I have always been a sucker for visual style novel games and many people say that If My Heart Had Wings is one of the best in the genre. This game was actually released a while ago and in Japan, it actually has more explicit content than the version that was released in the west, although there is a patch to put it back in.
How to Download If My Heart Had Wings
The game can be downloaded from Steam. And if you like the genre be sure to also check out Tricolour Lovestory, Sabbat of the Witch or The Ditzy Demons Are in Love with Me.
The Game Review
As you would expect from a visual novel game the main selling point of If My Heart Had Wings is the story. What I liked about the story was how it grabbed me right from the start. The main character is called Aoi and he had dreams of becoming a racing champ, but an accident leaves these dreams in pieces.
He returns to his hometown where he has what can be best described as an existential crisis as he wonders what the heck to do with his life. I found this pretty powerful and I am sure it is something that we can all relate to at some point in our life. Aoi, sees a glider and this is the inspiration he needs to take the next step in his life and that next step just so happens to be taking flight.
Now as this is a visual novel game you know that wooing various young ladies is a huge part of the game. Aoi along with a friend from childhood try to bring back a soaring club that the school had long disbanded and this is where he meets some interesting new people. This is a romance game, but I feel the story of Aoi finding meaning with his life is actually the strongest part of it.
The presentation of If My Heart Had Wings is just pure eye candy. The 2D artwork in this game will take your breath away. Seriously this is one of the most eye-catching visual novel games you will ever see. I am not overselling it when I say that it is almost movie-like quality. That is how good the art in the game is!
There are five different main story arcs that you can experience and I would say you are easily looking at 20 plus hours of game time here. So you are getting a lot of bang for your buck. Speaking of “bang” If My Heart Had Wings as I said in the intro is censored here in the West. This means if you want the… well you know, you will have to find and install a patch. Please be careful when doing this.
My only little criticism with the game is that the translation is not exactly 100 percent spot on. However, I found it to be nowhere near as bad as some people make out and where there is a little something that is wrong, it gave me more of a chuckle than anything else and it did not pull me out of the story.
Visual novel games are either something you like or you do not. I think that If My Heart Had Wings is one of the more charming stories I have come across. While it does have dating and girls in it. For me, the real pull of the story has to be Aoi trying to find his place in the world.
