Game Card
Shadow Hearts: From the New World (PS2)
- Publisher:
- Aruze Corp
- Developer:
- Aruze Corp
- US Release:
- 07.03.2006
- EU Release:
- n/a
- Number of players:
- n/a
- Perspective:
- Third-Person
- Type:
- Action Adventure
Review
We play Shadow Hearts: From the New World...
Shadow Hearts has become one of the lesser
known gems of the PS2’s back catalogue. Its great gameplay, intriguing
setting and compelling characters are certainly hard to resist. It
mixes a concoction of the 1900’s, shadowy dark magic and humor to
provide some surprisingly engaging moments. This time around the team
has been hard at work to introduce some innovations to the series. This
is something that can be tricky to pull off with such an established
fan base.
The story starts in New York City with the 16 year old Johnny Garland. His parents and sister were tragically killed which left him to head up the family business. Before long this is turned towards his own desires as he starts to play detective. Starting out with small and straightforward jobs he slowly makes a name for himself. Before long something juicier comes along; an out of town professor turns up with a great need to locate someone fast. Not too out of the ordinary until a demon jumps out of a portal and kills his client. Being the plucky adventurous type, this sets Jonny on a road to discover what exactly is going on in his city. This is a road that ultimately will lead him to discover more about himself than his surroundings.
If the previous two games were remembered for anything it was their quirky and interesting cast of characters. This game certainly continues this tradition with a whole host of unusual people with whom you can interact. Both supporting and main protagonists benefit from some imaginative and creative design on every level from their back story to their wardrobe. They are then used to people the surprisingly subtle plot. As outlined above, things do start off in a pretty standard way, but as the game gets up a head of steam there are not a few surprises along the way.
All is not plane sailing though, as this seems to be a game with two teams battling to get time in front of the camera. The story is often sent to backstage as the battle system takes over. Fortunately the battles match the quality of the story blow for blow. The battles will already be familiar to those of you that have played the previous games in the series. They continue to use what is known in the trade as the “Judgement Ring” system which introduces a degree of control of how much damage is inflicted by the player. The aim is to hit the X button in time with the appropriate ticker to land the perfect blow. This combined with the often aggressive opponents makes for a pretty fun and frantic fights. The system is rounded off by enabling you to customize it for particular character’s abilities. It all adds up to a very flexible play dynamic that encourages experimentation and imagination from the player; what more could you ask for? Before long you will soon be landing combos and doubles and casting spells to your delight.
The battles are encountered as you work your way through the dungeon exploration element of the game, which seem to have had less time spent on it than the story or battling and turns out to be one of the game‘s weaker elements. But all is not lost, although the environments can look pretty samey and repetitive they are helped by the high encounter rate. Frequent encounters seem to be in vogue right now in role playing games, they obviously think people need more action to keep their attention these days. Additionally, the story aspect of the game is also bolstered by the inclusion of wide a varied sub quests and achievements. These often provide the rarer items and are well worth pursuing, if not only for the loot then for the great mini-games that you encounter.
Graphically, the game benefits from its quirky and unusual cast. It is this inventiveness, rather than the computer generated cut scenes that you will remember most from the game. The design and art style really shine through and create a sense of time and place for the unfolding story. This is a good thing as with a lack of higher resolution or wide screen support things could have been a little lack lustre. Sound wise, things are almost the reverse. The characters voice work is almost embarrassing, with more time and effort needing to be spent to bring this up to match the graphical standard. The general in game music and background elements however are much better and extend the interest and personality the game looks to communicate.
Overall, it is the interplay between the story and the battle sequences that win the day. This helps to really lift the less interesting dungeon crawling sections. Although there was the danger of these two strong aspects of the game competing too heavily for screen time and canceling each other out, in the end they work together very well to deliver another confident chapter in the Shadow Hearts universe.
Top Game Moment: When the two competing elements of the game intertwine and become part of the same experience, there are some quite amazing moments. The battles become imbibed with the sometimes intoxicating story and the story gains grandeur and presence from the imaginative battle victories.
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| Ethereal backdrops abound | Concentration can make all the difference |
The story starts in New York City with the 16 year old Johnny Garland. His parents and sister were tragically killed which left him to head up the family business. Before long this is turned towards his own desires as he starts to play detective. Starting out with small and straightforward jobs he slowly makes a name for himself. Before long something juicier comes along; an out of town professor turns up with a great need to locate someone fast. Not too out of the ordinary until a demon jumps out of a portal and kills his client. Being the plucky adventurous type, this sets Jonny on a road to discover what exactly is going on in his city. This is a road that ultimately will lead him to discover more about himself than his surroundings.
If the previous two games were remembered for anything it was their quirky and interesting cast of characters. This game certainly continues this tradition with a whole host of unusual people with whom you can interact. Both supporting and main protagonists benefit from some imaginative and creative design on every level from their back story to their wardrobe. They are then used to people the surprisingly subtle plot. As outlined above, things do start off in a pretty standard way, but as the game gets up a head of steam there are not a few surprises along the way.
All is not plane sailing though, as this seems to be a game with two teams battling to get time in front of the camera. The story is often sent to backstage as the battle system takes over. Fortunately the battles match the quality of the story blow for blow. The battles will already be familiar to those of you that have played the previous games in the series. They continue to use what is known in the trade as the “Judgement Ring” system which introduces a degree of control of how much damage is inflicted by the player. The aim is to hit the X button in time with the appropriate ticker to land the perfect blow. This combined with the often aggressive opponents makes for a pretty fun and frantic fights. The system is rounded off by enabling you to customize it for particular character’s abilities. It all adds up to a very flexible play dynamic that encourages experimentation and imagination from the player; what more could you ask for? Before long you will soon be landing combos and doubles and casting spells to your delight.
The battles are encountered as you work your way through the dungeon exploration element of the game, which seem to have had less time spent on it than the story or battling and turns out to be one of the game‘s weaker elements. But all is not lost, although the environments can look pretty samey and repetitive they are helped by the high encounter rate. Frequent encounters seem to be in vogue right now in role playing games, they obviously think people need more action to keep their attention these days. Additionally, the story aspect of the game is also bolstered by the inclusion of wide a varied sub quests and achievements. These often provide the rarer items and are well worth pursuing, if not only for the loot then for the great mini-games that you encounter.
Graphically, the game benefits from its quirky and unusual cast. It is this inventiveness, rather than the computer generated cut scenes that you will remember most from the game. The design and art style really shine through and create a sense of time and place for the unfolding story. This is a good thing as with a lack of higher resolution or wide screen support things could have been a little lack lustre. Sound wise, things are almost the reverse. The characters voice work is almost embarrassing, with more time and effort needing to be spent to bring this up to match the graphical standard. The general in game music and background elements however are much better and extend the interest and personality the game looks to communicate.
 |
| Real-time elements in turn-based combat is inspired |
Overall, it is the interplay between the story and the battle sequences that win the day. This helps to really lift the less interesting dungeon crawling sections. Although there was the danger of these two strong aspects of the game competing too heavily for screen time and canceling each other out, in the end they work together very well to deliver another confident chapter in the Shadow Hearts universe.
Top Game Moment: When the two competing elements of the game intertwine and become part of the same experience, there are some quite amazing moments. The battles become imbibed with the sometimes intoxicating story and the story gains grandeur and presence from the imaginative battle victories.
