Rune Factory: Guardians of Azuma certainly differs from the main-line Rune Factory games. These changes, however, effectively tell a new kind of distinctly Rune Factory story.

I have loved the Rune Factory franchise for over a decade. Between running my farm, befriending monsters and villagers, and crafting and combat that feed off each other, the games feel like a digital home to me. And from the moment I opened the box of the new game and saw a diegetic game manual inside, I started having some faith in this spin-off.

SEED’s Special Report on Azuma walks players through the four villages of Azuma and the protagonist’s Earth Dancer responsibilities. The in-game author, Hina also shares her poignant reflections on Azuma’s ability to recover after the Celestial Collapse. Yes, the Hina originally introduced as a younger character in Rune Factory 5. I intended to read it while downloading the rest of the game, but that didn’t quite work. The game was playable straight out of the box. (I did the following week get a small, 5-second update to the game.) Between the paper manual and the ability to start playing immediately, I felt like a kid with a DS again!

I also noted with great relief as I began to play that the game looks far better than its predecessor. The scenery in Rune Factory 5 on the Switch rarely bothered to render at all. When it did, it looked cartoon-y in the worst of ways. Azuma, compared to Rigbarth, has both more scenery and more attractive scenery. The character design still has that consistently Rune Factory feel, although modified for the different setting.

Those of you familiar with the previous Rune Factory titles surely already notice some big differences from the other games. Earth Dancer? Four villages? An Earth Dancer corresponds in Azuma to an Earthmate in the previous games, someone with special powers to revitalize the land and gods. In Azuma, the player character dancing activates these powers. The dancer Mai Shiraki performs the dances for motion capture, so the dancing looks competent and smooth.

As for the four villages, this game does have a somewhat wider scope than previous installments. Rather than personally tending to one main farm and some optional land, the Earth Dancer quickly becomes the chief of all four villages. Instead of choosing every seed that gets planted and every soil emendation, you focus on tasks like building construction and worker assignment. You can still plant your own selection of seeds, if, like me, you find the franchise farming enjoyable.

This variation from the franchise norm would be interesting in any case, but far more powerful for the way it supports the story. The Earth Dancer needs to support and be supported by the rest of the villagers. From revived gods to the tea-house owner, every character contributions to Azuma’s recovery from the Celestial Collapse. Mechanics from teamwork in combat to the best dating in the series reinforce a powerful theme; relationships between characters and working together in daily life provide the means to rebuild Azuma. The themes and charms of the Rune Factory series continue.