Neal Chandran: "Is Canada poising itself to be the new Japan, at least in the independent gaming scene? Earlier this year, I played Black Sigil: Blade of the Exiled - a DS JRPG from a Canadian developer that I actually enjoyed more than some of its Japanese contemporaries. And now, I had a chance to play Fading Hearts, a visual novel from a Canadian developer that *gasp* I enjoyed more than some of its Japanese contemporaries. Sometimes it takes a non-Japanese perspective to put a truly fresh spin on something so typically Japanese, and Sakura River does this with Fading Hearts."
oprainfall's Crystal Baltimore writes:
"Fading Hearts is a visual novel that I only recently heard about, thought it has been around for quite a while. I hate when games that have the possibility of being thought provoking or even just fun as hell slip by me. Luckily (for me) it recently became available on Steam, which brought it to my attention."
No lie, this game is almost a true oldie. Originally released back in 2007, and now on sale on Steam, Fading Hearts is a visual novel that comes the closest to a true emerging narrative experience. While the player is locked into the role of the protagonist Ryou, the capacity for player freedom is massive. Fun, yet at times repetitive, Fading Hearts actually turns out to be pretty good.
akura River Interactive is happy to announce that their interactive visual novel, Fading Hearts, has been Greenlit on Steam, and has peaked in the Top 20 Steam Seller’s List. Now featuring updated monster art, user interface and battle effects, Fading Hearts has already set itself apart from others in the genre by allowing players to change the style of game depending on the choices they make.
