New Harvest Moon game, Story of Seasons, coming to 3DS this winter in North America

The latest Harvest Moon game is being localized into English as Story of Seasons, and it will be released on Nintendo 3DS in North America this winter, publisher Xseed Games announced today.

Released in Japan earlier this year as Bokujou Monogatari: Tsunagaru Shin Tenchi (Harvest Moon: Connect to a New World), the game continues the Harvest Moon series' farming and life simulation gameplay but brings in new multiplayer and StreetPass features. Story of Seasons was made in Japan by Marvelous AQL, and the project was led by Yoshifumi Hashimoto, the studio's head of development and the longtime producer of the Harvest Moon franchise.

"Story of Seasons represents a new chapter in our amazing tale," said Hashimoto in a press release today. "We are creating a new experience that will carry on the spirit of Bokujo Monogatari, and in doing so, will fulfill our loyal fans' expectations and desires while ushering in a new generation of games to come."

In Story of Seasons, players create and customize their own character and head into Oak Tree Town, where they will stake their claim on a patch of land and begin building a homestead. Expansion options for farms include different types of seeds, livestock and decor, and players will also be able to lay out the farm themselves. The multiplayer functionality will allow players to visit their friends' homesteads, grow crops together and exchange items. And Super Mario Bros.-themed items such as the Super Mushroom, Fire Flower and Super Star will be available as decorative pieces.

Xseed Games will debut Story of Seasons in the U.S. at E3 2014 next month. For more on the game, check out the 11 screenshots below.

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