Code:Realize - Sousei no Himegimi

Within Cardia Beckford's hazy memories, she can recall her father Isaac and the home where she lives alone, feared as a monster by the townsfolk—for in her body, she carries a deadly substance. Embedded in her chest by her father, the eternally beating heart—also known as Horologium—has the capability to produce infinite power. However, it also makes her skin destroy anything it touches.

Many in London seek the Horologium, including the terrorist organization Twilight, with whom Isaac is rumored to have close ties. To obtain the Horologium's power, the British military forces Cardia to leave her home as their prisoner. But on the road, she is whisked away by the gentleman thief Arsène Lupin, who says he will steal her heart. Joining Lupin and his companions, Cardia begins a journey to discover the truth behind Isaac's connection with Twilight, her missing memories, and the Horologium within her chest.

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

Lupin, Arsène Main

Maeno, Tomoaki Japanese

Beckford, Cardia Main

Hayami, Saori Japanese

Saint-Germain Main

Hirakawa, Daisuke Japanese

Barbicane, Impey Main

Morikubo, Shoutarou Japanese

Frankenstein, Victor Main

Kakihara, Tetsuya Japanese

Van Helsing, Abraham Main

Suwabe, Junichi Japanese

Delacroix II Main

Ishigami, Miho Japanese

Finis Supporting

Kaji, Yuuki Japanese

Sholmès, Herlock Supporting

Murakami, Kazuya Japanese

Guinevere Supporting

Akahori, Kanako Japanese

Cook, Justin Producer

Fukao, Satoshi Producer

Isogai, Noritomo Producer

Yoshitake, Shintarou Producer

Reviews

Jan 6, 2026

maya_kotori

Recommended

This is another one of those anime that I watched and genuinely really liked :3 Even though it only had one season, it was absolutely worth it. The world, the characters, the steampunk aesthetic, everything felt so charming and unique. It’s one of those shows that leaves a warm impression even if it’s short. And honestly, I still remember watching half of the first episode in the school cafeteria, which somehow makes the whole experience even funnier and more nostalgic. There’s something special about starting an anime in a completely random place and then having it stick with you afterward. The romance, the ... atmosphere, the mystery, it all blended together beautifully. Short, sweet, and definitely memorable.

Reviewer’s Rating: 10

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Dec 26, 2025

GalaxieFlora

Mixed Feelings

So, the "Code: Realize" visual novels (which this anime is based on) is my favorite otome game of the ones I’ve played. It’s considered a classic within the otome game niche, and the games are very well-received: the first game has over an 8/10 on Visual Novel Database and is one of the highest rated otome games on the site; Cardia (the protagonist) is among the most beloved otome game heroines (with most praising her character developing from an emotionally-suppressed “doll” to embracing her humanity and becoming more expressive, playful, and confident; and her being fairly proactive in the story. Fun fact: in some ... Japanese character polls, she ranks higher than even some of the love interests. In fact, for the character poll for the final game in the series, she outright ranked above most of them; only two ranked higher than her) and both the plot and love interests are generally considered well-written and fun.

So it was quite a surprise for me to see the somewhat low ranking for the anime adaptation (6.7/10) on MyAnimeList and many complaints about Cardia being boring and bland, the love interests and character seeming too archetypal and one-note; the plot being confusing, not making sense, that it was “wasted potential of a good concept,” stuff like that. It’s the complete opposite of what those who play the visual novel praise it for.

So after a couple of years, I finally got around to watching the anime adaptation, and here are my thoughts:

Stuff I Liked:

•I really enjoyed Saori Hayami as Cardia. In the original game, Cardia is a voiceless character, which while I don’t exactly hate that, I do greatly prefer my leads to be voiced. I think Hayami’s voice fits Cardia well. It really did make me wish even more that Hayami voiced her in the game too.
I’ll admit, I may also be biased since I’m a huge "Spy x Family" fan too.
•I loved seeing the characters who were faceless (such as Delly’s parents and Etty) in the game actually be given a proper design in the anime.
•I really liked seeing Lupin actually have more moments of getting flustered and love struck around Cardia. You didn’t really see any of these in the original game, so it was cute and I felt added a bit of chemistry in an area of their romance that I felt the original game was lacking.
•I enjoyed some of the anime-only scenes that were added. I especially liked the ones where we get to actually see the war camp, the soldiers and how the war is affecting them.
•It was cool to see some of the scenes from the game animated.
•I thought they did a good job translating the character designs of the visual novel to an animated format.
•The backgrounds are very detailed and beautiful.
•I really liked the ending theme.
•Some of the action scenes were pretty good, especially those in the latter half of the anime.

Stuff I Thought Was Fine:

•The general soundtrack is fine, but I also didn’t really find any of the background tracks memorable, especially when compared to the game’s amazing soundtrack.

