Rune Factory 5 has six courtable bachelors regardless of the player’s gender. They like, dislike, and love certain items, but some are easier to find.

Rune Factory 5 was released on March 22 and brings another pleasant farming adventure to fans of the RPG simulation genre along with a  number of new bachelors and bachelorettes to romance. This time, players find themselves in the town of Rigbarth, where there are 12 marriage candidates available to both the male and female protagonists. Rune Factory 5 includes same-sex marriage as a series first, with six bachelors and six bachelorettes for the player to court.

Many of the townsfolk join the protagonist on dungeon adventures and a relationship with a bachelor isn't needed to invite them along. Each bachelor has pros and cons depending on how quickly the player wants to start their family life or amass resources. However, some items they enjoy can be acquired more easily than others.

Related: Rune Factory 5's LGBTQA Marriage Options Explained By Director

XSEED Limited Earthmate Edition of Rune Factory 5 includes an artbook with illustrations and a few tips on marriage candidate gifts. Players looking for a more detailed list of likes, dislikes, and loves may want to machine-translate the GameWith Japanese wiki. Both can help players understand the necessary items they'll need to romance the bachelors in Rune Factory 5. Marvelous' Story of Seasons, once known as Harvest Moon, not only created the Rune Factory spinoff but inspired an entire genre of simulation games. Gamers may be familiar with the usual long list of available crops, animal products, and craftable items, some of which are much easier to obtain than others. Like most Story of Seasons titles, the game begins in Spring, making certain crops and wild plants more readily available.

Martin the blacksmith is available early in the game, so players can start to socialize and build up a relationship with him soon after the start of their adventure. If players enjoy mining, they will find him particularly easy to please, as one of his favorite items is scrap metal. Scrap metal tends to disappoint like Harvest Moon games developed by Natsume, as it's a junk item that townspeople typically hate. Because of this, there's not much of a reason for the player not to give it to Martin. He also enjoys minerals and fruit. An excellent birthday present for him on Autumn 8 would be a Star Pendant, but players should make sure not to give him any mushrooms if they want to marry this bachelor in Rune Factory 5.

Reinhard the knight is another bachelor that's easy to please in Rune Factory 5. Failed dishes from cooking and medicine mixing are strangely one of his favorite items. Most townspeople hate the mistake items leftover from crafting, but Reinhard either has no sense of taste or is just encouraging to a fault.  He also likes cold medicine, chain mail, and strawberry seeds.

Related: Every Harvest Moon Game, Ranked Worst To Best

Crafting is a staple of many video games, and Rune Factory 5 is no exception. Players will likely end up with a failed dish more than once. If they end up with a Disastrous Dish, they should present it as a birthday gift to Reinhard on Autumn 30. Contrary to his gold-adorned armor, he dislikes things like jewels and crystals. While it's easy to find him gifts, one of his cons is that he is not in town at the very start of the game.

Cecil is Martin the blacksmith's younger brother. His birthday is Spring 12, so players can quickly get a big affection boost by presenting him with a nice gift. Like his brother, he enjoys fruit, which is readily available in the starting Spring season. Players will settle right in with Rune Factory 5's excellent farming and combat mechanics. An even better birthday gift for Cecil would be Chocolate Sponge Cake, but it may be an item difficult for the player to acquire or craft that early in the game. He likes Crystal Skull and brooches but dislikes milk, yogurt, and cheese.

The were-beast Murakumo is the first bachelor that players meet upon starting Rune Factory 5, so they can quickly become friends with him. Dumplings are one of his favorite foods and can be crafted with some simple rice flour. His other liked dishes are pizza and seafood pizza, which take more time and effort to craft. Fellow lovers of pizza may consider this a pro, regardless.

Related: How Story of Seasons Improved Harvest Moon's Marriage System

Story of Season's giant grey wolf mount has become a fan-favorite about as cool as a were-animal. In light of this, Murakumo's canine features could be considered a pro. Murakumo's con is that his favorite items are more specific than most of the other bachelors in Rune Factory 5. A great birthday gift for Murakumo on Summer 2 would be an Unbroken Ivory Tusk, but players will only find those later in the game. He likes Big Giant's Nail and dragon fangs, while he dislikes sweets such as cake, pancakes, and french toast.

One of the bachelor Lucas' cons is that he isn't available until the player progresses far enough into Rune Factory 5's plot. However, a pro is that one of his most loved gifts is the Pink Cat flower, a low-cost plant available in Summer. Saving seasonal items for use throughout the year is something that players of farm-sim games like Stardew Valley may find familiar. Pink Flowers can be saved until Lucas makes his appearance. Another pro is that he doesn't really dislike any item in particular, so players don't need to worry about presenting him with an offensive gift. His birthday is Spring 1 and he likes udon, curry rice, crystals, and liquids.

Ryker's birthday isn't until the very end of the year on Winter 27. All of his gifts could be considered a con, as none are easily available early in the game. His favorite dishes are popcorn, sweet potatoes, and french fries. Yams can be grown in Summer or Fall and cooked into sweet potatoes, but players will need to level up their skills first. One of Ryker's favorite items is Proof of Rank, and he dislikes curry rice, curry manju, and curry bread.

Marvelous has made Story of Seasons LGBTQ-inclusive and Rune Factory 5 follows that theme, as players can choose whatever marriage candidate they like regardless of gender. Each bachelor's pros and cons ultimately come down to how much time and effort it takes to court them with gifts. If a player is interested in finishing Rune Factory 5's story as soon as possible so they can move on to another game, they may want to court an easier bachelor like Martin. Otherwise, if a player intends to experience several in-game years, they should marry whichever eligible character they like the most so they can fully enjoy their farm family life.

Next: All Rune Factory 5 Marriage Candidates

Michelle Cachey is a '90s kid and Gaming Features author at Screen Rant. Video games inspired her to write and create during her childhood, and that inspiration persists to this day. She has a fondness for RPGs, collecting monsters, and Spyro the Dragon.