Heaven's Vault Reviews

Heaven's Vault is ranked in the 63rd percentile of games scored on OpenCritic.
5 / 10.0
May 21, 2019

Exploring the lost ruins of ancient civiliyation is not as much fun as it should be.

Review in Slovak | Read full review

Apr 16, 2019

The core mechanic of decoding a language is fascinating, but it can't overcome all that surrounds it: a slow-paced narrative with dated gameplay.

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5 / 10
Apr 16, 2019

Heaven's Vault will satisfy budding archaeologists and linguistic fanatics in fits and starts, but the overall experience that brings those mechanics together leaves a lot to be desired. Alongside technical frustrations and tedious movement between locations, this is hardly a game we can recommend with any sort of confidence.

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6 / 10
Apr 16, 2019

An ambitious narrative adventure that mixes fun lore with fiddly mechanics.

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Apr 17, 2019

A fascinating, fantastical world let down by plodding pacing.

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6.2 / 10.0
Jan 28, 2021

Regardless of how I feel about the game's overall funky mechanics and technical quirks at times, Heaven's Vault deserves credit for putting effort into building a bit of a different world that you'll need to endeavor to explore and understand...

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68 / 100
Apr 22, 2019

At first it seems that Heaven's Vault is an absolute treasure and you can just marvel at the creative ideas that Inkle Studio came up with. But in between all those moments when I loved the game, some of the gameplay mechanics made my eyes glaze over and the experience would lose its luster.

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7 / 10
May 7, 2019

A markedly different approach to adventure gaming; while it won't be for everyone, Heaven's Vault will undoubtedly attract a cult following.

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7 / 10
Feb 13, 2021

Heaven's Vault is a game deeply concerned with the past, how it affects the present, and whether or not it can predict the future. Its fantastic translation puzzles and intricate story are often overshadowed by its unfortunate need to constantly pause and load, sadly denying it the higher score that it otherwise deserves. Aside from these technological issues, Heaven's Vault is a world that's beautifully realised, with a mystery that you'll be thinking about long after the game is done.

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Apr 16, 2019

The game is ambitious for its translation mechanics and its big-picture look at the evolution of culture through the ages.

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Apr 16, 2019

Heaven's Vault may have one of the most well-realized video game worlds ever, with your curiosity and personality molding your story through the Nebula. Whether you're fascinated by history or just by a personal sense of duty, there's a lot to love about Heaven's Vault, even if the clunky movement and frustrating sailing sour the overall experience.

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7.5 / 10.0
Jan 28, 2021

It’s a completely unique kind of game, mixing deep character development, intergalactic sailing (literally), mystery solving, and even ancient civilization linguistics. To top it off, it looks gorgeous, sounds decent enough, and runs surprisingly well on the Switch.

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8 / 10
Apr 19, 2019

It is safe to say that there is no other title in the history of video games that offers a similar experience and atmosphere to Heaven's Vault, but the fact that there is no voice acting in a game that relies so heavily on dialogues and conversations, is a huge mistake that costs Heaven's Vault greatly.

Review in Persian | Read full review

7.7 / 10.0
Apr 18, 2019

An intriguing game for graphic novel fans with a lovable old style art design.

Review in Italian | Read full review

Apr 15, 2019

Playing Heaven’s Vault gives the same sense of satisfaction as curling up with a favourite book. With top-notch writing, exotic locales, and a true sense of adventure, Heaven’s Vault is a triumph.

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Cultured Vultures
Claire Corbel
Top Critic
8 / 10.0
Apr 16, 2019

Although Heaven's Vault boasts no groundbreaking animations, an emphasis on dialogue and language truly makes it stand out as an innovative puzzle game. With characters as colourful as the worlds you visit, you are guaranteed to be swept into an intriguing storyline shaped exclusively by you.

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8 / 10.0
Jan 28, 2021

While issues with the dialogue and a less than stellar space flight mechanic hold the game back from being truly great, there is enough good here to make it well worth your time. The relationship between Aliyah and Six is realistic and fun to see where it goes, and the environments and world building featured are top notch. If any of this caught your attention that may be a sign that you should be heading out to do some archaeology amongst the stardust.

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8 / 10.0
Apr 30, 2019

However, Heaven's Vault is not about deciphering inscriptions for the sake of it, as with each successful translation you'll be one step closer to discovering a long-forgotten history that's about to repeat itself. Not to mention that you'll meet a myriad of characters that will change their attitude depending on how you interact with them.

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8 / 10.0
Feb 11, 2021

Heaven's Vault is a relaxing game with an interesting, immersive storyline and a beautiful world to explore. While it lacks some "side activities," it has plenty to offer with its unique puzzle system and tons of replay value.

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8 / 10.0
Jan 28, 2021

Learning lost, forgotten secrets of the past is a timeless and appealing premise that Heaven's Vault has run with to great effect. This is no Tomb Raider - this is a veritable rabbit hole of well-written dialogue and puzzling unlike any other. You might dig it.

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