Stuff I Disliked:

•You know, it’s funny. One of the most common complaints about the visual novel is that the common route is too long. But here, it’s the exact opposite. At least the VN’s slow start gives time to flesh out the story and characters at a relatively natural pace, but here the plot is just rushed and so many things that are thoroughly explained in the original game are either only briefly brushed upon, left out, or completely changed (which I wouldn’t necessarily mind if the changes were actually better than what the game did, but they almost never were) to fit the time frame of the anime. I understand why that’s the case: they’re trying to condense a plot-heavy 50-hour game within the frame of 4 hours, so there really isn’t much of a choice but to rush things in order to get the all of the absolutely necessary plot points established. But that doesn’t really change the fact that it’s still rushed.

Most of my complaints are going to actually be about the pacing (which I think is ultimately the core problem that leads to many of the other issues with the anime.)

•The rushed pacing badly affected a lot of emotional scenes. In the game, the emotional aspects of the plot have much better pacing; they’re given the time to breathe and be built up to while you learn about the characters, the plot, and watch their relationship develop. Add into the characters having more time to develop overall in the game (giving the reader more incentive to care about them), and it makes the pay off of the emotional scenes hit much more deeply.

In the anime, because of the lack of time to breathe and develop both the plot, characters and their relationships, these scenes just feel… like they’re thrown in as quickly as possible to get the main point across, and then are dropped almost as quickly so they can move to the next part of the story, when lingering on those moments would make them hit a lot more.

•God, episode 7 of the anime does NOT do any justice for the chapter of the visual novel (chapter 8) that it’s adapting. One of the biggest revelations regarding Cardia’s character (which is given a lot of time to be built up to, explored and for the viewer to soak it in the game) is presented in under one minute in the anime. I was so confused when I saw it in the anime, I was like “Did I miss something? Is this supposed to be a teaser for now and this scene will be properly shown and revealed later?” But it’s not. I know I made complaints about the fast pacing before, but this was without question the worst instance of the pacing affecting the plot. I can only imagine how out of nowhere and confusing that scene would’ve been to someone who had no knowledge of the game.

There’s also another very important part regarding Cardia’s past that I feel was also presented in a way that’d be confusing for someone who isn’t familiar with the visual novel.

•Some of the action scenes weren’t great. Some of them weren’t really suspenseful and the animation was a bit lackluster in some of them. I don’t know how you make an animated action scene less suspenseful than the written words, sound and visual effects, and still images the game used, but they did. Also, some of the action scenes from the game weren’t adapted, which was disappointing.

•You know how I said it surprised me to see people call the characters in the anime bland? Well, after watching the anime, I understand why a lot of people who didn’t play the games thought that. The characters were largely simplified to their most basic personality traits, and while their backstories and some of their emotional struggles were brushed upon, the anime didn’t go in nearly as much depth of them as the game did. The character arcs they had were very simplified and rushed in the anime, while in the game they were genuine struggles for the characters to go through, and it made it all the more satisfying and emotional when they did finally persevere through them.

•Man, I feel bad for you Saint Germain fans. Pretty much all of the characters’ background and motivations from the game were watered down or not brought up, but he got it the absolute worse. Also, the organization he’s a part of and what they do is not at all fleshed out here, unlike the game where they’re very important to the plot.

•So I said I loved Saori Hayami as Cardia, and I do. But I feel like there wasn’t enough moments where she was over emotional and humorous (like she had in the game), to show Cardia’s character development from a doll-like girl to a feeling human. These moments weren’t non-existent, they were there (like when Cardia began crying in episode 9 or a moment in episode 12), but compared to the game, they were lacking. It’s especially disappointing because I know Saori Hayami is capable of doing the “reserved and sweet, soft-spoken character who has moments of humor, awkwardness, and strong emotion” well (Yor Forger from "Spy x Family" for example). I wish she was able to show that off here too.

•I know I said that the moments were Lupin was flustered around Cardia added a little something to their relationship that the game lacked. But it was only in that one aspect. Otherwise, it just wasn’t as well developed compared to the game. I guess saying it came out of nowhere wouldn’t be completely accurate since I did say there were moments where they were flustered by the other, but overall without a lot of the tender moments they had in the game, it just felt like their feelings for each other developed way too quickly.

•Also, Van Helsing defrosting and coming to care for Cardia felt like it happened way too quickly in the anime. Maybe you can argue the others come to care deeply for Cardia too quickly too, but at least they’re established as being open and caring guys from the get-go, but Van Helsing is very reserved and stand-offish. In the game, you do actually see him slowly warm up to the gang and Cardia, so it does end up making complete sense that he’d become very protective of them, but since most of those moments are lacking here, it just feels forced and jarring.

Overall Thoughts:

As an adaptation of the visual novel, it’s fine. Flawed, but fine. If you like the VN, I’d suggest treating the anime as just a series of scenes from the game animated with a few bonus new scenes and using your knowledge of the game to fill in the rest of the information regarding the plot and characters. If you’re expecting a genuinely amazing adaptation that has good pacing and nearly every aspect of the characters and plot thoroughly explained and shown, you’re probably going to be disappointed.

