I'll be honest: I haven't played a Rune Factory game since the very first one came out for DS back in 2006. Over the years, my need for RPGs and cozy farming sims was filled by other games, like Stardew Valley and, more recently, Harvestella. I've always looked back fondly on Rune Factory, though, as one of the first (if not the first) to combine the two genres in a way that shouldn't have worked but did.

So when I saw the trailer for Rune Factory: Guardians of Azuma, I had mixed feelings. On the one hand, it looked like a step into the modern age of gaming for the series, leaving behind the dated look of Rune Factory 5 for some fresh and crisp new visuals. On the other hand, instead of looking like a Rune Factory game, it made me think very strongly of Genshin Impact. Sure, the game is getting a massive upgrade from the last one, but I wonder if it leans too far into looking like the popular free title from HoYoverse.

Rune Factory: Guardians Of Azuma Abandons Its Predecessors' Visual Charm

It May Have Gone Too Far Into "Modern And New" Territory

The original Rune Factory was subtitled A Fantasy Harvest Moon and looked exactly as expected from the name. Created by Natsume, the title combined the mechanics from the farming game with the monster battling aspect of typical RPGs. It looked visually similar to Harvest Moon for the DS, which had come out the prior year, but with a much less vivid and saturated color palette. Rune Factory set itself apart from the cozy farming sim with a grittier feel.

Subsequent games continued the theme of the "Fantasy Harvest Moon" even when the subtitle was dropped from the third title onward. Looking back on them now, Rune Factory 1-5 had a certain charm. There is something inherently cozy and "farm"-like about their style, even as the games became more and more about the fighting and story than about the farming.

All the previous titles had a somewhat dated feel, with even Rune Factory 5, which was released in 2022, looking like it belonged on a previous generation of consoles. And I don't mean that in a bad way — there's something charming about the presentation of all the previous games. They might not have had the most cutting-edge visual style, but they had a distinct personality that shone through their designs.

Somewhere in the process of making a more modern-looking game, Rune Factory: Guardians of Azuma seems to have lost that charm. Gone is the nostalgic feeling design, replaced by crisp and clean visuals. There's no doubt that the game looks absolutely stunning, but it also, unfortunately, doesn't look unique.

Guardians Of Azuma s The Trend Of Genshin-Looking Games

Genshin Impact Didn't Start The Trend, But It's The Best-Known Example

In recent years, many games have embraced the anime-style, cel-shaded look of Genshin Impact. These games aren't necessarily consciously trying to look like Genshin and, in fact, some were released before the free open-world title. Rather, this is a trend that's been building since the late 2010s, with some prominent examples including Genshin Impact (2020), The Legend of Zelda: Breath Of The Wild (2017), Wuthering Waves (2024), Infinity Nikki (2024) to a lesser extent, and Ni No Kuni 2 (2018), which switched out its charming hand-drawn Ghibli Studio style for more digital CG style — to name just a few.

All these games came out at the tail end and beginning of a new decade, at a turning point for gaming. In November 2020, the PlayStation 5 and the Xbox Series X|S became available. Both consoles featured incredible graphics of a never-before-seen quality and a strong emphasis on realism. And while many games used the realism heavily to their advantage, many titles in the lead-up to and immediate aftermath of the most powerful consoles to ever exist did a full 180 and embraced the more cartoonish style.

Cel-shaded games with anime art styles were around before the past decade, including some prominent titles like Tales of Vesperia, but they weren't populating the forefront of the market to the same degree.

Genshin Impact is often called the game that other games are copying or resemble not because it was the first to embrace the beautiful anime landscapes and characters, but because it was free and so easily accessible. My 11-year-old has taken to comparing every game to Genshin, from the trailer for the next Rune Factory to Final Fantasy: Rebirth when my husband was playing it, simply because that's her point of reference.

Saying that the Rune Factory is a Genshin lookalike wouldn't be quite right, at least in of ascribing highly specific intent to a broader decision. It's more accurate to note that the title, which was on the verge of realism for years, decided not to go all in for realistic visuals but to embrace the current trends, instead.

Rune Factory: Guardians Of Azuma Still Looks Incredible

I'm Excited To See Where The Series Goes Next

Resembling Genshin Impact and other, visually similar games doesn't mean that Guardians of Azuma won't be an incredible game. On the contrary, the title looks like a beautiful next step in the franchise, and the response from fans of the series has been overwhelmingly positive. Just because the Genshin style has oversaturated the market in recent years doesn't mean that it's not good.

Perhaps it's fitting, after all, that Rune Factory: Guardians of Azuma is using a more anime-esque style for its graphics, landscapes, characters, and overall villagers. Unlike previous games, the RPG looks to be heavily inspired by Japanese culture and environments. Torii gates, fashion, and architecture all shine in the style, as can be seen in the game's official trailer, featured by Nintendo of America on YouTube.

If Guardians of Azuma is a sign of where the title is heading stylistically, it will likely be embraced by the community. The series has always used anime character artwork, so the rest of the game's design is merely catching up. On the other hand, if the style is a reflection of the setting, then perhaps the title that follows Rune Factory: Guardians of Azuma will adopt an entirely new design ethos depending on the part of the world that it's inspired by. Either way, I'm excited to see where the series goes next.

Source: Nintendo of America/YouTube