[UPDATE] Shadow Hearts Spiritual Successor ‘Penny Blood’ Kickstarter Announced; Combat & Premise Details, Screenshots

Veterans behind the Shadow Hearts series have announced a spiritual successor Double Kickstarter campaign for a new title, Penny Blood. The other game featured in this Double Kickstarter initiative is a Wild Arms spiritual successor, Armed Fantasia.

Penny Blood is a gothic horror JRPG where players control protagonist Matthew Farrell, an Bureau of Investigation worker in the Roaring Twenties (1920s) attempting to uncover the truths behind a mental asylum incident in New York. Bizarre creatures crowd the facility, and Matthew manages to eliminate them with his fusion transformation abilities, though he seeks to stamp out the root of the issue.

UPDATE 8/29/2022: The Double Kickstarter Campaign is now live.

Matthew will explore several corners of the world, such as America, Japan, China, and Europe, and encounter countless individuals reacting to the new plight differently. However, “Penny Blood tells the tale of a man who must become that which he seeks to vanquish.”

The world map has a bird’s-eye-view, acting as a conduit for players to reach detailed areas housing merchants and countless odd happenings. Combat utilizes the Psycho Sigil battle system, where players must react at the right time during attacks to maximize damage output. Additionally, the Fusion system allows party members to transform and use more destructive skills.

Sanity Points are lost when interacting with demons too frequently, ultimately causing allies to succumb to madness. Their common sense deteriorates with the benefit of drastically increased strength, which might just turn the tide of battle.

The currently confirmed staff are as follows:

• Composers – Hirota Yoshitaka – Shadows Hearts and Shadow Hearts: Covenant & Akari Kaida – Breath of Fire 3
• Lead Game Designer – Matsuzo Machida
• Character Design – Miyako Kato

Lead Game Designer Matsuzo Machida shared the following statement regarding this project:

“This is my second chance. Chances to make another game like this are rare, so please give me your support.

The Kickstarter for Armed Fantasia and Penny Blood will be accessible on August 29, 2022. No platforms or a planned release window have been stated yet.

You can view officially provided screenshots below:

Official artwork for the Double Kickstarter campaign was also shared, viewable below:

One of the teams behind the project, Studio Wild Rose, published a blog post sharing new artwork, viewable via our gallery below:

UPDATE 8/29/2022: The Double Kickstarter Campaign is now live, and the page shares soundtrack previews for Penny Blood. Two new characters were also revealed, viewable below:

UPDATE 8/30/2022: The title has been funded alongside Armed Fantasia. New art was shared for the occasion, viewable below: