Heisei Pistol Show (or the Largest Rose-Colored Happiness-Seeing Life in Heisei History) is an RPGMaker2000 game created by Parun/Horafuki Yokochou in 2008, characterized on his site as only “a strange game” with no further elaboration. It’s difficult to properly describe the unique pastiche of genres that composes its gameplay. Players are presented with a sprawling, dreamlike world to explore, seeking clues as to how to defeat a series of enemies within a limited gun-based battle system that operates more like a puzzle game than typical RPGMaker combat. Exploring a unique and disorienting landscape, managing resources, and gathering intel compose the majority of the unique experience that Heisei Pistol Show presents.

The story follows the lolita-dress-wearing gay assassin Heart as he abandons the hitman’s organization to which he belongs after facing betrayal from an ex-lover, intent on killing him. However, his former colleagues won’t let him go so easily. He and his trusty weapon-shaped friend, Pistol, must find a way to dissuade their pursuers and enact their revenge on the man that broke his heart. Throughout his journey, you’ll encounter charming characters, elaborate musical numbers, and copious psychosexual torment.

Not much more can be said without detracting from the experience – challenging, uncompromising, bittersweet, and sincere, Heisei Pistol Show is an aesthetic and narrative tour de force that eludes synopsis. To write a blurb on its themes would be doing them a massive disservice. It’s the kind of thing that has to be felt to be understood.

Prior to 2021, Heisei Pistol Show was largely inaccessible to English-speaking audiences. However, thanks to the amazing work of the Patchy Illusion Team, the game has been fully translated and is available for download on their itch.io here. If you decide to check it out, please be mindful of the content warnings listed here and on Patchy Illusion Team’s Itch page. The flashing warning is no joke – please be careful!

Due to its obscurity and the recency of the translation, very few resources exist for new players – it currently lacks even one written walkthrough! This page exists not only to generally gush about how beloved this game is to us and introduce it to others, but also to compile information that isn’t readily available in written text elsewhere online.

It's our belief that Heisei Pistol Show is best experienced via a blind playthrough of the game. However, I'd like to link to the great work done by ludzu on Youtube for their full playthrough of the game and it's Post-game extras. These were a great help in the development and research of this page. Thank you! Please leave subtitles on, and leave a comment thanking them for their work.

Don't view the post-game extras until you have played the game!