US-based publisher XSEED Games, in conjunction with Marvelous Europe, has revealed the western release date for upcoming farming life sim Rune Factory 3 Special. According to the announcement, the game is set to release in North America and European regions on September 5 of this year.
Though initially announced as a Nintendo Switch exclusive, it was revealed today that Rune Factory 3 Special will also be releasing for PC via Steam on the same day. The Japanese version of the game launched on the Nintendo Switch last week, on March 2.
XSEED Games has yet to reveal any further details regarding the North American release of Rune Factory 3 Special. However, Marvelous Europe has already announced both a standard edition and limited edition for the game’s European Nintendo Switch release, as well as all relevant pricing. The standard edition is priced at €39.99 (£34.99 in the UK) both physically and digitally — whereas the limited physical edition, priced at €59.99 (£49.99), will feature an A5 notebook, a set of character stickers, an A3 poster, fashion patch, and a set of pin badges, in addition to a physical copy of the game.
This limited edition also unlocks the in-game Swimsuit Mode, which, when toggled on, switches out the regular clothing of the Rune Factory 3 Special for bathing suits and trunks and such. According to Marvelous Europe, the Swimsuit Mode will also be available via a digital-only deluxe edition of the game, priced at €49.99 (£44.99).
Rune Factory 3 Special is a remaster of the Nintendo DS exclusive Rune Factory 3: A Fantasy Harvest Moon, first released in Japan in 2009, and later in North America and Europe in 2010 and 2011, respectively. A farming and life simulator with role-playing elements, Rune Factory 3 tasked players with fishing, foraging, and crop-growing, as well as dungeon-spelunking, monster-battling, and general journeying through the game’s whimsical fantasy world.
All these gameplay elements remain in the upcoming remaster Rune Factory 3 Special. However, the remaster will also feature a wealth of all-new standalone adventures, an additional “Hell” difficulty, and the Newlywed mode first seen in 2020’s Rune Factory 4 Special, and again in Rune Factory 5, released last year.
