It stands apart from other RPGs in so many good ways.
This is one of the few games that has me loving every character that can be in your party. I always have a difficult time choosing who to bring with me into battle. This game is wonderful on character development. Every character has a past, every character has a personality, everyone has a part to play in the story, and they all bring their own unique skills to the battle field. I have to discuss three of the stars of our story.
The hero, Yuri Hyuga, is not noble and heroic, wanting to save the world. He is also not an angsty teenager always complaining about how awful his life is. Though his life isn't all that great - he watched his mother murdered by monsters when he was a child, his father died while he was away from home working for the military, and he's been trying to fight off a curse that follows him into the depths of his nightmares. He'd never complain about this though - Yuri is awesome. He'll speak his mind, he'll save those who he feels worth saving, and he's not afraid to try to get a peek at a pair of panties when the situation presents itself. Make him mad enough though, and he can punch you with enough force to cause your skull to cave in.
The heroine, Alice Elliot, appears to be the typical helpless girl who's always needing to be rescued. True, you do save her twice during the course of the story, but she can stand strong when necessary. Get far enough into the game, and things turn around fast - she ends up saving Yuri in the end. Unfortunately, it's at the cost of her own life, but it is one of the most emotionally impacting scenes of any story I've experienced. The love story that develops between her and Yuri is very subtle, and very mature. It's not silly teenager love, full of awkward situations, and it's not thrown in your face either. Romance is not the focus of the game.Howerver, you see the bond between these two slowly grow more and more, and it turns into something absolutely beautiful at the end.
The villain, Albert Simon is a proper gentleman complete with suit and top hat. He wants to destroy the world - okay, a bit cliche, but hear me out first. He learned early in life that our place in society is determined simply based on what kind of family you are born into. It doesn't matter what kind of person you become. Your role is sealed before you are old enough to speak your first words. He tried to change this, and was locked away because of it. He realized that this world is heading down a dark and violent path with no happy ending in sight. His solution for this? Summon a god from the far reaches of space, to wipe our planet clean so that it may start anew. This man has a reason for wanting to destroy the world, and he's not a mindless beast. He encounters various party members a few times only with the desire to speak with them. And at the eve of the final battle, he makes a deal with the cast, that whoever wins, no hard feelings. Upon losing, he even uses the last of his strength to help the heroes with their agenda. Hats off to you, Albert Simon, you played your part well until the end.
The battle system is fun and very involved. You can't mindlessly mash the X button to attack your way through battles. You have to complete options with careful timing using the judgement ring. You have to pay attention during these battles, and it's actually pretty fun.
The environments are really quite dark. Some people say that this game borders on being placed in the "horror" genre, and it's really not a far off statement. Cannibal-infested villages, mental hospitals, graveyards, and vampire castles are just a few settings that you visit in this game. I'm not a gothic fanatic or anything, but this is certainly a nice change from the usual environments you get in RPGs. It was a breath of fresh air, even if that air is dark and eerie.
The music isn't the best thing I've ever heard in my life, but it is pretty darn good at any rate. Some people have nothing but good words for this game's soundtrack and I'll admit it does have a few gems within it. It's unfortunate that I'm not a fan of one of the battle themes considering that you hear it a lot in the first half of the game. (The second battle theme though…I just love!)Alice's theme makes my heart temporarily stop no matter when or where I'm hearing it. The music from Shanghai is cheerful and perfect for a bustling Asian metropolis from the early 1900s. Blue Castle is soothing and mysterious. The final dungeon theme is just epic. I suppose just listen to the soundtrack yerself and decide how you feel about it.
A lot of people complain about the graphics of this, but what those people don't realize is that this was created as a Playstation 1 game. The only reason it's on a Playstation 2 disc is because this was during the time the Playstation 1 was dying down and Playstation 2 was taking over. So in reality, these are Playstation 1 graphics, and for that system, it's pretty high end.
I've said enough good about this game, so it's time to talk about the unfortunate failing point of Shadow Hearts. The voice acting in this game is just awful! Luckily you only really hear it a few times in the five or so FMVS in the game. So it's nothing that ruins the whole experience, just be prepared, it really doesn't sound pretty.
I really can't say enough about how awesome this game is. Just get it, and play it. Out of all the people who have played Shadow Hearts, I honestly don't know anyone who was disappointed in the end. What we expect the most out of RPGs is a good story, and Shadow Hearts is storytelling at it's quality.