Run from the Bacon!
After watching the noir intro, the game immediately develops it's bizarre characters. Yuri isn't shy or emotionally distressed like most RPG characters, he always speaks his mind and its always humorous. His sexual thoughts break ups any feeling of distress you might have from the intro. Later you'll meet new allies like Zhuzhen, a wise old man who Yuri refers to as Quack monk. Margerete, the femme fatale with an attitude. Keith, a vampire who joins up out of boredom, and Halley, the orphan seeking vengeance for his captive mother.
The main story is really dark and depressing, and its mostly about Alice's captivity. However, each and every other character are also well developed, and no verbal exchange excludes a party member from chipping in their thoughts. There's also really neat back story in some villages you'll encounter. My favorite being the village with a vengeful ghost who comes out at night seeking death for repent. There's a lot of demons in the game and they aren't ever thrown in for show. Each has a very disturbing back story told through cut scenes, and you'll be able to interact and live through the tension as it builds up!
Like most RPG's, Shadow Hearts features the traditional turn-based combat system. You can of course attack, use magic/items, run , or defend. However, a special Judgment Ring will be grading how well you do in battle. Its literally a ring with a needle spinning one rotation. Your goal is to stop the needle in the given shaded area to execute your attack. Landing in the green means you've hit, and if you manage to hit the tiny red area, your attack will inflict more damage. There are lots of equipment and power-ups that'll enhance the hit areas and speed of your judgment ring. However, enemies can also inflict status ailments that can shrink, hasten, blind, or lock-up your judgment ring. Battles will require thought and execution.
The difficulty always matches your current level for the most part. You won't have to grind, and boss battles never take too long to finish. I also love the fact that there's a save point before every major boss battle.
Shadow Hearts is a very large game, with plenty of locations to explore and minimal backtracking. You'll travel through Asia and Europe, and each location contains 8-12 different regions to explore. The music and environments in each locale are look great and sound great. The towns in Shanghai is bursting with catchy Chinese orchestra. The underground temple contains a unique tune composed of monks chanting to a gloomy score.
There's a very touchy acupuncturist that can upgrade your weapons at a cost. He'll always appear at the right time, along with a peddler who sells equips and items. You can collect discounts cards to price drop your purchases (Gotta love that), and you can also sell-back and raise the price. But before that, you'll have to fetch the discount cards first, which is a side quest in itself. The transactions will occur through a judgment Ring which will determine whether or not your promotions will be valid. There are also lottery members who'll collect your lottery ticket in exchange for a spin at the wheel for rare items. Adding , there are also plenty of side quest that are worthwhile, hidden bosses and Ultimate weapons for the perfectionist.
The enemies you encounter are downright spooky. Many of which includes variations of distorted human with its flesh hanging out (looks very silent-hellish). You'll also fight Japanese soldiers, insects (a staple in rpgs..), goblins, minotaur and many other creepy demons. Boss battles are epic, and they never last too long. I've never had to grind to kill a certain boss, most of which simply requires an abundance of potions in stock cause they will put up a fight. One thing that troubled me was the inclusion of half-Japanese/half-English voice overs. During battle, each character will mainly be voiced in Japanese, which is really good btw, however some characters like Margerette are obviously half-way dubbed. However, it doesn't detract at all from the game, it just looks sounds odd. Another thing are the character models in combat. They look slightly pixilated, especially when performing a special technique where the camera zooms in, their facial features are lacking.
Combining elements of horror and role-playing, Shadow Hearts is a gothic adventure that fans of both worlds will certainly enjoy. Whether you're a casual gamer or hardcore, there's no level grinding required and plenty of content for the perfectionist. Easy to get into, difficult to put down, one that works on both your heart and cerebral, give this Judgment ring a spin, you'll definitely cherish it.