Mandrake Shinju Opens Steam Page Ahead of Its 2027 Release

Mandrake Shinju, known in Japanese as マンドラゴラ心中, now has a Steam page available for wishlisting. Creator Marihico publicly announced the store page on October 6, 2026 after it had already been prepared around the game's appearance at OSAKA INDIE GAMES SUMMIT 2026.

The game casts the player as a high-school counselor drawn into an incident involving Nozomi and Riruka. Its defining mechanic is a split-screen text system in which both girls' accounts progress side by side, allowing players to compare agreements and contradictions as they reconstruct what happened.

Quick Summary

• Official Latin / global title: Mandrake Shinju
• Japanese title: マンドラゴラ心中
• Format: video game
• Official Steam genre: Adventure
• Developer description: fanatic girls talk adventure
• Developer: Marihico / マリヒコ
• Publisher: rhizome village
• Status: in development
• Release window: 2027
• Exact release date: unannounced
• Price: unannounced
• Store: Steam
• Steam App ID: 5180430
• Mode: single-player
• Primary focus: text adventure / mystery
• Protagonist: counselor at a high school
• Main character: Nozomi / ノゾミ
• Main character: Riruka / リルカ
• Story connection: the two girls are tied to a shinju incident
• Nozomi's problem: she is troubled by a stalker
• Riruka's suspicion: she suspects Nozomi of cheating
• Central question: what happened when the pair pulled up a mandrake
• Core mechanic: dual-screen simultaneous progression
• Japanese system name: 二画面同時進行
• Presentation: screen divided into two
• Two sides: display separate character accounts
• Narratives: progress in parallel
• Testimonies: sometimes agree
• Testimonies: sometimes significantly contradict each other
• Player objective: compare those differences
• Investigation result: gradually reconstruct the full incident
• Visual element: 2D
• Visual element: pixel-art styling appears in game materials
• Additional presentation: Steam user tags also include 3D
• Steam user tag: Choose Your Own Adventure
• Steam user tag: Interactive Fiction
• Steam user tag: Text-Based
• Steam user tag: Story Rich
• Steam user tag: Choices Matter
• Steam user tag: Psychological
• Steam user tag: Atmospheric
• Steam user tag: Dark
• Important distinction: Steam tags are user-defined rather than the developer's official genre classification
• Artwork & Director: Marihico
• Scenario: Hitomi Kuki / 茎ひとみ
• Programming: Haramochi Kakushi / はらもちかくし
• Music: not currently credited on the Steam page
• Interface language: Japanese
• English support: not currently available
• Indonesian support: unannounced
• Steam trailer: available
• Steam screenshots: available
• Wishlist: open
• Gameplay streaming: permitted
• Gameplay video uploads: permitted
• Monetization: permitted without prior contact according to the Steam page
• Sensitive themes: self-harm / suicide-related themes
• Sensitive themes: psychological instability
• Content focus: investigation rather than graphic depiction
• Extreme violence: not presented as part of the mature-content focus
• Sexual content: not presented as part of the mature-content focus
• Minimum Windows: Windows 10 64-bit
• Minimum CPU: Intel Core i3 / AMD Ryzen 3
• Minimum RAM: 4 GB
• Minimum GPU: Intel HD Graphics 4000 or equivalent
• Minimum storage: 2 GB
• OIGS category: Novel / ADV
• OIGS official English listing: Mandrake Shinju
• OIGS exhibitor: rhizome village
• OIGS 2026: October 3–4, 2026
• Venue: Congress Square Grand Green Osaka
• Online Steam announcement: October 6, 2026
• Current status: wishlist available, awaiting 2027 launch

Steam, Key Art, and Gameplay

Two Screens Become the Investigation

Rather than making players finish one character's route before switching perspectives, Mandrake Shinju places two text streams on screen at the same time.

Nozomi and Riruka can describe related events with different details. Players are expected to notice both the overlaps and the contradictions, gradually using those discrepancies to build a clearer picture of the incident.

Nozomi and Riruka Tell Different Versions

The protagonist works as a school counselor listening to both girls. Nozomi says she is being troubled by a stalker, while Riruka believes Nozomi may be cheating.

A mandrake sits at the center of the larger mystery. The Steam description frames the key question around what happened when the two girls pulled it from the ground.

Steam Page Follows OIGS 2026 Appearance

The Steam page had already been prepared before Marihico's October 6 online announcement, coinciding with the game's appearance at OSAKA INDIE GAMES SUMMIT 2026 on October 3 and 4.