If you haven’t played the visual novel, I’m not sure I can recommend this series. Chances are, without prior knowledge to let you fill in the blanks, the characters will come across as somewhat flat and archetypal; and the plot will be confusing and seem like it’s just throwing a bunch of stuff to happen as quickly as possible. If the premise interests you, just buy the game instead.

Honestly, it’s a shame. I feel like the "Code: Realize" games in theory would make for an amazing anime, with the interesting plot and world building, characters and their growth and chemistry with one another, and the action. But it’s not a series that can be done justice with only twelve 21-minute episodes. I don’t blame the makers of the anime for how the anime turned out: again, condensing all of that story into such a short time frame would’ve been extremely challenging for anyone. I think they did the best with what they had, and if anything, I’m somewhat surprised they even managed to condense all of the absolutely necessary information into the anime at all (bad pacing or not.)

So yeah, just another among many examples of a visual novel being given a mediocre anime adaptation.

Reviewer’s Rating: 6

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May 23, 2021

kistune120

Not Recommended

If you happen to find this anime in 2021 or later, I beg of you to play the game instead. As a devoted fan of the otome game (now on switch), I was very disappointed in this adaption. I know things are undeniably going to have to be cut to make one cohesive plotline when it comes to making otome anime, but there were just so many things left out or butchered that would've greatly helped the plot and showcase to anime-onlys the depth of the characters to let the story really shine. ~Spoiler Free~

Story: 5

As it is nearly the same story as the ... game, obviously that is good and unique. Being a steampunk English romance about a girl that can't touch those she loves is obviously very compelling. However there were fights omitted I'm sure due to budget, deeper world-building plot lines skimmed over for times sake, and one character's last scene was drastically changed to give a better "feel good" send off. There were also bigger mystery reveals just randomly dropped like it was common knowledge or placed at the beginning of an episode like it wasn't the single biggest turning point for the main character, thereby butchering a big chunk of the overall story. There was also a big moment for the pairing they chose to cover, however instead of showing it properly cut it down to just be an image for the ending. I couldn't believe they did that, it's one of the biggest moments in the whole game. Overall just messy, underwhelming, and nowhere as good as it could have been but I guess it gets the job done.


Art: 3

Sometimes, it's pretty. Other times they look like slender man. Opening and ending obviously showed a lack of budget, again proven by the poor cgi that reveals itself later on. There was also a scene where a character falls and it's supposed to be all scary that they could be dying, but the animation is so poor it looks like they cut around their body and literally just click and dragged the drawing down the screen. I couldn't believe that was left in and accepted as is. To their credit, I did keep replaying it because I couldn't stop laughing at the sight of it.


Sound: 6

No complaints with sound quality, though the song choices and OST were reallyyyy lacking, especially compared to the soundtrack of the game which is so unapologetically itself and memorable. Voice acting was great, but that was expected as they're the same seiyuus as the game. So, it was fine.


Character: 2

This is the part that really grinds my gears. Due to their need to try and show a little bit of each character but only having 12 episodes (+ OVA), you're just left wanting more. I feel they could've absolutely gone more in depth especially with Van Helsing, Saint Germain, Frankenstein, and the Queen. But the worst part I think, was how Cardia's development got practically halved compared to the game. She has basically no personality here besides being nice and sad. She feels like your run of the mill otome main character when in game she is meant to just be a clean slate of a person, slowly learning to smile and figure out who she is as an individual. In game, she often has moments of strength, self-sacrificing, and humor. She even learns how to be selfish and calls Lupin a troublemaker, (something this cardboard cut out of Cardia would never do), showing their bond and understanding. But even here where they pushed aside everything else for their relationship, it feels forced and immediate with no build or clear show of their feelings or how we got from point A to point B. It all just makes no sense to me on the decisions while putting this show together because as any dating sim gamer would know, the romance is all about the characters and their slow building bonds.


Enjoyment & Overall: 3

Of course I was able to somewhat get through this anime with sheer nostalgia of the love I have for the source material, so I can't say I absolutely hated it. But I'm just disappointed because anime is really for seeing the works you love come to life before your eyes, and I was left wanting to go back to one of my saves just so I can hear the OST and read the story properly. And to be fair that's probably why this was made, to draw an even bigger crowd to buying the game. But I think it more so hurt than helped, and was a waste of everyone's time. What's the point of adapting a story if you'll only give/be able to give it low quality visuals and music as well as cut down the story that made it so special in the first place?

So again, I'd strongly recommend if you happen to find this show somehow and come by this review, I vehemently suggest you skip and instead go for the game. Otomes just really aren't built for half-hearted anime adaptions, as the Code: Realize anime proves once again.

Reviewer’s Rating: 3

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