Rune Factory 4 Special

Rune Factory 4 Special makes the jump to 2020 in amazing fashion by delivering the same amount of charm and great content in the original in a nicely upgraded package.

87%Game Brain Score

story, gameplay

grinding, graphics

91% User Score Based on 1,538 reviews

Critic Score 82%Based on 26 reviews

Platforms

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About

Rune Factory 4 Special is a single player role playing game. It was developed by Marvelous Inc. and was released on December 7, 2021. It received positive reviews from critics and very positive reviews from players.

"Rune Factory 4 Special" is a life simulation RPG set in the dragon-ruled region of Selphia. Players can farm, fish, cook, and craft while building relationships with charming characters and taking part in seasonal events. New features include Newlywed Mode, additional difficulty options, and updated visuals, offering an enhanced experience for both new and returning players.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player

+10

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91%

Audience ScoreBased on 1,538 reviews

story130 positive mentions

grinding732 negative mentions

Rune Factory 4 Special combines farming, crafting, and combat elements seamlessly, providing a rich and engaging gameplay experience.
The characters are well-developed and charming, with extensive dialogue that keeps interactions fresh and interesting.
The game offers a vast amount of content, including multiple story arcs, numerous skills to level up, and a variety of activities to engage in.

The RNG-based town events can be frustrating, as they are required for marriage and story progression, leading to potential roadblocks.
The controls can feel clunky, especially when using keyboard and mouse, making inventory management and item usage cumbersome.
Some graphical elements show their age, with upscaled textures that can appear blurry on larger screens.

