Tin Hearts PS5 Review

Tin Hearts is an immersive puzzle adventure game with a deeply emotional story spanning multiple generations hidden within a magically toy-filled world. Find clues to the story hidden in this magical world by guiding your tin soldiers.

Developed by Rogue Sun and published by Wired Productions, Tin Hearts launched first on Nintendo Switch April 20th and will launch on the remaining platforms, including PS4, PS5, Xbox consoles and PC May 16, 2023.

Discover Tin Hearts Easter Egg

Tin Hearts is developed by former Lionhead Studios team members who brought us the critically acclaimed Fable series. An Easter egg can be found in the game, paying tribute to the beloved game series. Keep your eyes out for the Fable chickens hidden throughout the world. Try using your soldiers to unlock the Easter egg.

The more clever puzzle levels I completed, the more I understood the world in which the tin soldiers lived. As you progress, you see subtle hits and flashbacks that tell the story of Albert and Helen Butterworth and their daughter, Rose. Albert is a brilliant toy maker, always adding new features to his tin soldiers. Albert invents new contraptions for his tin soldiers, leading to new game mechanics. I thought this was a clever way of introducing new  mechanicals, and it keeps the game and story flowing nicely.

“Behind every brilliant invention, hides a magical story”

A Puzzle Adventure Game With Clunky Controls

Tin Hearts controls are downright horrible and cause a lot of frustration. An example of this is when you unlock the ability to control one tin soldier. This allows the player to free roam and solve certain parts of the puzzle. Controlling your lone soldier is extremely difficult, and the camera adds to this problem. Consequently, certain pieces of the puzzles are unbearably frustrating with these awful controls. Throughout my time with Tin Hearts, I never experienced any bugs, crashes or frame rate issues.

The rooms throughout the house are full of detail, and the tin solders are stunning.  Apart from the awful controls, I wish they had given more detail to the family in the flashbacks. I get the developers intention from the silhouettes, but facial expressions in some moments would have created a deeper connection for me.

Final Thoughts

Tin Hearts is an immersive puzzle adventure game with a deep emotional story to uncover that will hit you right in the feels. The controls will drive you wild on console; I’d suggest buying the PC version and using a mouse and keyboard. If you can look past these few minor details, I highly recommend Tin Hearts. It’s the perfect game if you don’t have a lot of time to spend and want a game that takes you on an emotional journey.

Review code and images provided by Rogue Sun and Wired Productions. 

Check out our other video game reviews!