Heaven Burns Red (ヘブンバーンズレッド, Hebun Bānzu Reddo) (stylized in block capitals) is a free-to-play mobile action game[citation needed] co-developed by WFS, inc. and Key. It was released on February 10, 2022, for iOS and Android in Japan, and worldwide in 15 November 2024.[2] It is Jun Maeda's first completely new game in 15 years as main scenario writer since Little Busters! (2007). A version for Windows is available on Steam, as well as a separate client for the global version.[a]
Gameplay
Ruka Kayamori interacts with other characters (top); a battle in Heaven Burns Red(bottom)
The player takes the point of view of Ruka Kayamori, a former vocalist and guitarist for now-disbanded legendary band "She Is Legend". The game has a day-to-day system in which the player starts as newly enrolled Ruka Kayamori, meeting new characters as the story progresses. Monthly events take place within the game in the form of side stories, told from other characters' perspectives.[2]
Heaven Burns Red is a turn-based role playing game in which the player can assemble a team of six out of 48 available girls and fight against extraterrestrial beings known as Cancer. During their turn, the player can choose three characters from the party to perform an action (attack, heal, etc.). Both characters and Cancer are equipped with Deflectors (DF) which work as a shield and can also be healed; characters HP cannot be healed if their DF breaks and will be left vulnerable, though some characters have the skill to heal a broken DF. The game's story is told in a visual novel style, fully voiced. There is also a "Sixth Sense Mode".[2]
Plot
Heaven Burns Red takes place in a world where the Earth is being attacked by mysterious extraterrestrial life forms called "Cancer." Cancer are immune to any kind of weapon and have been forcing humanity to abandon most of the Earth's surface. Left with little time before they face extinction, humanity successfully created a weapon to take on Cancer known as "Seraph." Humanity gathered those who had mastered the art of manipulating Seraphs and established "Seraph Corps" as their last hope. Those who could manipulate Seraphs have one thing in common: they are all girls. One of them is Ruka Kayamori, who finds herself thrown into the war against Cancer.[2]
Development
In October 2019, it was announced that Jun Maeda was collaborating with Wright Flyer Studios and Key on Heaven Burns Red.[4] Initially planned to be released in 2020, the game had been delayed to 2021,[5][6] and subsequently to February 2022.[7][8] Yuugen served as main visual illustrator and character designer, alongside Na-Ga, Fumuyun, and Maroyaka.[2][9] Maeda also serves as composer. Nagi Yanagi performed the main theme and insert songs,[10] while Rionos performed the ending theme.[11]
Collaboration event
As part of the game's 1st anniversary campaign, the game collaborated with Jun Maeda's other franchise, Angel Beats!. The event titled "Place Where The Cosmos Continued to Bloom" (コスモスが咲き続けた場所, Kosumosu ga Sakitsuzuketa Basho) was available from February 2, 2023, and featured 3 of the franchise's characters: Yuri Nakamura, Kanade Tachibana, and Miyuki Irie. In the collaboration story, Unit 1A found themselves in an unfamiliar place, which turned out to be the underground base of the SSS, however they could still use their Seraph weapons. Players were able to obtain SS Style Yuri and Kanade through a limited-time gacha, whilst S Style Miyuki was obtainable through exchanging event tokens.[12]
Release
Heaven Burns Red released on February 10, 2022, for iOS and Android devices.[13]Yostar later announced during the 2024 Anime Expo that it would release the game worldwide later in the year.[14]
The game was released worldwide on 15 November 2024 for iOS, Android and Windows via a separate client.
Other media
A 4-panelmanga adaptation illustrated by Yū Tsurusaki began serialization on Kadokawa Corporation's G's Channel website and on the game's official Twitter account in Q4 2023.[15]
Notes
^The game was originally planned to release in 2020, but was delayed to 2021, before it was released on February 10, 2022.[3]
