During Nintendo’s partners showcase earlier today, among other announcements from the company, Square Enix confirmed that they are working on a new life simulation RPG game by the title of Harvestella. With the game going up against a market dominated by Story of Seasons and Harvest Moon, will their approaches and development experience deliver new experiences? We will know from 4 November 2022, which is when Harvestella is scheduled to launch on the PC (via Steam) and the Nintendo Switch.
Featuring concept artwork by Isamu Kamikokuryo and music by Go Shiina, Harvestella is pitched as offering players a “beautiful world that changes with the flow of the seasons and enjoy a variety of gameplay including tending to crops, befriending townspeople and adventuring into challenging dungeons”.
Did someone guess Crystals would be involved somewhere in Harvestella? Your guess would be correct. The game is set in a world where four giant crystals called “Seaslight” create a stable change between the four seasons. The adventure begins as abnormalities in the Seaslight begin to appear, creating the “Quietus,” a season of death that takes place between the naturally occurring four seasons. During the Quietus the crops wither and people cannot venture outside, and troublingly, these seasons are mysteriously growing longer with each year.
In this game, you will grow and tend to crops, use ingredients to cook and craft items, and venture into the overworld, which vibrantly changes based on the season, to visit different towns, interact with townsfolk, go fishing and more. On the RPG side of things, you can choose one of several jobs such as Fighter, Shadow Walker, and Mage, and venture into dungeons with their party to discover the origins of the world as well as the truth behind the calamity along the way.
Harvestella will be available as a digital-exclusive via Steam, with both physical and digital copies to be offered on the Nintendo Switch. Expect to hear more about Harvestella as the game gets closer to launch.
