LogFAQs > #896756073

26. Shadow Hearts: Covenant (Axl_Rose_85)


This game might as well be subtitled "The Yuri Hyuga Owns People's Faces Show," because that's what he does for most of the game, often literally! His first appearance in the game is him wrecking a room full of soldiers to protect a girl...followed by him unceremoniously dumping her onto the floor and walking out as pictured in the GIF above. Covenant is interesting because it's actually a follow up on the first game's bad ending rather than the good one. At the same time, the atmosphere is lighter with a lot more jovial banter among the party. Speaking of the party, Covenant features a truly eccentric group, like the pro wrestler who makes a weapon out of any large blunt object he can find. You also have an old man named Gepetto who fights with--you guessed it--a puppet. There's also the highly intelligent wolf dog who takes on sneaking missions on the side. On top of that, you also have a historical(ly inaccurate) figure join your party, so you've got it all! One of the neat little things about Shadow Hearts in general is that it's set in the middle of real history (World War I, in this case), although obviously, it puts some twists of its own on it.

The battle system in Covenant is a big step up from the original. Yuri has more fusion forms than ever, and they make it a little more manageable to switch between them mid-battle if you want to this time around. It's also not a traditional turn-based system anymore, although it still uses the Judgment Ring, but it allows you to customize it a bit, too. There's even an Auto Ring if you just don't want to mess with it at all, so Covenant is generally much more accommodating than the first game. In battles, there are different types of attacks, and depending on how you play it, you can start combos that the other party members can build onto with their turns. It's super fun, but it also makes the game pretty easy at times. It's one of those weird games where random battles are harder than boss fights because the combo system can be easily exploited against bosses if there's only a single target on the screen.

One of the best things about Covenant is that it has some really great setpieces with Yuri. The dude is just so cool in every way, and the game is set up to put that on full display. He's the star of the first two Shadow Hearts games through and through. I liked the story here in general. It does a lot of interesting things, although it doesn't always work. The final boss in particular fell a little flat for me. The ending was really great though, so that made up for it. But like I said, the real draw is seeing Yuri own faces left and right. The main reason I haven't been interested in playing From the New World is because he's no longer the protagonist. The series just doesn't feel like it'd be as good without him, and based on the general reception to the game, it wasn't! Seriously, if you're tired of the "typical" JRPG hero (whatever your definition of "typical" may be), give Shadow Hearts a whirl because Yuri will probably be a pleasant surprise for you.

Bonus Question: Who is your favorite video game protagonist?
---

http://i2.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/original/001/080/145/638.png
https://imgur.com/xSIWjVK