A young boy finds himself in a hospital for a rather extended stay. While there, he meets the other patients of the hospital and learns about their own afflictions and struggles. He also has a book about a magical place, and before too long he finds doors in the hospital that can take him to this fantasy world. While there, he finds that some of the creatures have the same names as the residents of the hospital. What is the connection between the two worlds?

This is the premise of “Rakuen,” by Laura Shigihara. Although this is her first game, she is no stranger to the video game industry, as she is the composer, sound director and vocalist for a variety of games, including Plants vs. Zombies and World of Warcraft. Needless to say, the music is one of the strongest features. The background music fits the various moods, and the central song is quite moving and performed well. There is no voice acting, however, except for the portions of the songs that are sung.

The player takes control of the main character – simply called “Boy” - as he explores the hospital and the fantasy world of Rakuen. He learns that he can receive a wish from Morizora, the Guardian of the Forest – just like the hero of the fantasy book his mother reads to him! As he explores the world of talking animals and colorful creatures called Leebles, he also finds connections to the hospital where he has to stay. As the player advances through the plot, they also learn about a disaster that hit Korea, where the hospital portions of the game take place. The bulk of the game consists of the Boy discovering the stories of the other patients and fixing them. Once he repairs the problems the other patients face, he can obtain his wish.

Graphically, there isn’t a whole lot going for Rakuen. The artwork is pleasant, but not terribly impressive, with a look reminiscent of something that can be produced using RPG Maker. The character portraits are good, but get repetitive after a while. The controls are keyboard-only (my controller wouldn’t even register) and there is no way to rebind to a different setup. Fortunately, the controls aren’t too complex anyway, so they just take a little getting used to.

The story is nice, with some mystery elements to help keep the plot compelling and moving forward. However, the gameplay isn’t terribly challenging, and there were a few times when the game felt more like a visual novel set in an isometric RPG-style perspective, rather than a complex and dynamic setting. Even with the various items that can be collected, Rakuen can be completed within 12 hours. Once everything is completed, there is little reason to replay the game. Without going into spoiler territory, I also found the ending to be somewhat ambiguous, and not terribly satisfying.

As for moral considerations, this game is pretty clean. Although Steam has marked this with the “horror” tag, there really aren’t any horror elements to it. Certainly, the main enemies – shadowy figures known as the Envoy – are spooky, but not really terrifying. The player has no combat skill and can’t fight back, only avoid them. If one of the Envoy touches you, the screen flashes, and your character wakes up at a checkpoint, typically near the entrance to the room with the challenge. There are indications that people pass away over the course of the story – and quite a few before the story begins – but the deaths are off-screen. Those are the only real moral concerns, actually – possibly due to the subject matter, there really isn’t anything that could be found as objectionable.

All in all, Rakuen is a pleasant game, but not a particularly memorable one. Experience it for the story, but if you’re looking for a challenge or an expansive world to explore, you’ll likely be disappointed. The soundtrack could be a good one to pick up, though!