grinding
742 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
1%
99%
The grinding aspect of *Rune Factory 4* is a mixed bag, with many players finding it both engaging and tedious. While some appreciate the depth and complexity of the farming and crafting systems, which can lead to a satisfying gameplay loop, others criticize the game for its repetitive tasks and the significant time investment required to progress, particularly in leveling up skills and completing quests. Overall, the game offers a blend of farming, combat, and relationship-building that can be addictive, but it may feel grindy for those not fond of extensive resource management and skill leveling.
- “There is no grinding for levels required like other JRPGs, as proper equipment is much more important.”
- “Even after a decade, it's still the epitome of its genre - I would love if more farming sims learned from this game.”
- “Many people will say the combat is the central feature, not the farming, but it would be deceptive to suggest the farming is neglected.”
- “Farming is too simple, leveling is grindy as heck, and dating and marriage is near impossible to figure out (I've been looking at guides and how terrible the event system is).”
- “You have finished the story, you have won...and yet...you can hear it whispering to you in the back of your mind...99...it must be at 99...and so you are trapped, forever grinding.”
- “Even if you play this game on easy, you aren't getting to the end of the story unless you spend hours grinding, I'm sick of it.”
story
628 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
21%
76%
3%
The story of Rune Factory 4 is a mixed bag, with some players praising its engaging characters and multiple story arcs, while others criticize it for being mediocre or overly simplistic. Many appreciate the blend of farming, combat, and character interactions, which create a charming and immersive experience, though some find the pacing slow and the plot predictable. Overall, it offers a heartfelt narrative that resonates with fans of the genre, especially those who enjoy games like Stardew Valley and Harvest Moon.
- “The story is lengthy as there are 3 arcs to the game, but they are really interesting and fun to go through.”
- “The story is genuinely so amazing it was one of the only things to ever make me cry.”
- “There's a much bigger focus on character writing and relationships than you'll get with a game like Stardew Valley, and the main story ties those elements in with the game's RPG mechanics in a way that had me pretty invested from the jump.”
- “The story is mediocre at best, and painful at worst.”
- “The main plot falls into the trap of having no real, lasting consequences.”
- “The story needed to stop after the first act, but it kept going into a second one, and boy oh boy it was embarrassing to read.”
gameplay
218 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
31%
62%
7%
The gameplay of the game is characterized by a rich blend of farming, crafting, and RPG mechanics, offering players a deep and engaging experience with numerous systems to master. While many players appreciate the addictive gameplay loop and character interactions, some criticize the lack of clear tutorials and the occasional clunky mechanics that can hinder the experience. Overall, it stands out as one of the most mechanically complex entries in the farming sim genre, though it may require patience to fully appreciate its depth.
- “Excellent characters and story, fun gameplay loop, and immersive worldbuilding!”
- “The gameplay is awesome, characters are interesting and have a wide range of dialogue.”
- “This game is such a treat with so many lovable characters, an excellent farming system and monster taming system, an engaging story and gameplay that's challenging and rewarding at the same time.”
- “There are numerous problems that plague every decision the designers made when creating this game, and it's enough to make me wonder whether anyone actually tested some of the mechanics that made it into the full release.”
- “Mechanics and controls weren't explained very well through the frantic tutorial, and also weren't intuitive.”
- “The characters are flat, the gameplay loop is extremely repetitive, and the port is poor at best.”
graphics
150 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
15%
69%
16%
The graphics of the game have received mixed reviews, with many players noting that they appear dated, reflecting its origins as a 3DS title. While some appreciate the charming art style and find it endearing, others criticize the lack of significant updates and the presence of graphical glitches. Overall, the visuals may not meet modern standards, but they can grow on players over time, especially for those who enjoy the cute anime aesthetic.
- “The game itself is really good, great gameplay, story, and graphics.”
- “Vibrant and eye-catching graphics, with lively characters and world.”
- “Although the Steam version has upgraded graphics, I actually prefer the 3DS graphics because I find them more charming, but both versions look good.”
- “The graphics have barely been updated since the 3DS version.”
- “In theory they had upgraded the visuals, but everything is so blurry I found it jarring to look at the game.”
- “The graphics are horribly janky.”
music
90 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
38%
55%
7%
The music in the game receives mixed reviews, with many praising its memorable and fitting compositions that enhance the game's atmosphere, particularly in specific areas like autumn. However, players express frustration over the lack of volume control options, leading to excessively loud music that drowns out dialogue, prompting some to mute the game entirely. While some find the soundtrack incredible and nostalgic, others describe it as forgettable or repetitive, indicating a divide in player experience regarding the audio design.
- “The music is also generally great and very memorable, matching the environments well.”
- “The story is fantastic, the music is great, the characters are all very charming.”
- “The music, the art, all of it combines to really flex just how much love can be poured into a game by a dev team who cares.”
- “The music is annoying and loud; I have to turn it down by other means than the game options.”
- “There is no way to lower or increase the volume of music or sounds.”
- “However, this is yet another really awful port that doesn't support fullscreen and has no options to change the volume (the music is awful - I would want to turn it off and put on my own) and no option to help skip through the copious amounts of unnecessary bad dialogue.”
humor
