Code provided with many thanks to Dead Good media.
Fantasy to Puzzle
Tin Hearts is a delightful 3D puzzle title brought to you by the team behind the Fable series. This is a little different from the action RPG genre but this game certainly maintains the charm and unique design I felt from playing that series. Tin Hearts can be enjoyed with and without VR. Since I lack the tech of a VR headset in any form my impressions of this game will be written based on the non-VR version. If you’re looking for a chilled puzzle experience with calming music and immersion then Tin Hearts is one to add to your wishlist.
Lead the Troops
The objective of the game is to lead a number of wooden toy soldiers to an exit doorway. Once you release them from their toy box of origin they will continuously move forward until you guide them by placing blocks in their path to change their direction. The game starts out quite simple, breaking you into these mechanics by having designated spots to place blocks in a specific orientation. But after a few levels, you are left to get creative, placing blocks anywhere in the level while trying to figure out how to lead the troops to the exit.
The game gives off a very calming and relaxing vibe. There isn’t a detrimental cost to getting things wrong. A rewind mechanic allows you to reverse those small whoopsies. Even fast forward if you want them to march a bit quicker. If things go really wrong like you lure the soldiers off the edge of the table or get them stuck in a loop you can just recall them back to their toy box of origin. The soldiers can be paused at any moment and you can even track their pathway with the press of the space bar. This allows you to place blocks in advance and avoid the need for tedious trial and error. But if you don’t want any of this assistance it’s all entirely optional giving the player a choice to make the game less hand-holding if they choose.
First Person Immersion
The game is set entirely in the first-person view. If quite clear where the VR elements would come into play as you often see a ghost-like hand reach out for new items you acquire. Even with an uncomfortable device strapped to my head I felt pretty immersed in the experience regardless. This is helped by the game’s captivating soundtrack which will keep the stress levels nice and low and possibly act as a good lullaby if you need something good to fall asleep to.
Levels are presented as these charming Victorian-style toy workshops with wooden toys and various works in progress dotted about the levels. The game gives you the opportunity to simply walk about and explore the levels if you choose to discover more about the backstory of the game.
Don’t go Breaking my Heart
The immediate vibe I got off Tin Hearts was Lemmings but significantly less stressful. Lemmings was a game released on many platforms back in the old retro days. Here you led little fellas towards an exit but unfortunately, some or sometimes all of them would perish. Some of you old gamers will remember the famous ‘nuke’ button when it all went wrong. Tin Hearts is a calming experience that I feel can be enjoyed alone or possibly with a loved one. Out of VR, I can see this being a game you could share together giving each other tips on how to solve the puzzles. But if being strapped in is your preference it does appear the developers have made this a very impressive VR experience. It’s just nice to see some developers remember not everyone has VR.
Tin Hearts is a warm fuzzy feeling game suitable for absolutely everybody VR or no VR and is coming soon to Steam. Their hearts may be made of tin but gold may be a more suitable element to describe the positive feelings I had playing this game. No announcement date has currently been given.