{"id":64643,"date":"2026-04-03T22:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-04-03T13:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/automaton-media.com\/en\/?p=64643"},"modified":"2026-04-03T18:13:55","modified_gmt":"2026-04-03T09:13:55","slug":"tohearts-widely-requested-third-installment-was-in-the-works-at-one-point-but-aquaplus-put-the-project-on-hold-because-they-didnt-think-it-could-surpass-its-predecessors","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/automaton-media.com\/en\/news\/tohearts-widely-requested-third-installment-was-in-the-works-at-one-point-but-aquaplus-put-the-project-on-hold-because-they-didnt-think-it-could-surpass-its-predecessors\/","title":{"rendered":"ToHeart\u2019s widely requested third installment was in the works at one point, but Aquaplus put the project on hold because they didn\u2019t think it could \u201csurpass its predecessors\u201d"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Japanese game developer Yuke\u2019s announced last August that it would acquire visual novel publisher Aquaplus<\/a> as its fully owned subsidiary. To dig deeper into the rather unusual partnership between a developer known for 3D action and pro-wrestling titles and a company specializing in story-driven bishojo games, Denfaminicogamer <\/a>recently interviewed Yuke\u2019s president Yukinori Taniguchi and Aquaplus president Naoya Shimokawa. Discussing the recently released remake of the studio\u2019s classic adult romance visual novel ToHeart<\/strong>, the two presidents talked about the franchise\u2019s future and \u201cwhat could\u2019ve been.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When asked about a widely requested next mainline entry in the ToHeart series, Shimokawa revealed that Aquaplus had been listening to its fans, and even started working on a new project at one point. However, the idea for a \u201cTo Heart 3\u201d ended up getting scrapped due to the developers concluding that, even if they did finish it, it wouldn\u2019t be able to surpass the two previous games in quality.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe actually made progress with the project. But midway through, we started doubting whether it would turn out interesting, so we decided to step away from the project for the time being,\u201d he explained.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"ToHeart<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

When it comes to the first and second installments of To Heart, Shimokawa believes that they were able to create an interesting story \u201cwithout compromising,\u201d thanks to its wide cast of characters and fresh story material. \u201cHowever, if we were to develop a sequel or a new installment from there, we\u2019d need to prepare enough characters and ideas that could surpass the previous titles in quality.\u201d Since ToHeart has a signature \u201cspring-like,\u201d youthful feel to its design, including the pink uniforms, it would be difficult to stray from that kind of visual presentation and offer something different, Shimokawa suggests.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On the other hand, if they simply titled a new game \u201cTo Heart\u201d and made a completely different kind of school-themed story, that wouldn\u2019t be what fans want either. Therefore, he argues that simply moving forward with a new sequel wouldn\u2019t be such an easy thing to do.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI do want to make it, and I\u2019m grateful for the encouragement. If we were to make a school-themed game which takes place in a world different to To Heart, then we\u2019d have slightly better chances… Though I understand that everyone wants to see a To Heart 3 come to life.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

ToHeart is available for the PC (Steam<\/a>) and the Nintendo Switch (Japan only).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Related articles:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Aquaplus\u00a0expects quality of its future games to \u201crise dramatically\u201d thanks to new parent company Yuke\u2019s\u00a0
<\/strong><\/a>
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In a recent interview, Aquaplus president Naoya Shimokawa addressed the fans’ requests for a third installment of the game. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":79,"featured_media":64646,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_gspb_post_css":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[17],"class_list":["post-64643","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-japan-related-news"],"blocksy_meta":[],"yoast_head":"\nToHeart\u2019s widely requested third installment was in the works at one point, but Aquaplus put the project on hold because they didn\u2019t think it could \u201csurpass its predecessors\u201d - AUTOMATON WEST<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"In a recent interview, Aquaplus president Naoya Shimokawa addressed the fans' requests for a third installment of the game.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/automaton-media.com\/en\/news\/tohearts-widely-requested-third-installment-was-in-the-works-at-one-point-but-aquaplus-put-the-project-on-hold-because-they-didnt-think-it-could-surpass-its-predecessors\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"ToHeart\u2019s widely requested third installment was in the works at one point, but Aquaplus put the project on hold because they didn\u2019t think it could \u201csurpass its predecessors\u201d - 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