Rune Factory 5 Will Feature Same Sex Marriage In The West
Rune Factory 5 Will Feature Same-Sex Marriage In The West Nintendo Life Players can marry all 12 candidates by Share: on was one of the many games shown off in , and it was revealed that for the first time in the series, we're going to get the ability to marry people of the same gender — despite . Images: Marvelous (XSEED) The Japanese version of Rune Factory 5 specifically did not contain same-sex marriage, which many were disappointed by, but the English, French, and German versions will include it, thanks to the work of the localisation team. It's not just for the female characters, either — there are married pairs of male characters, too. The addition has been themselves, who made the decision to add the feature to the Western version. "Rune Factory 5 will be the first game in the series to include same-sex marriage. This means that from the start of the game you can marry any of the 12 wonderful marriage candidates as Ares or Alice without avatar-swapping or other conditions. This feature was not present in the Japanese release of the game in May of this year, but will be added to that version in a future patch. It will be included in our game from launch." The addition of same-sex marriage did not delay the game — the team was already working on localisation and QA testing, and the release schedule was chosen specifically to accommodate the new content. Implementing same-sex marriage did mean a lot of work, though, from adding pronoun-specific tags right into the dialogue and recording tons of voice lines to account for all the different gendered nicknames, to revamping the wedding cutscenes to include new options. "We had been working on the game’s English version for over a year at this point, and viewing these new cutscenes was an emotional moment. This was something we had argued to be included for many years, and we’re so grateful to everyone who helped make it a reality." And hey, since you're here — check out the bachelors and bachelorettes that you'll be able to pick from: Priscilla, Scarlett, Fuqua - Images: Marvelous (XSEED) Ludmila, Beatrice, Lucy - Images: Marvelous (XSEED) Ryker, Reinhard, Martin - Images: Marvelous (XSEED) Murakumo, Cecile, Lucas - Images: Marvelous (XSEED) Rune Factory 5 will be out on the Nintendo Switch on 22nd March 2022. Are you surprised by this series-first addition, or do you think it's about darn time? Let us know in the comments. [source ] Related Games Share: About Formerly of Official Nintendo Magazine, GameSpot, and Xbox UK, you can now find Kate's writing all over the internet. She moved to Canada a few years ago, but gets tea imported from England, because she has good priorities. Comments ) Not interested in the game myself, but this is good. Good news! Very nice! Removed - unconstructive Hooray, well done XSEED for pushing for this! This is great! It’s awesome they’re adding it in the Japanese version, LGBTQ people there need more visibility. Excellent news! After all, Mawwiage is what brings us togethaa That's a very nice addition Went from "I will eventually get it" to "day 1 purchase" for me I'm so happy about this! I was very disappointed that it didn't have this in the Japanese version. The candidates already look more interesting than what we got in POOT, too. Wasn't sure I needed this day one before, now it's a preorder. Now, if they're working on making pronouns interchangable for all marriage candidates anyway, how about some they/them options? I’m an unashamed queer mess and I want the werewolf dude. It would be nice to think that they are doing this for the greater good, but you have to ask why not in the japanese version. Maybe marketing tells them it's a good idea to do it in the west, for that reason they don't deserve credit.. Never played a Rune Factory game before, and this has me interested! This is XSeed/Marvelous understanding the genre's audience, and we love to see it.
