Shujinkou News

[p][/p][h2]Shujinkou OST Available Now on Steam![/h2][p]We are super excited to announce that the Shujinkou™ Original Soundtrack is now digitally available on Bandcamp, Steam, and the newly-opened Rice Games Web Store! The 158-track digital album is priced at $25 (with regional pricing planned appropriately).[/p][p][dynamiclink][/dynamiclink][/p]

• [p]Bandcamp: https://music.ricegames.net/album/shujinkou-original-soundtrack[/p]
• [p]Rice Games Web Store: https://ricegames.net/product/shujinkou-original-soundtrack-digital/[/p]

[p][/p][p]Experience the epic musical journey of Shujinkou with this monumental seven-disc soundtrack, featuring 158 tracks and nearly 7 hours of unforgettable music. This massive album spans over a dozen genres, including (but not limited to) classical, rock, metal, electronic, jazz, lounge and gypsy music. It also features dozens of Middle Eastern desert melodies and East Asian influences, including Japanese and Chinese traditional music.[/p]

• [p]“A solid contender for one of this year’s best scores” – Tech-Gaming (Review – 9/10)[/p]

[p]Immerse yourself in heart-pounding battle themes, sweeping character motifs, and emotional boss music, alongside instrumental versions of vocal tracks and tracks that have multiple variations (each with unique solos and arrangements). Minigame tracks, battle tracks, and more have Shu, Jin, and Kou’s powerful melodic motifs expertly arranged and integrated to create an immersive listening experience.[/p]

• [p]“One of the most memorable soundtracks of the year, a massive compliment considering it’s up there with the likes of Hades 2 and Clair Obscur: Expedition 33.” – Gfinity (Review – 9/10)[/p]

[p]Composed by several world-class composers and artists from the USA and Japan, brought to life by over a dozen live performers, and mastered by Warner Music Japan, the Shujinkou Original Soundtrack is an extraordinary six-year collaboration that celebrates the heart and soul of Shujinkou.[/p]

• [p]“These songs are phenomenal… it’s an outstanding soundtrack” – Noisy Pixel (Review – 9.5/10)[/p]

[p][/p][p]From start to finish, it’s a thrilling musical experience you won’t forget![/p][p][/p][p][/p][h2]Downloadable Files & Space Requirements[/h2][p]Album Download (MP3 / 320 kbps): 1.1 GB available space[/p][p]Album Download (WAV):  7.2 GB available space[/p][p][/p][h2]Shujinkou Original Soundtrack Credits[/h2][p]Lead Composer: Brian LaGuardia[/p][p]Artists: Brian LaGuardia, Robert Mullis, Ryo Noguchi, Frank Tedesco, Masaki Takao, Kana Kitada, Julian Rice[/p][p]Label: Rice Games Inc[/p][p][/p][p]Other Credits[/p][p]Female Vocals - Megumi Hidzuki, Sasha Y[/p][p]Background Vocals - Brian LaGuardia[/p][p]Violin - Tracy LaGuardia, Issaku Matsumoto, Julian Rice[/p][p]Acoustic Guitar - Ryo Noguchi, Robert Mullis[/p][p]Electric Guitar - Ryo Noguchi, Robert Mullis[/p][p]Bass Guitar - Robert Mullis[/p][p]Cello - Adam Riggs[/p][p]Piano - Frank Tedesco, Kana Kitada[/p][p]Erhu & Zhonghu - Michael Fitzmaurice[/p][p]Saxophone - Makoto Douchi[/p][p]Flute - Makoto Douchi[/p][p]Shakuhachi - Zac Zinger[/p][p]Shinobue - Zac Zinger[/p][p]Doumbek - Brian LaGuardia[/p]

[p]Our 10th Metacritic-affiliated review is here! We got a comprehensive review from Senior Editor Evan Norris of VGChartz, scoring Shujinkou at an amazing 8/10. VGChartz is one of the toughest critics, averaging at just 6.5/10 for their reviews.[/p][p][/p][h2]Please give the full review a read here:[/h2][p][/p][h2]Excerpts from the Review[/h2]

