffling, and a shooting gallery. Head into the mine for some explosive treasure hunting. Plenty of social festivals, too!

A free demo is available on Nintendo Switch, Steam, and XBox, with a PlayStation demo to be released soon. The demo has a sound volume hiccup (almost silent on Switch; gotta crank the sound up on Steam Deck), but the issue is being investigated. Another oddity is that while this is a single-player game, there is a word filter on the input fields during character creation. Alas, the town cannot be named "Dingleberry."

• Cattle Country | PlayStation Store
• Cattle Country | Steam Store
• Cattle Country | XBox Marketplace

For some reason, Nintendo doesn't have an online entry for the game, but it is available when browsing the eShop using the console.

Castle Pixel is also the developer that brought us Blossom Tales I and II, the dungeon-crawling action RPG pixel game for Switch and Steam.

HM: Valley/Skytree Dated

This week, Natsume revealed the release date for their two-in-one cart containing Harvest Moon: Lost Valley and Harvest Moon: Skytree Village. These two games were released for Nintendo 3DS about a decade ago and were the first post-divorce full-size games from Natsume. Now being released together for the Nintendo Switch, this special bundle will be released in North America (via Natsume) on July 3, 2025, and in Europe (via Numskull Games) on July 4, 2025.

While North Americans can preorder the game for $40 and receive an acrylic animal piece, Europeans have the option of either just the game (£30/€40) with no preorder bonus or a special collector's edition with the game, stickers, poster, and cd soundtrack (£42/€60).

New Kickstarter - Starsand Island

A new tropical island farming game is asking for public financial support through Kickstarter. Starsand Island is an anime-inspired game from developer Seed Lab with a Quarter 4 2025 full-version release date.

The game's story begins with the protagonist returning to their childhood island to settle into a quiet life of farming and ranching. Growing the best crops requires paying attention to the soil moisture levels and fertilizer ratios. Well-cared animals will produce high-quality goods, potentially unlocking animals that may help clean the farm of weeds. Keep an eye out for giant crops, too!

Besides the standard farming stuff, players can search for rare fish to catch, which can be donated to the town museum or cooked into meals. Of course, one had to look fabulous while casting their line, so there are plenty of seasonal clothing and accessories, such as hats, scarves, and boots.

A treasure-hunting component lets players explore the ruins found around the island, but there are also dangerous creatures that don't mind stopping an adventurer's travels.

There is a bit of romance, whether going out on dates or taking it to the next step by inviting that special someone to move into your house.

If you would like to learn more, check out their Kickstarter campaign or wishlist today on Steam:

• Starsand Island | Kickstarter
• Starsand Island | Steam Store

SoS:GB Updates

This week's Zephyr Town Walker on the official Bokumono website has some information about Wilbur's bazaar stall, where players can order farm upgrades. While the tool upgrades are processed at the manufacturing windmill, farm field expansions and storage upgrades are purchased from Wilbur.

The latest video reveals that the remodeler has options to:

• build a second field (20,000 G now, 30,000 G in the DS game),
• increase the size of the animal pasture (50,000 G to make room for a second animal barn, not in the original DS game),
• increase the player's bag inventory size to 24 slots (5000 G, not in the original DS game from Wilbur), and
• increase the players' home warehouse space to 48 slots (5000 G, and much more expensive in the DS game).

A stealth reveal in their video was the existence of field sprinklers into Grand Bazaar, which were not in the original game. If those are in place, I see less of a reason to upgrade the watering can efficiency!

Until next time!

- Cher
(What am I to do with all these beans...)

Feedback: Add | View (2)

Next page >>

RSS