The fact that they're even patching the JP games to include this is a BIG deal. I, for one, gleefully welcome the enormous lady overlord. Hope lgbtq+ people outside the ’west’ would be able to enjoy the inclusive version, that actually acknowledges their existence. Hasn't this been a thing in RF games? Could have sworn this was a "Mario is a plumber" obvious announcement. At least in Western markets. - Someone hasn't been married and it shows. The series has actually done a bit of same gender romance before, over a decade ago in RF2, if to a limited extent (only one option for Aria in the second generation) and not featuring actual marriages due to the ages involved (although you could still hold a mock ceremony). So it sure feels overdue as the next step, but then again, it took the franchise a while to revisit RF2's other features like the protagonist gender choice (only truly reprised in RF4, although Oceans/ToD had its own twist on the formula). Anyway, definitely good news even for a straight male like myself. it was elaborated on in the localization blog. Despite the precedent with Friends of Mineral Town remake, Marvelous simply didn't plan for same gender marriage in this game - but after XCEED pitched the feature to them, they agreed. They're updating the Japanese version to have this as well, so no regional marketing here. Nice. Actual decent gay options other than "old man" and "probably kills small animals in his spare time." what are you referring to please ? Well, this just made my day! I really didn't expect this to happen. I am overjoyed! Thanks admins for removing my post so it looks like I've posted an anti gay marriage comment. What about russia? I know very little about the bachelors but I have decided that wolf man is going to be my husband so... it rained today and I listened to a poem by Nick Cave. I'm a little bit disappointed with the female options — I took a look at their backstories and they're all a bit "I need help because I'm naive/spoiled/A LITERAL DOG-PERSON WHO CAN'T SPEAK ENGLISH" Funny. "In the West." "DOG-PERSON" Omg... But yeah I am often disappointed too with characters backstories, regardless of intent or game. You realize this has been known since literally right after the Direct, right NL? Regardless, excellent news regardless, and it looks like it'll be handled in a much better way than the stupid way that FE Fates handled such matters. Still mad at the fact Fates had VERSION EXCLUSIVE GAYS and both of them were psychopaths So I'll finally buy a rune factory game. Took them serious time to get out of the 1900's. Getting the Japanese version then. I'm just not interested in same sex. there are still straight options dude. And they're going to patch in gay marriage in the Japanese version later. , it's being patched into the JP version at a later date. stuff like this always melts my heart you can just
be straight
they're not forcing you to be gay
and like others have pointed out it'll be patched into the Japanese version anyways A series I never really got into, but cool nonetheless. “ LGBTQ people there need more visibility.” Given the high increase of LGBTQ visibility these past two years in the media, what more needs to be done? Who do they still need to be visible to? If you don’t like same sex marriage then just don’t get married to the same sex lol, it’s not like the game is forcing you to do it. Actually, this is a really good metaphor for real world homophobia ? Nice, now I don't have to masquerade as a female and feel like a creeper as I date all the guys in the game! The bachelors all look pretty nice this round, so I guess I'll have to get to know each one before I make a final decision. Also glad to see the team so happy that they were able to include this option. I know it made this gay fan's day! If you’re into anime or manga you’ve probably already had an experience with a same sex couple. Thank you xseed! This moved my purchase from wait for sale to launch window! Now I can actually look at the marriage candidates since the romance subplot essentially didn’t exist for me prior to this change. Also happy that it is being patched in for our Japanese friends. It’s funny how such a simple thing takes absolutely nothing away from heterosexual gamers but means the world to homosexual/bisexual gamers. Brilliant. More inclusiveness all round please. Removed - unconstructive; user is banned Yes, I was aware. We were unable to post this last week as we needed to be around to moderate the comments. Please don't be rude, it's an important subject that I wanted to cover with the utmost care and attention! you can turn off auto updates. Then the game will just ask you when you start the game and you can choose to play without updating it. If I get the game in the future I will probably go lesbian. Removed - offensive remarks; user is banned Removed - offensive remarks; user is banned It's just a feature you can either do or not do. Choice! Now, if only I could marry all the women at once. You covered something that more people should know about, and you covered it well! In the words of Sega arcade classic Space Harrier, "you're doing great!" I unironically want polyamorous options in farming sims. Heh. I actually just like the farming and combat. Removed - trolling; user is banned thank you! Even though my opinion isn't accepted I appreciate you helping me living the life I want. You do understand you aren't required to be on this website, right? Nintendo Life respects the fact that this website's readership is diverse. For anyone who won't do the same, there are other Nintendo websites out there.
Every time you complain, we get gayer Removed - unconstructive; user is banned Are they planning on fixing perfomance? Cos you can't marry someone if you get eye-bleeds from fps drops. You do your thing and let him do his. Get off his back. Same-sex unions are still not legally recognized in Japan, meaning there are some prefectures where married gay couples don’t have the same benefits as straight ones.
