Rune Factory 3 Special

A solid, engrossing remake of the DS title that blends farming, social sim, and ARPG dungeon crawling, with delightful townsfolk, taming mechanics, and the new newlywed and hell modes adding longevity. It holds a classic charm but shows its age with some archaic quality-of-life gaps, fiddly utensil/diagonal-attack controls, repetitive voice acting, and dated visuals. The oddest sticking point is pricing it higher than the cheaper, comparable Rune Factory 4 Special, which makes it hard to recommend outright outside of series fans.