34 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is characterized by its charming characters, witty dialogue, and a blend of silliness with moments of seriousness, creating an enjoyable experience. Players appreciate the over-the-top story elements, such as an evil empire and the power of friendship, alongside humorous character interactions and quirky achievements. The game successfully balances lighthearted jokes, including some mild adult humor, with heartfelt moments, making it both funny and endearing.
- “The characters are chock full of dialogue, references, and funny quirks.”
- “There's an evil empire, an evil emperor trying to become god, defeating him using the power of friendship, etc... not only is this hilariously over-the-top for a farming game, it's also written like a baby's first Saturday morning cartoon.”
- “The story as it goes is simple, but the characters are so fun and their interactions with each other are so funny and heartfelt that you will soon grow very attached to them, for certain!”
emotional
26 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game is praised for its emotional depth, featuring a simple yet heartfelt storyline that resonates with players, often leading to tears. Characters are described as cute and charming, with engaging interactions that foster strong attachments. Overall, the game is considered the epitome of wholesome and heartwarming experiences, evoking a range of emotions and nostalgia.
- “The storyline is pretty simple but heartfelt and also quite long.”
- “The story...I don't want to spoil anything, but I was so invested in the game that I cried.”
- “And I cried with the game story ;w; I'm very weak to this kind of story alright!”
character development
16 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
38%
43%
19%
Character development in the game is praised for being well thought out, incorporating elements typical of farming and dating simulations while also featuring an overarching plot that adds depth and suspense. However, some users feel that the character designs are less distinctive compared to previous titles, making it difficult to differentiate between characters at times. Overall, while the character development is strong, the design aspect has received mixed feedback.
- “Countless hours of gameplay, adventure and character development.”
- “Character development looks absurdly well thought.”
- “It has all the aspects of a story of seasons (or old school harvest moon) games with farming and dating, but it also has an overarching plotline with character development and suspense.”
- “When I had trouble telling some of them apart when looking at their head icons on the map, that's when I knew the character designs in this game are just not as distinctive as RF3.”
- “Countless hours of gameplay, adventure, and character development.”
- “It has all the aspects of a Story of Seasons (or old school Harvest Moon) games with farming and dating, but it also has an overarching plotline with character development and suspense.”
optimization
14 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
57%
14%
29%
The game's optimization is a mixed bag; while performance is generally smooth with no lag and improved controls for mouse and keyboard, the user interface is poorly designed for controller use. Some players recommend waiting for updates and bug fixes, as the developers' unfamiliarity with the Unity engine is evident, particularly on the Switch. Overall, while there are positive aspects, significant improvements are needed for a better experience.
- “Great optimization.”
- “It runs smoothly, and even fixes some bugs from the 3DS version, if I recall correctly.”
- “There is no lag, runs smoothly, and the controls make sense even for mouse and keyboard.”
- “The UI is atrocious and very obviously not optimized for a controller in any way, shape, or form.”
- “I recommend not getting this game until it gets some updates, optimization, and bug fixes.”
- “If the performance on the Switch is any indication, Hakama/Marv's unfamiliarity with the Unity engine still shows.”
replayability
8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
75%
25%
Players find the game to have nearly infinite replay value, praising its challenging yet fair enemies and well-designed combat zones. The nostalgic factor of its original portable console release adds to its appeal, making it a title that many anticipate sinking countless hours into. However, some note that replayability may diminish once players reach higher levels.
- “This game feels endlessly replayable, and the fact that this game originally came out on a console I could fit in my pocket is still absolutely insane to me.”
- “Can't wait to see how many hours I sink into this game with nearly infinite replay value.”
- “Enemies are challenging without being frustrating (and visually are designed well), and the different combat zones have good replayability until you level too high.”
stability
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33%
67%
The stability of RF3 Special is marred by several graphical glitches and bugs, which detract from the overall experience. However, it performs well on systems like the GTX 1660, indicating that performance may vary based on hardware.
- “Otherwise, it runs great on my GTX 1660.”
- “The biggest problem in RF3 Special is that there are a few weird graphical glitches.”
- “Another big problem is that the game is very buggy.”
monetization
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
50%
Reviewers express concern that the game's monetization model resembles that of a mobile game, retaining paywall elements while removing microtransaction options, which may detract from the overall experience.
- “At times, I felt as if the developers had taken a mobile game and ported it to PC while keeping the paywall elements and deleting all the options for microtransactions.”

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82%Critics’ scoreBased on 27 critic reviews

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84h Median play time

108h Average play time

5-200h Spent by most gamers

*Based on 12 analyzed playthroughs

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Frequently Asked Questions

Rune Factory 4 Special is a role playing game.

Rune Factory 4 Special is available on Nintendo Switch, Xbox Series X|S, PC, PlayStation 4 and others.

On average players spend around 108 hours playing Rune Factory 4 Special.

Rune Factory 4 Special was released on December 7, 2021.

Rune Factory 4 Special was developed by Marvelous Inc..

Rune Factory 4 Special has received very positive reviews from players. Most players liked this game for its story but disliked it for its grinding.

Rune Factory 4 Special is a single player game.

Similar games include Rune Factory 5, Rune Factory: Guardians of Azuma, HARVESTELLA, My Time At Portia, Atelier Ryza: Ever Darkness & the Secret Hideout and others.

Rune Factory 4 Special

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