That being said, I did some research and was pleasantly surprised to find that most of the popular Japanese life sim games in the recent years have included same-sex relationships (aside from Persona 5 Royal which even kept the homophobic stereotypes of the first game).
By the looks of it, at least media in Japan is heading in a more diverse path! Anime and manga by independent creators have had LGBTQ themes for a long time so it’s nice seeing some of that spread to games as well. Diversity means various beliefs, backgrounds and philosophies. Doesn't sound like your too open to that. Removed - unconstructive No problem at all. Nobody can pile on you for having your opinion, I won't stand by and watch while everyone piles on someone else for having theirs. Homophobia isn't an "opinion." It's hate speech towards a protected minority. Sooner or later, this comments section looks like it's gonna be closed with the tense conversation going on right now. Me? I just don't pick a side and treat LGBTQ+ people like I would treat anyone - normal people. Incorrect. That war you're referring to was fought to end abuse of a minority group and ensure they were afforded all the rights inherent to human beings as endowed by God their creator, chief among them individual liberty and sovereignty. It was not fought to prohibit people from having different opinions on the matter or from sharing them in a public space. That's called free speech. We fight wars to protect rights and ensure they are extended to all, not strip them from people we don't agree with. this is not the correct place for this discussion. Please find somewhere else. Particularly you . You're right. Hate speech should not be tolerated. Now please explain how the guy who said he was going to buy the Japanese version was engaging in "hate speech". His comment was pretty innocent. Because he was buying it to avoid same-sex marriage being included even though it's optional and he could just ignore it? ...and he's not allowed to do that? That doesn't sound very tolerant of you. again please, stop it with the trolling. This will be my last warning. It's also the last warning for anyone who decides to continue feeding that discussion, on either side. Playing an unpatched Japanese version of this game to avoid the gays seems like a bit of a self-own, considering it launched in a bit of a rough state (and because, you know, it's in a language most of you probably don't actually speak or read), but I guess people can do what they want with their own money XP Yeah, we'll see how it goes. I wrote werewolf-lookin' dude right off, because that's not really my thing. I'm not really picky, though. I just want a few people who aren't losers or don't seem like they should be on a watchlist. Martin and Reinhard seem like top contenders so far. Check out the wack gay romance options in FE Fates/Three Houses. Copy that. I wish I could say I'm surprised by the comments section but I can't. Look yall, same sex marriage in this game is just like real life, If your not gay your not gay, don't have to do it you know. So who is everyone picking? I’m leaning towards Scarlett, the half elven mercenary. Removed - inappropriate I’m a little disappointed that you are not in any of this sites YouTube videos. Is there a glass ceiling im not aware of over there. Would have been more impressed if they actually expanded the marriage candidates. Too many good ones were NPC only. What i'm saying, Its just like real life, you have a choice, I'm straight so i'm going for the straight marriages, then again I like to play as woman in my games so, who know's. But if it isn't in the game at first wont it look odd? like it wouldn't add up? I really do wish it was made along side the game. That's a very offensive way to describe bisexuals. And it's bisexual visibility month, even. Any of the woman, The white hair one looks nice, I'm sorry if I don't know this will be my first rune factory game. I don't know his name but the wolf guy will be my husband and my choice is final I changed my mind I'm going with the silver hair'd woman. Okay, it's the end of the day in this part of the world, and we'll be locking down the comments section until tomorrow when we can actively moderate again. Our hope is to reach the point soon when this won't be necessary. Thank you to all who have contributed positively. See you tomorrow. Still excited about this. RF4 is such a good game but because it was made in a less inclusive time, it has always irked me that they only had a workaround in it. This has renewed my interest in the series. I’m glad to get to play as Ares and have the option of dating either the male or female candidates. I had plans to go after Ryker, but getting to play as Ares while doing it is even better. Also it leaves my options open if I befriend the female candidates as well and discover I like one of them more personality-wise. D: Gonna do chad move and pick the female MC and get with the cutie wolf girl The thing is that when you interact with the same sex in-game, they'll be romantically geared towards that path of communication the higher their affection goes for the player. Personally, I just want to be friends with the NPCs and see friendly/neutral conversations with them. I don't want to see them being flustered and flushed when they talk to my character/ see their romance events with him/her. That kind of thing will break the immersion for me (seeing as the player also needs to raise friendship levels with every NPC in the game as a quest much like in RF4). I just hope that they add an option in the beginning to give players either they want to see same sex love events or the friendly events in-game. If not, here's hoping that the conversations with the NPCs with the same sex as the playable character would still be neutral and will only get intimate when they start a relationship.