OIGS officially lists the game under Novel / ADV, uses Mandrake Shinju as its Latin title, and identifies rhizome village as the exhibitor.

2027 Release, With Launch Details Still Open

Steam currently gives only a 2027 release window. The exact month, date, price and additional language support have not been announced.

The store page already contains an official trailer and screenshots, giving players an early look at the split-screen presentation before launch.

Why This Matters

1) Two perspectives are displayed literally at the same time

Conflicting testimony is not just a narrative concept; it directly shapes how the player reads the interface.

2) The player is a counselor rather than a conventional detective

Information comes through conversations with two students carrying very different concerns.

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3) Inconsistency itself becomes evidence

The mystery relies not only on physical clues, but also on details that fail to match between the two parallel accounts.

Mandrake Shinju Game Information

For now, the additional important information currently known includes:

• the Japanese title is 『マンドラゴラ心中』
• OIGS uses Mandrake Shinju as the official Latin title
• the game is created by Marihico
• rhizome village is listed as publisher
• the planned release window is 2027
• an exact release date has not been announced
• pricing has not been announced
• the Steam store page is live
• the Steam App ID is 5180430
• the game can already be wishlisted
• it is designed as a single-player title
• Steam officially classifies it under Adventure
• OIGS categorizes it under Novel / ADV
• the developer describes it as a fanatic girls talk adventure
• the protagonist works as a school counselor
• its central setting is connected to a high school
• Nozomi is one of the two central students
• Riruka is the other central student
• a shinju incident connects their stories
• Nozomi reports being troubled by a stalker
• Riruka suspects Nozomi of cheating
• their actions and testimonies do not always match
• a mandrake is a key object in the mystery
• the main system is called 二画面同時進行
• the interface divides the screen into two
• two text streams can be read in parallel
• both characters' viewpoints are compared directly
• some statements may reinforce each other
• others can significantly conflict
• those differences help reconstruct the timeline
• reading and observation form the main player activity
• Steam user tags include Interactive Fiction
• Steam user tags include Choose Your Own Adventure
• Steam user tags include Story Rich
• Steam user tags include Choices Matter
• Steam user tags include Psychological
• Steam user tags include Atmospheric
• Steam user tags are not official developer genre labels
• Marihico handles the artwork
• Marihico also serves as director
• the scenario is credited to 茎ひとみ
• programming is credited to はらもちかくし
• the Steam music credit is currently blank
• Japanese is currently listed as the interface language
• English is not currently supported
• Indonesian is not currently supported
• Steam hosts an official trailer
• Steam also hosts official screenshots
• the Steam trailer provides the footage basis for this article's Short/Reels
• the developer permits gameplay streaming
• uploaded gameplay videos are also permitted
• monetized streaming and video posting are allowed without prior contact
• Steam carries a mature-content notice
• self-harm and suicide-related themes are included
• psychological instability is also part of the subject matter
• the official description emphasizes investigation rather than graphic depiction
• sexual content is not identified as part of the mature material
• extreme violence is not identified as the focus
• minimum Windows OS is Windows 10 64-bit
• minimum CPU is Intel Core i3 or AMD Ryzen 3
• minimum RAM is 4 GB
• minimum graphics is Intel HD Graphics 4000 or equivalent
• minimum storage is 2 GB
• Steam also displays a macOS requirements section
• platform compatibility details may still change before launch
• the game appeared at OSAKA INDIE GAMES SUMMIT 2026
• OIGS took place on October 3 and 4, 2026
• the venue was Congress Square Grand Green Osaka
• the Steam page had been prepared around the OIGS appearance
• Marihico made the first online Steam-page announcement on October 6
• the exact release month remains unannounced
• additional editions remain unannounced
• a soundtrack release remains unannounced
• specific controller support has not been detailed
• achievements have not been confirmed as a listed feature
• a public Steam demo is not currently listed
• project information is available through the Official Project Page
• developer updates are available through Marihico Official X
• the game can be found through Steam
• event information is available through OSAKA INDIE GAMES SUMMIT

Closing

Mandrake Shinju turns conflicting testimony into part of its visual interface, with Nozomi and Riruka's accounts unfolding side by side instead of being separated into conventional routes.

The game is scheduled for 2027 and can already be wishlisted on Steam. Its exact launch date, pricing and additional language support remain unannounced.