The developer of RPG Heartbound has a deep love of secrets and crypto puzzles, and as such has hidden information and things within every single thing created in regards to the game. From public announcements to the characters to the game’s files, each will hide things for players to find.
Heartbound is game about a boy and his dog that involves vikings, talking animals, and horrific monsters. Players can engage with these creatures in minigame-based combat that will be unique to each monster, with victory helping them get a little more health with each level up. There is no other stat growth than health, though, so players will need to get good with their abilities.
Heartbound does offer special powers that activate under specific conditions, both in combat and in the field, to make play more interesting. This is done as opposed to using items in the game, so players will want to explore to find some of these abilities, or watch their battle conditions with care.
The game states that every decision, from something as simple as flicking on a light, will have an effect on the world in some way. Everything the player does, including how they handle combat, will reflect in the game in some way, even if it may not be immediately clear how. These decisions will also lead to one of several endings.
Heartbound is heavy with secrets as well. The developer has hidden various dreams, messages, terrors, and bits of history throughout the game, burying them within its code, characters, and other aspects. Players will need to do quite a bit of digging to completely understand the game, and anything that has even the slightest thing to do with the game can hide a clue.
Heartbound already has an ARG for players to solve for players who wish to get themselves into its mindset. A demo is also available, and players can vote for the game on Steam Greenlight.