Agree with you, i also trying to raise friendship level with other npc whatever male or female.
if they try to make dialogue neutral it make gameplay less interesting and if try to be friend with same gender the dialogue will be changed to romance instead of best pal dialogue. They are adding it to the Japanese version in an update, and for why it wasn't in the game to begin with, well... It's Japan, their culture is still just starting to accept LGBTQ+ people, so they either didn't think of it, didn't think it was important, are somewhat homophobic, or didn't want to "offend" anyone. All countries taht are "safe" for LGBT people aren't even fully supportive or safe, either, Japan isn't the only one, just look at America for goodness sake... Even Canada, my home country, isn't all bright and cheery towards LGBT peeps, but they certainly are MUCH better than the vast-majority of countries. The answer may not just be one, either, as there is more than one person working on this game. There can always be more than one influence on a given action (or non-action), and everyone's "truth" is different. It's a step forward that this is being added to the Western release at all, let alone the Japanese one...
Also I just realized that this comment you made is somewhat old so this may look silly, but I'm not just gonna erase this after writing it lol Leave A Comment Hold on there, you need to to post a comment...
The fact that they're even patching the JP games to include this is a BIG deal. I, for one, gleefully welcome the enormous lady overlord. Hope lgbtq+ people outside the ’west’ would be able to enjoy the inclusive version, that actually acknowledges their existence. Hasn't this been a thing in RF games? Could have sworn this was a "Mario is a plumber" obvious announcement. At least in Western markets. - Someone hasn't been married and it shows. The series has actually done a bit of same gender romance before, over a decade ago in RF2, if to a limited extent (only one option for Aria in the second generation) and not featuring actual marriages due to the ages involved (although you could still hold a mock ceremony). So it sure feels overdue as the next step, but then again, it took the franchise a while to revisit RF2's other features like the protagonist gender choice (only truly reprised in RF4, although Oceans/ToD had its own twist on the formula). Anyway, definitely good news even for a straight male like myself. it was elaborated on in the localization blog. Despite the precedent with Friends of Mineral Town remake, Marvelous simply didn't plan for same gender marriage in this game - but after XCEED pitched the feature to them, they agreed. They're updating the Japanese version to have this as well, so no regional marketing here. Nice. Actual decent gay options other than "old man" and "probably kills small animals in his spare time." what are you referring to please ? Well, this just made my day! I really didn't expect this to happen. I am overjoyed! Thanks admins for removing my post so it looks like I've posted an anti gay marriage comment. What about russia? I know very little about the bachelors but I have decided that wolf man is going to be my husband so... it rained today and I listened to a poem by Nick Cave. I'm a little bit disappointed with the female options — I took a look at their backstories and they're all a bit "I need help because I'm naive/spoiled/A LITERAL DOG-PERSON WHO CAN'T SPEAK ENGLISH" Funny. "In the West." "DOG-PERSON" Omg... But yeah I am often disappointed too with characters backstories, regardless of intent or game. You realize this has been known since literally right after the Direct, right NL? Regardless, excellent news regardless, and it looks like it'll be handled in a much better way than the stupid way that FE Fates handled such matters. Still mad at the fact Fates had VERSION EXCLUSIVE GAYS and both of them were psychopaths So I'll finally buy a rune factory game. Took them serious time to get out of the 1900's. Getting the Japanese version then. I'm just not interested in same sex. there are still straight options dude. And they're going to patch in gay marriage in the Japanese version later. , it's being patched into the JP version at a later date. stuff like this always melts my heart you can just
be straight
they're not forcing you to be gay
