Shards of the Heart

Shards of the Heart ⭐ 9/10 I went into Shards of the Heart expecting a pretty normal RPG Maker game, but I ended up getting way more invested in it than I expected. The biggest strength of the game is definitely the characters. Sawyer, Leandra, April, Kaheru, and Emily all feel like actual characters instead of just people there to move the plot along. Sawyer especially is really interesting because of how guarded and sarcastic she is, while you slowly learn more about what she's been through. The relationships are a huge part of what makes the story work. The mystery is also really good. You start with Leandra showing up in Riviera, and things gradually get much stranger as demons from her world start appearing. I liked that the game doesn't immediately dump every answer on you. It gives you questions and lets the story unfold naturally. I also really like the combination of genres. It's not just a visual novel you get investigation and detective sections, relationship choices, exploration, and turn-based RPG combat. Your choices can affect relationships and eventually lead to different scenes and endings, which gives you a reason to replay it. The biggest downside is that i…

Need to play more but I like it.