At an event to commemorate the tenth anniversary of the Bokujou Monogatari (Harvest Moon) series, Marvelous Interactive today announced three new additions to its popular flagship series. Upon taking the stage, Marvelous Interactive president and series executive producer Yasuhiro Wada revealed that in the beginning he expected sales of a mere 10,000 or 20,000 copies per game. Looking back at ten years and a total of 15 Bokujou Monogatari titles, he thanked the fans for their continued support.

Wada then introduced Arte Piazza president Shintarou Mashima. Arte Piazza is best known as the development studio behind the PlayStation 2 remake of Square Enix's Dragon Quest V: Tenkuu no Hanayome. For Marvelous Interactive, Mashima and his team are working on the recently announced PlayStation Portable title Innocent Life - Shin Bokujou Monogatari. The two concepts behind the game are "big adventure" and "slow life of the future". While the PlayStation Portable title will incorporate the series' trademark gameplay centering around farming and communication, the protagonist will also try to solve the riddles behind a legend that is being told in his hometown.

The second title announced today was the DS-based Rune Factory - Shin Bokujou Monogatari. Unlike previous series installment, Rune Factory will see monsters loitering your precious fields. Players will be able to catch and keep those monsters as pets or simply take them down in RPG-style battles.

Last, but not least, Marvelous Interactive revealed Bokujou Monogatari Online. While not even the hardware platform of this title has been announced, a PC release is a possibility, according to the company.

With 13-year old Riko Narumi, Marvelous Interactive today also announced the series' first-ever image girl. The actress will star in a TV commercial for the upcoming DS game Bokujou Monogatari: Colobocle Station for Girl [sic] and promote future releases.

Innocent Life - Shin Bokujou Monogatari will be available in Japan in spring 2006. Rune Factory - Shin Bokujou Monogatari will follow sometime next year, while Bokujou Monogatari Online has yet to receive an official release date.

• Famitsuu