and like others have pointed out it'll be patched into the Japanese version anyways A series I never really got into, but cool nonetheless. “ LGBTQ people there need more visibility.” Given the high increase of LGBTQ visibility these past two years in the media, what more needs to be done? Who do they still need to be visible to? If you don’t like same sex marriage then just don’t get married to the same sex lol, it’s not like the game is forcing you to do it. Actually, this is a really good metaphor for real world homophobia ? Nice, now I don't have to masquerade as a female and feel like a creeper as I date all the guys in the game! The bachelors all look pretty nice this round, so I guess I'll have to get to know each one before I make a final decision. Also glad to see the team so happy that they were able to include this option. I know it made this gay fan's day! If you’re into anime or manga you’ve probably already had an experience with a same sex couple. Thank you xseed! This moved my purchase from wait for sale to launch window! Now I can actually look at the marriage candidates since the romance subplot essentially didn’t exist for me prior to this change. Also happy that it is being patched in for our Japanese friends. It’s funny how such a simple thing takes absolutely nothing away from heterosexual gamers but means the world to homosexual/bisexual gamers. Brilliant. More inclusiveness all round please. Removed - unconstructive; user is banned Yes, I was aware. We were unable to post this last week as we needed to be around to moderate the comments. Please don't be rude, it's an important subject that I wanted to cover with the utmost care and attention! you can turn off auto updates. Then the game will just ask you when you start the game and you can choose to play without updating it. If I get the game in the future I will probably go lesbian. Removed - offensive remarks; user is banned Removed - offensive remarks; user is banned It's just a feature you can either do or not do. Choice! Now, if only I could marry all the women at once. You covered something that more people should know about, and you covered it well! In the words of Sega arcade classic Space Harrier, "you're doing great!" I unironically want polyamorous options in farming sims. Heh. I actually just like the farming and combat. Removed - trolling; user is banned thank you! Even though my opinion isn't accepted I appreciate you helping me living the life I want. You do understand you aren't required to be on this website, right? Nintendo Life respects the fact that this website's readership is diverse. For anyone who won't do the same, there are other Nintendo websites out there.
Every time you complain, we get gayer Removed - unconstructive; user is banned Are they planning on fixing perfomance? Cos you can't marry someone if you get eye-bleeds from fps drops. You do your thing and let him do his. Get off his back. Same-sex unions are still not legally recognized in Japan, meaning there are some prefectures where married gay couples don’t have the same benefits as straight ones.
That being said, I did some research and was pleasantly surprised to find that most of the popular Japanese life sim games in the recent years have included same-sex relationships (aside from Persona 5 Royal which even kept the homophobic stereotypes of the first game).
By the looks of it, at least media in Japan is heading in a more diverse path! Anime and manga by independent creators have had LGBTQ themes for a long time so it’s nice seeing some of that spread to games as well. Diversity means various beliefs, backgrounds and philosophies. Doesn't sound like your too open to that. Removed - unconstructive No problem at all. Nobody can pile on you for having your opinion, I won't stand by and watch while everyone piles on someone else for having theirs. Homophobia isn't an "opinion." It's hate speech towards a protected minority. Sooner or later, this comments section looks like it's gonna be closed with the tense conversation going on right now. Me? I just don't pick a side and treat LGBTQ+ people like I would treat anyone - normal people. Incorrect. That war you're referring to was fought to end abuse of a minority group and ensure they were afforded all the rights inherent to human beings as endowed by God their creator, chief among them individual liberty and sovereignty. It was not fought to prohibit people from having different opinions on the matter or from sharing them in a public space. That's called free speech. We fight wars to protect rights and ensure they are extended to all, not strip them from people we don't agree with. this is not the correct place for this discussion. Please find somewhere else. Particularly you . You're right. Hate speech should not be tolerated. Now please explain how the guy who said he was going to buy the Japanese version was engaging in "hate speech". His comment was pretty innocent. Because he was buying it to avoid same-sex marriage being included even though it's optional and he could just ignore it? ...and he's not allowed to do that? That doesn't sound very tolerant of you. again please, stop it with the trolling. This will be my last warning. It's also the last warning for anyone who decides to continue feeding that discussion, on either side. Playing an unpatched Japanese version of this game to avoid the gays seems like a bit of a self-own, considering it launched in a bit of a rough state (and