• [p]"Thanks to its lovable characters, addictive dungeon-crawling gameplay, meaningful side-quests, great music, and inventive syllable-based fighting mechanics, it's both an outstanding video game and an effective teaching tool."[/p]
• [p]"You can take advantage of elemental weaknesses: water beats fire, fire beats wood, wood beats earth, and so on. For another, you can take advantage of ontological weaknesses. This is where the game really shows off its cleverness."[/p]
• [p]"But the central plot hook turns out to be less important than all the character-building and camaraderie that surrounds it. This is where the game truly shines."[/p]
• [p]"Shujinkou is filled with quality-of-life features designed to accommodate even the fussiest and most forgetful players—It's all incredibly considerate."[/p]
• [p]"The game's soundtrack is perhaps the most pleasantly surprising piece of Shujinkou. I quickly fell in love with the soundscape of Genya."[/p]

[p][/p][h2]Review Conclusion[/h2][p]"Thanks to Shujinkou, I know more Japanese than ever before. I have a basic understanding of sentence structure and logic, and can call upon a limited vocabulary. More importantly, though, I can say I've played a legitimately great RPG (...) Now, not everything is perfect. Some of the menus are clumsy, the Kanakae system can be overwhelming, and there are rare instances where the language-learning and role-playing aspects fight for control. But, in general, the game accomplishes its very ambitious goals."[/p][p][/p][p]🎷 Listen to the soundtrack here:[/p][p][dynamiclink][/dynamiclink][/p][p][/p]

[p][/p][h2]Bug Fixes[/h2]

• [p]Fix resolution problems on ultrawide monitors, including proper dropdown display of selectable 16:9 resolutions.[/p]
• [p]Fix harmless error that may appear when a Yajuu joins a normal battle.[/p]
• [p]Fix input error that could take place when spamming inputs in the Fuu Underground.[/p]
• [p]Fix residual errors that may pop up when finishing Okkake no Osakenori.[/p]
• [p]Fix the equipment type of two late game equipment pieces.[/p]
• [p]Fix very small navigation issue with buttons and controllers for a couple dozen spots.[/p]
• [p]Fix typos and other issues found in a few dialogue scenes.[/p]
• [p]Fix a progression bug that only occurs for some players in Labyrinth 10.[/p]
• [p]Fix an equipment duplication error.[/p]

[p][/p][h2]Our Biggest Priorities[/h2]

• [p]We want to add a "Fast-Forward" (by holding a certain key) to some minigames so that they can be played and progressed through more quickly.[/p]
• [p]We've noticed some physics inconsistencies in Tatiana's minigame, Kotoba Kyuugi, and are looking to fix this soon.[/p]
• [p]We've noted that some bottles can get stuck in the path of play in Otogawa's minigame, Okkake no Osakenori, and are looking to fix this soon.[/p]
• [p]We've noticed that when holding a button to move, then sliding your hand (while still holding the button) to another button occasionally does not allow the player to rotate properly in the dungeon. We are looking to fix in the near future.[/p]
• [p]We may be able to prepare a Nintendo Switch-specific option that improves graphics for those playing on Nintendo Switch 2. ✅ UPDATE: This is done and waiting to be released later this month![/p]
• [p]There are some users still experiencing issues with widescreen play, for example with selectable resolutions not appearing in the dropdown option. Although we were planning to revisit this issue in September, we ended up not having the bandwidth to do so due to the recent launch of the port on Nintendo Switch. We apologize for the inconvenience and plan on looking into this in October. ✅ UPDATE: This is done and is confirmed to work on every ultrawide monitor! Applying this fix to the Demo version will happen later this week.[/p]

[p][/p][h2]Thank you![/h2][p]Thank you Shujinkou players for your continued support and QOL requests! Feel free to join our Discord community if you need assistance with gameplay, want to suggest features or provide constructive feedback, or want to meet and chat with other fans of Shujinkou![/p][p][/p][p]https://discord.com/invite/UdCdvSuwpk[/p][p][/p][p][/p][p]Read more about this update on the official Rice Games website:[/p][p]https://ricegames.net/2025/10/20/shujinkou-v1-43-patch-notes/[/p][p][/p][p][/p]

[p]Our eighth Metacritic-affiliated review is here! We got a review from Andrés Aquino of Gfinity, scoring Shujinkou at a very high 9/10.[/p][p][/p][h2]Please give the full review a read here:[/h2][p] [/p][h2]Excerpts from the Review[/h2]

