Shadow Hearts: From the New World is the third instalment in the hugely popular global success story that is the Shadow Hearts brand. With a moving storyline, stunning visuals and an unrivalled combat system, it will undoubtedly be revered as an instant classic, and a worthy conclusion to the acclaimed Shadow Hearts series.

Set in 1929, during a violent and dark time in America’s history, the player assumes the role of a young detective called Johnny Garland. Johnny embarks on an epic journey after he witnesses the horrifying apparition of an evil demon. The fiend devours an unsuspecting victim before turning on Johnny, who is miraculously saved by a mystical creature engulfed in white light…

Our hero sets off to track the apparition and soon finds himself undertaking an incredible quest, accompanied by Shania, a powerful Native American bounty hunter. Shania’s spiritual powers and morphing abilities makes her a perfect ally for Johnny who, for his part, discovers his own latent mystical powers to help this thrilling adventure along.

Key Features

• Series trademark Judgment Ring battle system makes a return with improvements -- "Stock System" allowing players the option of executing a "Combo" command with a second character or "Double" command enabling a character to perform two different actions in one turn.
• A completely new story and set of new characters will make the title easily accessible to newcomers of the series with its unique style and sense of humor.
• A cast of well-drawn, entertaining characters with distinct personalities and reappearances by a few of the series' favorites.
• Experience a higher level of realism with easy to navigate, visually-stunning backgrounds, special lighting and illumination effects.
• Huge production values with dramatic events unfolding through high quality graphics, CG cut scenes, impressive sound effects and voice-overs.

Stunning visuals – and more of the CG cut scenes the Shadow Hearts series is renowned for – depict a story spread across real-world locations including New York, Las Vegas, Machu Picchu and an out-of-this-world Roswell site.

Shadow Hearts: From the New World offers a multilayered story line, complete with side quests and multiple endings, compacted into over 60 hours of gaming bliss! A cast of entertaining new characters have been brilliantly designed, with distinct personalities and emotions, plus reappearances from few a of the series’ old favourites.

As players progress through the game, they can customise their party’s magical abilities using a ‘Stellar Chart’, developing each characters individual strengths and magical attacks.
Special combo attacks can be assigned and honed to eliminate challenging bosses, testing players’ skill and endurance to the limit!

Shadow Hearts: From the New World builds on the Judgement Ring battle system, a trademark of the Shadow Hearts series. The Judgement Ring system has been praised for introducing a new dimension to turn-based RPG gameplay, adding an element of skill and precision to your attacks. A new ‘Stock System’ has been introduced to the improved Judgement Ring, allowing players to execute party combos and devastating double strike attacks.

Ghostlight’s Marketing Executive, Adrian Clews, comments: “Shadow Hearts has long been revered as one of the top RPG series to come out of Japan and From the New World’s unrivalled gameplay and immersive story line, exceed its forerunners to deliver an all time great RPG”.

Shadow Hearts: From the New World, is scheduled for a May release on the PS2 in all PAL territories.