The Shadow Hearts Box Art Gallery
Four games, three regions, and almost no two covers alike.
This is the paper and plastic shelf for the whole line: Koudelka (PlayStation, 1999) and the three Shadow Hearts games (PlayStation 2, 2001 to 2005), developed by Sacnoth and its successor Nautilus. Japan, North America and Europe each art-directed these boxes separately, so the gallery is organised by game and region, with the discs themselves below.
Every image here is a verified scan or publisher file of the real retail packaging, checked against MobyGames cover groups, GameFAQs box records and the games’ reference pages before use.
KOUDELKA
PlayStation, 1999
Japan · 1999
SNK. One face, filling the whole box: the CGI Koudelka of the game’s cutscenes. The catalog numbers printed at lower left, SLPS 02460 to 3, quietly admit the game runs to four discs.
North America · 2000
Infogrames. All three leads in CGI, the taglines “The Journey, The Horror, The Will to Survive,” and a printed promise few PS1 boxes made: “4 DISCS.”
Europe · 2000
Infogrames. A painted Koudelka instead of the CGI cast: the only illustrated cover of the three regions.
SHADOW HEARTS
PlayStation 2, 2001
Japan · 2001
Aruze. No characters at all: an astrological chart, an arcane eye, and the logo. One of the boldest PS2 covers of its year.
North America · 2001
Midway. The opposite choice: the character illustration of Yuri, Alice and Albert Simon that the West knows.
Japan · the Best reissue
The budget reprint kept the original art and added a price flash, ¥1,980, a chibi Yuri and a bonus DVD offer.
SHADOW HEARTS: COVENANT
Japan knew it as Shadow Hearts II, 2004
Japan · 2004
Aruze. Yuri alone, hand raised against the light, the Judgement Ring’s disc worked into the title treatment.
North America · 2004
Midway. The Western box belongs to Karin Koenig, the German officer who opens the game. Same sequel, different lead on the cover.
Japan · DX Pack · 2004
The limited edition went the other way: near-black packaging with only the emblem and logo. This scan carries the “sample” mark of a review copy.
Japan · Director’s Cut · 2005
The 2005 budget reissue is a different edition of the game itself: the Director’s Cut, with additional content, never released outside Japan.
SHADOW HEARTS: FROM THE NEW WORLD
PlayStation 2, 2005
Japan · 2005
Aruze. Miyako Kato’s illustration of Johnny and Shania on white: the lightest cover the series ever had.
North America · 2006
Xseed. A rendered Johnny holding an unconscious Shania against a red seal. This scan shows the pre-release “Rating Pending” mark.
Europe · 2007
Ghostlight. The ensemble cover: the whole playable cast, the third composition for the same game.
Japan · Starter Pack
A bundle with homework: the game plus two strategy books, the FtNW special guide and the Shadow Hearts II Director’s Cut append guide, for ¥6,090.
THE DISCS
What complete actually means
Koudelka · Disc 1 of 4
SLUS-01051. The four discs carry SLUS-01051, 01100, 01101 and 01102: a complete set is four discs, four numbers.
Koudelka · Disc 2 of 4
SLUS-01100.
Koudelka · Disc 3 of 4
SLUS-01101.
Koudelka · Disc 4 of 4
SLUS-01102. The voice acting and film footage are why a ten-to-fifteen-hour game needed all four.
Shadow Hearts · 1 DVD
The whole of the first game fits a single DVD.
Covenant · Disc 1 of 2
SLUS-21041. Covenant is a two-DVD game, over forty hours: check for both discs before anything else.
Covenant · Disc 2 of 2
SLUS-21044. Two catalogue numbers, two discs; lone Disc 1 copies are the series’ most common incomplete listing.
From the New World · 1 DVD
Back to a single DVD, a squeeze the developers themselves noted.