Sunday, August 14, 2022
Finding Heaven
There
is a certain beauty to the simple impulse to say, “Wow that is so
cool”. It is a short phrase filled with an innocent emotion many of
us lose as we get older and the realities of life turn everything
into a grey soup. An adult is meant to be mature and sensible so
expressions of wonder at something are frowned upon. After all “The
nail that sticks out gets hammered down”, being different is hard
and finding a place to belong is the eternal quest. Heaven Will Be
Mine is an exploration of this space through the medium of cool
mechas and three protagonists who are each seeking someone who
understands them and a place to be themselves. As you will soon see it
has a deep understand of its subject matter and the skills to speak
to the player through their mind as well as their heart.
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| There is lots of clever presentations of key dialogue. |
The Tale of Some ‘Bad’ Girls - Narrative, Themes and Metaphor
The
story of Heaven Will Be Mine is through a unique mix of intimate
interactions and clever implications and metaphors. It brings three
distinctly different protagonists to the table to enable its rich
narrative and places them on contrasting side of a conflict they have
an increasingly personal investment in. Their conversations and the
factions they side with form the backbone upon which the metaphor
driven events and the story's themes are built.
Presenting
the player with a choice of three possible protagonists the moment
they start the game is a bold decision. We know nothing about each of them
outside of the brief description provided nor what the consequences
of our choice will be. However, this ultimately works in the game’s
favour as it sets the tone for the types of choices the player will
be presented with and the individual centric nature of the narrative.
The result of having three different playable protagonists and asking
the player to play through each one separately is that it allows for
each path to focus on their own thematic angle. It also provides
a more even experience inside each protagonist’s route in order to keep the
messages and ideas clearer while also presenting a sense of variety
in the long term.
If
there is one thing this game loves above all else it is figurative
prose and in particular metaphor. This covers everything from the
elegant writing style to the awe inspiring visuals. When a metaphor
is used it is not made of a single element but from combining parts
to create the desired effect. This commitment to ensuring the quality
of the metaphors helps to fuel the player’s immersion by
surrounding them with metaphor and giving them the room to soak
it in. Through this engagement with the player the themes and
messages on display can be subtlety conveyed to them in an organic
and gradual fashion which prevents the game from coming across as
preachy.
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| One of the larger walls of text in the game. |
One
of the more prominent metaphors used in Heaven Will Be Mine is the
idea of gravity. It is used both in the literal sense with the
gravity of celestial bodies effecting the practical realities of
space travel and as a metaphor for the social and cultural forces
which act on us to try and bring us into line. These are regularly
used in the same breath as the story plays with double meanings and
implies it core ideas through it. Earth’s gravity is an ever
present power over the characters lives, it simultaneous wants them
to return while also rejecting the aspects it finds unacceptable and
it subtly seeps into every part of their lives even where it is not
wanted. This is just a single layer on the complex web of metaphors
which define the identity of the game.
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| Gravity is everywhere and you cannot escape it. |
The downside to this figurative prose driven narrative style is its
sheer variety and indirectness can confuse the reader as much as it
informs them. Heaven Will Be Mine does not do much to alleviate this
problem and instead expects its audience to keep up with the ideas
and themes being thrown subtly their way. As a result it is possible
for someone to completely bounce off the game and fail to understand
it or leave with the impression that it is nonsense. So it is worth
keeping this in mind if you struggle with more opaque writing then
this story might not be for you.
Another
issue lies in the games endings and how they relate to each
protagonist’s path. Throughout the game you are given the option to
remain loyal to the faction that protagonist belongs to or betray it.
However, the narrative outside of these choices focuses on the
faction that protagonist is part of rather than the other factions
which leads to a disconnect within the story if you choose any ending
other than that faction’s one since it jarringly switches focus
with no build up. This dissonance between the choices and narrative
is not unique to Heaven Will Be Mine and is one which many visual
novels have to deal with. It does not ruin the overall experience but
it does push you towards remaining loyal to a faction in order to
ensure the smoothest narrative experience which is doubtless not the
intent of the developer.
Those Who Seek A Place To Belong - Characters
It
is obvious from the moment you start playing Heaven Will Be Mine just
how important the characters are to the themes of the story. If
metaphors are the fine threads which make the narrative shine then
the characters are the loom on which the story is weaved before our
eyes.
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| Luna-Terra is quite distinct from the other two protagonists. |
To
complement each protagonist they have a companion character unique to
their path who act as a foil to them while at the same time playing
into their character arc. Saturn has the serious Mercury, Pluto has
the hot-blooded Mars and Luna-Terra has the mentor figure Europa.
