Rune Factory: Guardians of Azuma Preview – Preview

At an exclusive preview event last week, I had the opportunity to go hands on with the PC build of Rune Factory: Guardians of Azuma. Having only dabbled in the series to this point, I was eager to see if this would be the entry that would hook me in. I’m happy to report that there’s a lot to love about the game, and Rune Factory may have a new devotee after an impressive demo showing.

I was taken through three separate segments that showcased distinct gameplay elements of Guardians of Azuma, and I was offered the choice of female protagonist Kaguya or male protagonist Subaru before each one. The first was the “base building/city building” element where you can clear out your land of debris and diseased roots called blight to free up space for farming plots and other buildings. I set up a carpentry business and a bakery cart where I could assign certain townsfolk to work and offer their services. After that, I used my hoe to till more farming plots and set them up with seeds. What’s most compelling about the familiar farming mechanics is that you have special tools that can expedite the process, even speeding up the rate at which your crops grow. While unassigned folks in the village will help out with tasks like farming and mining, you have the ability to quickly and efficiently grow, cultivate, and gather your harvest. Setting up each seasonal village seems like an enjoyable and smooth way to customize each space to your liking. One of the best parts of this segment of the demo was the ability to switch to an overhead view to quickly clear the land and really expedite preparing and developing the space.

The second segment took me through a more open area that focused on combat and exploration. While there was a bevy of resources and treasures to collect, the highlight was the fluid combat, which saw me and my three party members taking out a variety of demon-looking foes on a rocky beach. Shortly after, we made our way into a brief dungeon with more enemies and goodies. A boss encounter at the end was enjoyable but not overly challenging; my party may have been overleveled or overprepared. The centaur-like creature had a couple of displayed weaknesses, physical and fire, and taking advantage of these by switching between my available weapons allowed me to fill its stun meter and make short work of it. You can switch between two equipped weapons on the fly and all of the guardians tools available to you with ease, making combat feel varied and fast-paced. I’m eager to try more of it but the first impression was positive. One aspect that genuinely stood out was the umbrella, one of the sacred instruments, that lets you float down from high places, which elicited a huge grin every time I did my best Mary Poppins impression.

The third segment revolved around relationships and characters that you encounter in the multiple seasonal villages that you can open up. Waypoints and helpful map elements make traversal and pathing a breeze. My encounters revolved around two characters, Iroha and Murasame. The former gave me a simple retrieval task to complete and I was able to raise my bond level with her by choosing one of four types of conversation topics. The interaction with Murasame was more like a date as we headed out to collect chestnuts at his request. A longer, deeper conversation took place about his past and personal feelings he was trying to reconcile. An added touch during these conversations is that you can rotate the camera around to set up the perspective however you choose. The scenes with Murasame in particular were heartfelt, and I left the demo excited to learn more about him and the other romanceable characters.

After the demo, I had the privilege of interviewing producer Hisashi Fujii, who had some interesting things to say about the game. He mentioned having worked on Monster Hunter Stories 2 and was bringing his experience with that RPG to Guardians of Azuma. Fujii-san also highlighted the Japanese myths that influenced the game and set it apart from earlier Rune Factory titles. I asked whether Guardians of Azuma could be a good entry point for players who were new to Rune Factory, and he noted that the expanded RPG and exploration elements could appeal to those who aren’t as into farming simulation games. I always save a fun question for the end of the interview: “What is your favorite video game of all time, and why?” In reply, Fujii-san shared that Fire Emblem: Genealogy of the Holy War for Super Famicom was that game, a strategy RPG that has marriage and children who can become the next generation of heroes. This was the first time he had encountered such an element and it had a major impact on him. I appreciate the insightful conversation I had with Fujii-san after playing the Guardians of Azuma demo.

Last year, I reviewed Romancing SaGa 2: Revenge of the Seven, and it felt like that entry in a long-running series could be the one to pull in a mainstream audience. Rune Factory: Guardians of Azuma has a similar potential, with familiar, approachable systems that have been upgraded to lessen some of the built-in monotony and repetition of farming games. It’s important that this isn’t a numbered entry, too, because it feels distinct from what came before, and I feel like there are a lot of positives here. Guardians of Azuma is snappy, vibrant, and full of life, and I can’t wait to get even more into the game as we approach its May 30, 2025 release date.