We now have a Rune Factory 5 release date. The game is headed to the west next March, and developer Marvelous has also confirmed something very important: same-sex marriage will be available at launch for the Western version.
How will Rune Factory 5 same-sex marriage work?
In a localization blog post, Marvelous and publisher Xseed explained (or should that be "xplained") how same-sex marriage will work in Rune Factory 5. Any of the 12 romance candidates available for marriage will be eligible for a relationship whether you pick the male or female character at the game's outset. This feature will be available in the Western release of Rune Factory 5 at launch; although it wasn't present in the Japanese version when it released earlier this year, it will be added in a future patch, according to Marvelous.
Marvelous says it did a lot of work to ensure same-sex marriage worked within the structure of Rune Factory 5. Many voice lines and text lines were reworked to ensure either male or female pronouns could be used (some gender-neutral dialogue was also considered, but ultimately scrapped). Since the Japanese text in the game doesn't use gender tags, Marvelous says that to translate Rune Factory 5 into English - as well as German and French - it had to create entirely new dialogue and text. There are also new events that accommodate same-sex couples caring for children, as well as work on various graphics and other visual elements to ensure parity no matter what orientation the player happens to be. It's well worth reading the full localization blog entry, as it's got lots of fascinating detail on how Marvelous achieved this admirable goal.
When is the Rune Factory 5 release date?
You'll be able to play Rune Factory 5 when it lands in the West on March 22nd next year. The game has already been delayed twice; after being announced in 2020, it was delayed to 2021, then further pushed back to 2022. It looks like Rune Factory 5 will finally see the light of day, though, as a concrete date hasn't been announced for Western territories since the original Rune Factory 5 announcement back in 2019.
While you wait for Rune Factory 5 to launch in the West, you can add the game to your wishlist on the Nintendo eShop right now. At the moment, it's not available to wishlist or pre-order on any other platforms. We'll bring you more on this one when we get it. For now, though, it's safe to start thinking about which of Rune Factory 5's waifus or husbandos you want to stammer awkwardly around next March.
Are you excited for Rune Factory 5? Who's your favorite prospective partner? Let us know in the comments below!