because, you know, it's in a language most of you probably don't actually speak or read), but I guess people can do what they want with their own money XP Yeah, we'll see how it goes. I wrote werewolf-lookin' dude right off, because that's not really my thing. I'm not really picky, though. I just want a few people who aren't losers or don't seem like they should be on a watchlist. Martin and Reinhard seem like top contenders so far. Check out the wack gay romance options in FE Fates/Three Houses. Copy that. I wish I could say I'm surprised by the comments section but I can't. Look yall, same sex marriage in this game is just like real life, If your not gay your not gay, don't have to do it you know. So who is everyone picking? I’m leaning towards Scarlett, the half elven mercenary. Removed - inappropriate I’m a little disappointed that you are not in any of this sites YouTube videos. Is there a glass ceiling im not aware of over there. Would have been more impressed if they actually expanded the marriage candidates. Too many good ones were NPC only. What i'm saying, Its just like real life, you have a choice, I'm straight so i'm going for the straight marriages, then again I like to play as woman in my games so, who know's. But if it isn't in the game at first wont it look odd? like it wouldn't add up? I really do wish it was made along side the game. That's a very offensive way to describe bisexuals. And it's bisexual visibility month, even. Any of the woman, The white hair one looks nice, I'm sorry if I don't know this will be my first rune factory game. I don't know his name but the wolf guy will be my husband and my choice is final I changed my mind I'm going with the silver hair'd woman. Okay, it's the end of the day in this part of the world, and we'll be locking down the comments section until tomorrow when we can actively moderate again. Our hope is to reach the point soon when this won't be necessary. Thank you to all who have contributed positively. See you tomorrow. Still excited about this. RF4 is such a good game but because it was made in a less inclusive time, it has always irked me that they only had a workaround in it. This has renewed my interest in the series. I’m glad to get to play as Ares and have the option of dating either the male or female candidates. I had plans to go after Ryker, but getting to play as Ares while doing it is even better. Also it leaves my options open if I befriend the female candidates as well and discover I like one of them more personality-wise. D: Gonna do chad move and pick the female MC and get with the cutie wolf girl The thing is that when you interact with the same sex in-game, they'll be romantically geared towards that path of communication the higher their affection goes for the player. Personally, I just want to be friends with the NPCs and see friendly/neutral conversations with them. I don't want to see them being flustered and flushed when they talk to my character/ see their romance events with him/her. That kind of thing will break the immersion for me (seeing as the player also needs to raise friendship levels with every NPC in the game as a quest much like in RF4). I just hope that they add an option in the beginning to give players either they want to see same sex love events or the friendly events in-game. If not, here's hoping that the conversations with the NPCs with the same sex as the playable character would still be neutral and will only get intimate when they start a relationship.
Agree with you, i also trying to raise friendship level with other npc whatever male or female.
if they try to make dialogue neutral it make gameplay less interesting and if try to be friend with same gender the dialogue will be changed to romance instead of best pal dialogue. They are adding it to the Japanese version in an update, and for why it wasn't in the game to begin with, well... It's Japan, their culture is still just starting to accept LGBTQ+ people, so they either didn't think of it, didn't think it was important, are somewhat homophobic, or didn't want to "offend" anyone. All countries taht are "safe" for LGBT people aren't even fully supportive or safe, either, Japan isn't the only one, just look at America for goodness sake... Even Canada, my home country, isn't all bright and cheery towards LGBT peeps, but they certainly are MUCH better than the vast-majority of countries. The answer may not just be one, either, as there is more than one person working on this game. There can always be more than one influence on a given action (or non-action), and everyone's "truth" is different. It's a step forward that this is being added to the Western release at all, let alone the Japanese one...
Also I just realized that this comment you made is somewhat old so this may look silly, but I'm not just gonna erase this after writing it lol Leave A Comment Hold on there, you need to to post a comment...