I feel like I need to get this out of the way before the review: You will be experiencing jokes that are otter this world if you play Matrix Hearts…
If you’re still here then you have a sense of humor, which is good because Matrix Hearts is full of humor from the get-go. MC starts out as goofy and a bit of a cocky guy. After his accident at the Olympic try-outs that ends his climbing dreams, he becomes a nihilistic husk of his former self. Or as his dad put it “You’re a real dick now, son.” MC’s deadpan responses to his ex and his parents in this scene make what could be a frustrating scene with a “whiny MC” a scene with humor that shows in the words and reactions of the characters.
Now you’re being shipped off to be a lab rat for your former babysitter Layla’s big project in hopes that it will fix your knee. On your flight you’ll meet a friendly stewardess who does a good job cheering you up. Once you exit the plane you’re on your way to meet Layla and get your brace attached. The brace has a bit more going on with it than just healing your knee, it’s about how it heals you that makes it more important to the story.
If you’re like me you’ll love Layla right away. Her and MC have great chemistry, they can go from silly to serious (not afraid to mock each other a bit) and it flows naturally. You can tell there’s real feelings there. Their interactions show off the devs writing skills. Layla is just playful enough that you and MC aren’t sure if she’s messing with you or not (in a good way, you can tell there’s no ill intent)
After spending the rest of your day/evening with Layla, you’ve gotta wake up the next day and head to Coconut Academy, the school you’ll be attending. This is where the point and click portion of the game shows up. The “Point and Click Spheres” are each a single screen with objects/people you can click on and get a bit more info/interactions. Just some side story and backstory about the town. If it’s not your thing you can just click continue and pass these parts up, you won’t miss out on any main story information. I would recommend exploring them though as there’s a lot of good stuff here.
You'll be given a tour of the school by Dutch, who seems friendly, but in that “I’m so friendly it’s annoying” kind of way. This is intended though as MC comments on it, this makes Dutch a character you like to dislike instead of a character you’re supposed to like but hate. This shows off the devs ability to get characters' personalities across without the player wondering what the intent was.
While at school, you’ll meet the rest of the main LIs. There’s Gemma, the blonde-haired, outdoorsy, water-loving girl who is into sports. Xia, the bespectacled Asian girl who’s really into photography. Chrysta, the dark skinned hottie with a bit of an attitude (I’m sure we can chip away at that rough exterior to find her creamy center) and an interest in music. Last but certainly not least, we have Red-Haired Rylee, with enough freckles to melt your heart. She’s a shy girl and doesn’t like people in her personal bubble. Rylee takes a liking to MC as they find some common ground. and the two of them will work to uncover the mystery of the vending machine.
All the scenes throughout the game are set to a great soundtrack that helps capture the mood.
Layla, Gemma, Xia, Chrysta, and Rylee will be the foundation of the harem you’ll be building in the game if you choose to (all relationships are optional, but c’mon, harem is the right path).
With Matrix Hearts being Blue Otter Games’ first project, I’m excited to watch their skills progress.
TLDR:
- Unique story and set up.
- Great humor throughout the game.
- Engaging characters, LI’s and otherwise
- Speaking of LI’s, there are currently 5 main with a possibility for a few more and all are delightful and beautiful in their own ways
- Harem is the focus of the game but all relationships are optional
- Point and Click sections are small and skippable (but worth it)
- Great soundtrack
- Solid animations during lewd scenes, not the best animation out there, but still good.