• [p]"After spending dozens of hours with the game, I can safely say that it has helped me infinitely, especially when it comes to dusting off my Hiragana and Katakana while providing a shockingly in-depth guide for the basics of Japanese as a language." [/p]
• [p]"If you've played games like Persona, you'll feel right at home." [/p]
• [p]"Progress is a tad slow, but I appreciate Rice Games gradually feeding more and more mechanics as you play through the game to avoid players feeling overwhelmed." [/p]
• [p]"While it stands on its own as a very well thought-out JRPG, much of its systems work in conjunction with mastering at least a bit of the Japanese language." [/p]
• [p]"The base game is more than enough content to keep you busy for dozens of hours with a very interesting story, gameplay mechanics that mostly hit the mark, compelling characters, and one of the most memorable soundtracks of the year, a massive compliment considering it's up there with the likes of Hades 2 and Clair Obscur: Expedition 33."[/p]
• [p]"Shujinkou has the makings of a cult classic that, hopefully, will be enjoyed by even more players in the future."[/p]

[p][/p][h2]Review Conclusion[/h2][p]"An amazing learning tool but an even better game, Shujinkou is an ambitious JRPG that's very much worth your time in what's already an incredible year for independent games."[/p][p][/p][p]🎷 Listen to the soundtrack here:[/p][p][dynamiclink][/dynamiclink][/p]

[h2]Bug Fixes[/h2]

• [p]Fix issue where Kaifuku Ball could not be used outside of battle.[/p]
• [p]Fix a game softlock/freeze when approaching a certain boss battle from a certain position and angle in the final area of Labyrinth 2.[/p]
• [p]Fix an issue with button input sometimes not working smoothly when selecting party members for a special battle.[/p]
• [p]Fix an issue with button input in the Tsuri (fishing) minigame occasionally causing the game to stall after a completed reel.[/p]
• [p]Fix an issue with camera clipping in the Omikuji system.[/p]
• [p]Reduce special effects intensity of certain battles to improve overall performance.[/p]
• [p]Fixed a few typos and accidental usage of kanji in certain furigana-only fields.[/p]
• [p]Fix a rare bug where a character's Onsen outfit could stay in place even in dialogue taking place outside of the Onsen.[/p]
• [p]Players can no longer access the Enemy View menu while the Kanakae UI is active.[/p]
• [p]Fixed a few instances of graphical clipping in certain labyrinths.[/p]
• [p]Fix rare case of game freezing (harmless, but for too long) when saving the game.[/p]
• [p]Remove "No Extra Notes" text from Okkake no Osakenori to prevent text overflow.[/p]
• [p]Fix issue with being unable to interact with Kunihiko in Fuu Underground when playing Okkake no Osakenori.[/p]
• [p]Unity security vulnerability fix has been implemented. Read more about it here.[/p]

[p][/p][h2]Our Biggest Priorities[/h2]

• [p]We want to add a "Fast-Forward" (by holding a certain key) to some minigames so that they can be played and progressed through more quickly.[/p]
• [p]We've noticed some physics inconsistencies in Tatiana's minigame, Kotoba Kyuugi, and are looking to fix this soon.[/p]
• [p]We've noted that some bottles can get stuck in the path of play in Otogawa's minigame, Okkake no Osakenori, and are looking to fix this soon.[/p]
• [p]We've noticed that when holding a button to move, then sliding your hand (while still holding the button) to another button occasionally does not allow the player to rotate properly in the dungeon. We are looking to fix in the near future.[/p]
• [p]We may be able to prepare a Nintendo Switch-specific option that improves graphics for those playing on Nintendo Switch 2.[/p]
• [p]There are some users still experiencing issues with widescreen play, for example with selectable resolutions not appearing in the dropdown option. Although we were planning to revisit this issue in September, we ended up not having the bandwidth to do so due to the recent launch of the port on Nintendo Switch. We apologize for the inconvenience and plan on looking into this in October.[/p]

[p][/p][h2]Thank you![/h2][p]Thank you Shujinkou players for your continued support and QOL requests! Feel free to join our Discord community if you need assistance with gameplay, want to suggest features or provide constructive feedback, or want to meet and chat with other fans of Shujinkou![/p][p]https://discord.com/invite/UdCdvSuwpk[/p][p][/p][p]Read more about this update on the official Rice Games website:[/p][p]https://ricegames.net/2025/10/05/shujinkou-v1-42-patch-notes/[/p][p][/p]