Shujinkou review
Say it with me, “Kokoro no komotta”, or “Good Hearted” in English
It’s unambiguously evident that Rice Games’ Shujinkou was driven by passion. Instead of the customary succession of splash screens acknowledging middleware brands, there’s a heartfelt dedication from lead Julian Rice to his late mother. What follows through the next seventy+ hours is one of the most ambitious, independently-developed dungeon-crawling role-playing games since 1987’s Digital Devil Story: Megami Tensei. What’s most incredible is that it’s largely the work of Rice leading a team of contracted artists.
Unlike many modern RPGs, Shujinkou doesn’t frontload the exposition. Smartly, context is quickly summarized while you’re examining a map that’s home to six environmentally-distinct nations. As the inaugural entry in a planned trilogy, you’ll get to visit two countries across a pair of story arcs.
Yōshitsu Storytelling
The game’s visual novel-style exposition kicks off on the serene island of Genya, with retired samurai Shu returning home to visit his plucky younger sister Momoko. But their tranquility and morning tea are interrupted by a woman’s scream. Investigating the abnormality, Shu finds one of the neighborhood villagers attacked by an oni. Concerned about the presence of more demons, Shu along with his buddies Toushirou and Shirouto head to a nearby forest in Sanrin, eventually uncovering a conspiracy to devour language.
Given Shujinkou’s massive scope (expect a playtime of about 80 hours), attentions are likely to sporadically waver. But the game attempts to offset this with the integration of two other co-protagonists. Jin is a delightfully eccentric fox brought to life after spending years as a painting, while Kou is a distrustful but loyal warrior from another part of the world. Pleasingly, Shujinkou’s second arc delves into the cast’s backstories and motivation, providing a welcome narrative pay-off.
For players just here to dive into the game’s sixteen labyrinths, the dialog might seem a bit loquacious. But those who enjoy well-written exposition should relish Shujinkou’s writing. For the Kouryuu System that recalls the Social Links of the Persona series to the message board quests that result in amorous admissions, there’s a nuance to the writing. Early on, that’s evident with Shu revealing a chivalrous concern for his imōto (younger sister) and a mutual respect for his ani (older brother) that just might produce a bit of eye-mist. At times, Shujinkou’s cast exhibits a wealth of relational nuance, making it feel like these characters have interacted with each other for years.
A Banzen (Perfect) Soundtrack and a Compelling Crawl
The sole downside is that there’s not full voice acting, which would have undoubtedly escalated the game’s budget. But Shujinkou’s massive soundtrack, which offers 158 songs from ten composers, provides more than enough compensation. Obviously, they’re not all stunning, with a few tracks used to establish mood for dialog sequences. But between Brian LaGuardia’s majestic main theme and at least a dozen compositions built around traditional instruments like the koto, shamisen, and taiko, Shujinkou repeatedly soars.
Some of the sweeping orchestral arrangements recall Joe Hisaishi’s work, while others flaunt vocal melodies like Ryo Noguchi’s magnificent “Kou’s Theme”. Although the game’s Deluxe and Super Deluxe Editions extend a nice sampler, I’ll be waiting for the complete package on this one. At present, it seems like a solid contender for one of this year’s best scores.
Fortunately, the game’s main allure performs just as well, with Shujinkou plenty of captivating dungeon crawling. Rice’s admiration for Etrian Odyssey provides a solid foundation for exploration and encounters. Here, there are no cartography duties, with the title generating its on-screen map as you reconnoiter labyrinthine layouts outfitted with the customary gimmicks and puzzles. Shujinkou even provides its own version of F.O.E.s, with the game’s yajuu forcing you to tread carefully.
Embracing the Power of Kana
Expectedly, you’ll encounter enemies in fixed positions as well as random encounters. Here, Shujinkou utilizes a traditional turn-based system with your party and adversaries trading stats. But the game’s interest in teaching you Nihongo (Japanese) can inject some interesting strategies to these showdowns. While no game can make you fluent, Shujinkou can become a worthy tutor for those who are interested in expanding their linguistic abilities.
Gradually, you’ll garner a collection of Kanakae Orbs, which are adorned with hiragana and katakana characters. When attacking, you can match these phonemes to the name of enemies for extra attacking power. So, when a cat (or neko in Japanese) confronts you, employing either “ネ” (ne) or “コ” (ko) can give you an offensive boost. But that’s hardly the only learning mechanic in the game, with Shujinkou displaying everything from the stroke order, announcing words, or explaining common cultural practices. As someone who’s played everything from Influent, Kagami to Learn Japanese to Survive! Hiragana Battle to brush up on my skills, I can securely say that Shunjinkou is the most comprehensive package.
However, if you have no interest in learning, Shujinkou accommodates. With a single setting change, you can opt for a complete English experience. But you’ll miss things like how lettering in the game’s menus can shift from kana to romaji, which might be one of the slickest forms of instruction I’ve ever seen. But other approaches aren’t far off the mark, like impressing a date by sinking kanatama-adorned billiards in one of seven different mini-games. Yes, there’s even writing practice that feels like one of those Nintendo DS-era brain training apps.
Conclusion
Given Shujinkou’s elevated ambitions, there are surprisingly few glitches to be found. Sure, some small control issues can emerge, especially if you opt for mouse-and-keyboard input instead of a controller. Meanwhile, text can intermittingly spill from dialog boxes and ultrawide monitor support can be spotty. Yet none of these blunders fundamentally impair the experience and are mostly minor inconveniences. Often, these blemishes are counterbalanced by some really clever ideas, like combining purchases and equipping the item into a single, convenient deed.
Simply put, Shujinkou is nothing short of a marvel of indie game development. Not only has Rice Games bested the exploration and monster encounters of Etrian Odyssey with a far richer storyline, but the studio has also supplemented the adventure with an optional language learning component. Dungeon crawling with a side of Duolingo wasn’t something that I expected 2025 to deliver. However, Shujinkou is one of the single best surprises of the year.
Shujinkou was played on PC with review code provided by the publisher.
Overview
GAMEPLAY - 85%
STORYTELLING - 90%
CONTENT - 100%
AESTHETICS - 85%
ACCESSIBILITY - 90%
VALUE - 90%
90%
GREAT
Inaugural efforts can often be unrealistically ambitious. But miraculously, Shujinkou nails nearly every single one of its elevated goals. From engrossing dungeon crawling, a cast that remains compelling across an 80-hour storyline, to a capability for teaching you spoken and written Japanese, a new watermark for indie RPGs has been established.
Haven’t heard about this game before. It’s mostly a dungeon crawler then?