Nearly 20 years ago, Natsume's long-running Harvest Moon series began, and in the years since, it's found a dedicated, hardcore audience. Collectively, the Harvest Moon games -- known as Bokujo Monogatari (or Farm Story) in Japan -- have sold nearly ten million copies. But the newest entry in the Harvest Moon series isn't a Harvest Moon game at all... well, at least not in name. In spirit, it's about as Harvest Moon as you can get.

Who will you play as?

Tend to your crops.

The new Harvest Moon-like game is called Story of Seasons , and it's set for launch in North America this year, exclusively on Nintendo 3DS. Story of Seasons was launched in Japan earlier this year, where it was known as Bokujo Monogatari: Tsunagaru Shintechi (or Farm Story: Connect to a New World). But due to the involvement of a different publisher -- XSEED Games, a wholly-owned subsidiary of MarvelousAQL -- Farm Story could no longer translate to Harvest Moon, at least in the west. Natsume owns that intellectual property wholesale, and as such, Marvelous and its western XSEED offshoot endeavor to continue the series with the same development team and a new name.The good news is that not much separates Story of Seasons from the Harvest Moon lineage it descends from. The series' longtime producer, Yoshifumi Hashimoto, helped create Story of Seasons, as did Igusa Matsuyama, the character designer and artist who has worked on every core Harvest Moon title to date. Likewise, the team these two men work with have plenty of experience creating Harvest Moon games.According to MarvelousAQL and XSEED, those who play Story of Seasons can "create fully customizable character[s], selecting gender, hair style and facial features as desired. They will then take on their role as the newest resident of Oak Tree Town, a small settlement filled with promises of new beginnings, hard work and significant relationships. In the process of tending to crops, animals and the many other aspects of everyday farming life, players will amass the resources necessary to customize and expand their farms -- from livestock and seeds to décor and layout -- granting total freedom to shape their homestead as they wish and fit virtually any play style."In other words, it sounds a whole lot like the Harvest Moon franchise you know and love, just under a new moniker.Story of Seasons will be at E3 this year, where we hope to get a closer look. In the meantime, check out our image gallery for Story of Seasons , with screenshots, artwork, and more.

Colin Moriarty is IGN’s Senior Editor. You can follow him on Twitter.