When we met with Natsume – publishers of the Harvest Moon and River City Ransom series – at E3, we were met with the next Harvest Moon entry called Light of Hope. At the time, the representative for Natsume told us that Harvest Moon: Light of Hope was on schedule to launch on Steam, PS4, and Nintendo Switch in Winter 2017.
Unfortunately for farming and sim fans, that was only one-third true. Harvest Moon: Light of Hope will be coming next month on November 14th, but only to Steam. Sadly, the PS4 and highly-anticipated Switch versions have been delayed to early next year.
This is actually the first Harvest Moon game to be available on PC and ahead of the console versions, too. Harvest Moon: Light of Hope is a fully 3D farming simulation game that is being released also in celebration of the 20th anniversary of the Harvest Moon series.
Also: Harvest Moon: Light of Hope Feels Right at Home on Switch [E3 2017 Preview]
Though Natsume no longer handles the publishing of the original Harvest Moon series known as Story of Seasons in Japan and now here, Light of Hope is the next in its line of spin-off titles that reflect the same core gameplay. Natsume published the original Harvest Moon on the SNES in 1997 before spawning numerous iterations across consoles, handhelds, and even mobile devices.
President and CEO of Natsume Hiro Maekawa provided a statement to us regarding the decision for a staggered launch of Harvest Moon: Light of Hope.
Due to the hard work of our team, development for Harvest Moon: Light of Hope for PC ran ahead of schedule, allowing us to release the game early to PC players. We have enjoyed creating an all-new game that honors 20 years of Harvest Moon, and what’s more, the franchise will finally be available for the first time on PC, something fans have long asked for!
Though it is not coming to PS4 and Switch until next year, Natsume announced that both console versions will have a digital and physical release in North America. No pricing for the console editions were given, but Harvest Moon: Light of Hope will cost $29.99 at launch on Steam.
Opinion: It’s very unfortunate that the console versions won’t release until early next year, but I will patiently wait. It felt perfect for Switch when I played it at E3 and it’s probably best it doesn’t come out next month when there are already so many great Switch titles for everyone to play. This will give it a chance to breath and potentially do well.