By providing a character that the protagonists can bounce off without
the tension that exists between the protagonists we get to
see them be more honest. Most of the interactions between a
protagonist and their companion occur through the Comms menu which is in the
form of a chat room. This is used as a stage for some of the
cleverest manipulating of the structure of dialogue to represent each
characters mentality. One example of this is the lack of punctuation
and capital letter in Saturn’s texts which shows off her need to be
rebellious no matter the context and contrasts well with the clean
and clear grammar used by Mercury. The game plays with their
interactions throughout the game as we slowly see more of what
defines each of them and how the fallout of the protagonist’s
conflicts are effecting those beyond them.
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| The prose here is quite something. |
Glittering Stars And Cosmic Abysses - Visual, Audio and Technical
When
it comes to the presentation of this layered narrative and its complex
characters Heaven Will Be Mine delivers on multiple levels. Haunting
visuals are complemented by a soundtrack which expresses loneliness and
companionship in the depths of space. This is a game which understand
well the trapping of the genres it draws from and how to use them in
an appealing and powerful manner.
Saying
a lot with a little is the strongest aspect of this visual novel’s
presentation. There is no wasted space in any moment of the playtime.
From the use of the protagonists’ cockpit views to express what
kind of person they are as well as their facial expressions to the
use of showing directed parts of an image to slowly build up the scene
while playing into the metaphors present in the occupying text. The
economising of content is definitely a result of the budgetary
restrictions which are visible in the overall small pool of art
assets. However, it is from this necessity that innovation is born
and Heaven Will be Mine understands how to utilise what it has to
great effect in a manner which allows it to outshine games with a
much higher costs. This also enhances the role of metaphor in the game
and makes it lean into its unique style all the more.
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| A lot can be shown with smart use of few assets. |
If
there is one visual element which best encapsulates the distinctive
style of Heaven Will Be Mine it is the self-ships. These are the
vessels through which our characters act out the major events of the
story and serves as another powerful image of their selves. Their
designs of an evocative mix of other worldly cosmic forces and human
vulnerability and each one perfectly reflects the pilot while still
being consistent with the overall aesthetic of the game. The game’s
Evangelion influences also peek through here with the self-ships
having an aesthetic and purpose reminiscent of the Evas while still
being distinct from them. Abstract imagery invokes what concrete
picture cannot and this is the core strength of not only the
self-ship designs but also the art direct as a whole. The game could
have simply used a more standard mecha design and it would have
functioned within the narrative but lacked the impact and presence of
the self-ships. Placing a focus on the self-ship design was
ultimately rewarded the game with an excellent supporting pillar for
the overall experience.
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| Self ships are the a sight to behold. |
Soundscapes
play an important role in setting the tone of a visual novel and so
the haunting and evocative tone of the narrative and art of Heaven Will Be Mine are carried
over to the music with exceptionally powerful results. Synthesisers
are the weapon of choice in this war of emotion and in this role they
are an outstanding choice for a game set in the depths of space in
multiple senses of the word. The music carefully builds up a scene
without overwhelming it and speaks both to the coldness of the world
and the warmth of find people to belong with. While the overall
selection of tracks is not as expansive as some other visual novels,
each one of Heaven Will Be Mine’s tracks knows how to perform its
duty and carries a weight to it which highlights the level of quality
present in them.
There
is one area in which Heaven Will Be Mine struggles and this is the
lack of quality of life features. These includes an absence of
standard elements such as a skip function and a gallery. Not having
these features can be felt more acutely on the repeated playthroughs
the game expects you to do since you cannot pass over text you have
already which can make them a chore. The omission of a gallery is a
disappointment as it would have been nice to be able to examine the
beautiful art at my own pace rather than how it is shown in game. None of
the absent features are a deal breaker as they game itself excels in
most other aspects, but it is something to keep in mind if these
features are important to your viewing pleasure.
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| How much I would give for a skip button on repeat playthroughs |
Verdict – 9/10 –
Heaven Will Be Mine is one of the few visual novels which truly
understands the power of metaphor and themes and employs it with such
finesse that its every moment is a pleasure to play.
Pros
+
Hits hard with an art style and soundtrack which use vagueness and
imagery to invoke emotion and imply the metaphor in each scene.
+
A cast which is one of the most flawed and empathetic sets of
characters in fiction with even side characters getting the emphasis
they deserve.
+
The game understands the trappings of the sci-fi and mecha genre and
knows how to play to their strengths with exceptional ease.
+
A strong commitment to its thematics which echoes throughout the
entire game and keeps them present in the players mind.
Cons
-
The only ending which make sense for each character is their faction one
and the others feel somewhat forced for the sake of having choices.
-
Its heavy use of figurative prose could make the game too vague for some
people.
-
Lacking some features such as a skip function or a gallery.
