As you know, I have had some very positive things to say about Heart of the Woods, and I am looking forward to working my way through it eventually, but I thought you all might be interested to hear from someone else. Today we have returning Guest Reviewer Yurimother, with her take on Studio Élan’s first effort. Please welcome her back! Yurimother, the floor is yours!

There are some spoilers in this review, so be warned.

When I first heard about Studio Élan’s debut visual novel, Heart of the Woods, I was very excited and eagerly anticipated its arrival. When it was finally released I immediately purchased it and quickly finished two full playthroughs for the game. I can happily report that it did not disappoint!

Heart of the Woods is a fantasy-mystery Yuri visual novel revolving around four characters, who include paranormal vloggers Maddie and Tara who travel to the isolated village of Eysenfeld at the behest of their perpetually tired and slightly creepy guide Morgan. They quickly become entangled in a centuries-old curse and the wondrous magic of the neighboring forest. Along the way, they meet the cheery and energetic ghost Abigail who helps them on their journey.

The visual novel is highly polished in almost every aspect. The astounding art immediately captivated my attention. Everything from the beautiful CGs to the detailed backgrounds is enthralling. The backgrounds often include slight animations, such as the rumbling of a train or the falling of snow, which helps to bring them to life. However, the most astounding achievement here is in the character models (with one minor exception). They look natural against the backgrounds thanks to being drawn with soft lines. This helps them feel like part of a cohesive experience rather than just cutouts, something rarely seen in visual novels. Each of the models for the four main characters contains numerous alterations to facial expression and body position which change naturally throughout every scene giving them a life-like quality.

The story was also extremely compelling. The central plot unravels naturally and contains some excellently built tensions, and satisfying payoffs, something every good mystery story requires. There are plenty of emotional and pulse-pounding moments to be found here. The game contains several logical but still exciting twists to the story that often had me gasping and on the edge of my seat. I found only one of them to be obvious (painfully so), although the revelation did make sense and served its purpose in the narrative.

While mostly kinetic (linear) there are three choices throughout Heart of the Woods which have very minor changes on a few scenes and result in one of three endings, two bad one good. These choices share one of my most common complaints with other visual novel choices in that there is no real logic to them, and one has no idea if their choice will lead to the good or bad results. However, the impact of the choices is mostly insignificant here so I cannot fault their presence too much.

The narrative switches between the perspective of the four main characters, each of whom has a distinct tone of narration. This really helps to establish each of them with their own voice and creates some excellent dramatic irony. The dialogue feels realistic and serves to further both the plot and the characters. One of the key strengths of the writing lies in the humor. The jokes, often told by the headstrong Tara, land particularly well. Dialogue and narrations work together to organically construct the relationships between the characters.

On the note of the characters, I found each of the characters extremely well written and the relationships between them (romantic or otherwise) dynamic and well-constructed. Maddie is an intelligent yet somewhat distant skeptic which contrasts nicely with Tara’s brashness and lighthearted behavior. Tara’s love interest, Morgan is mysterious yet oddly calming. Much of the truth of Eysenfeld is revealed gradually through Morgan’s interactions and narration. Finally, there is Abigail, Maddie’s love interest and easily my favorite character. While I initially feared that she would be the typical naïve-childlike character archetype I was pleasantly surprised to find her to be a gentle and beautiful spirit (pun intended). This is especially true as she exposes Maddie to the mystical beauty of the woods.

My only real complaint here is that Tara, while hilarious, was somewhat of a stereotypical jokester used to provide comic relief, even in moments where it may not have been appropriate. However, this is eclipsed by the way in which her identity as a transgender woman is handled. This is only revealed as she discusses her past with Morgan, and it is said in a very natural way. It is not mentioned again in the visual novel in a choice I think was appropriate. Tara transitioned years ago and now her being trans is just a piece of her person, it is not her only or even most significant trait.  I found her portrayal to be refreshing and thoughtfully written.

Some particularly strong scenes include when Maddie and Abigail first meet and begin to become close. They cannot verbally communicate at first (wonky magical ghost reasons). However, they are able to bond through gestures and Maddie reading aloud in a tender and loving moment. Another exceptional scene comes later in the story as all the main characters discuss their future together once they deal with the crisis at hand. It is a simple but touching moment of levity and joy between the four. It is in moments like these where the superb writing truly shines.

There is optional adult content found in a separate patch containing two scenes for Maddie and Abigail, which feels like a missed opportunity to have one with Tara and Morgan. The models and CGs are again well done here and the sex scenes are competently written if slightly over the top in the way that most smut is. Overall, they add little to the characters or overall story, so much so that I skipped them on my second playthrough. However, they are sexy and written in a genuine way, so I found them to be an enjoyable and welcome addition.

Even without these adult scenes, there is plenty of flirting, kissing, and expressions of fondness between the characters. Yuri fans will not be disappointed here. The relationships of the couples, while oddly paced at times, feel natural and are well developed. At the end of the game, I wanted to see more of these characters just living their daily lives together as partners and that is always a good sign for me.

While I loved this visual novel, it would be remiss of me if I did not point out some of its shortcomings. While most of the game is highly polished, a few spelling errors did slip through and at one point the animation that normally accompanies a shift in narrator did not play despite the story clearly shifting perspectives. Lastly, there was one odd moment in my first playthrough where two characters decided to advance their relationship and become girlfriends. However, in a later conversation, they act as if this did not occur and essentially repeat the interaction and agree to become girlfriends… again. This issue did not appear on my second playthrough because of the choices I made, and they only became girlfriends once. Fortunately, Studio Élan does seem dedicated to fixing at least some of these issues and is active in receiving bug reports. Ultimately these issues were minor and did not negatively impact my time or enjoyment of the game.

Finally, the game contains an excellent original soundtrack that is varied and suits every scene well. It has some memorable tracks along with some more standard ones. Additionally, there are multiple accessibility options for people with dyslexia and auditory or visual impairments, something which is always appreciated.

Heart of the Woods is one of the best visual novels, Yuri or otherwise, I have ever had the pleasure of playing. I cannot wait to see more from Studio Élan. The game and soundtrack are available for purchase now on Steam and itch.io for Windows, Mac, and Linux.

Ratings:

Art – 10
Story – 8 (9 if you just look up the options for the good ending so you can ignore the choices)
Characters – 8
Service – 6 (7 with adult scenes)
Yuri – 9
Music – 8

Overall – 9

Erica here: Thank you, again, Yurimother for this review and now I’m looking forward to reading this even more. Send me a link for the “good end” choices, please.