“Lock & Key: A Magical Girl Mystery tells a touching story about acceptance, growing up, loss; and… a magical yet bittersweet tale about what happens after the adventure is over.”
Platform: PC | Release Date: 30 September, 2025 | Hours Played: 4 hours
Ever wondered what life is like for a magical girl once the world is saved?
Well, wonder no more. Lock & Key: A Magical Girl Mystery is, as the name suggests, a magical mystery visual novel about Sherri and Kealey, a married couple who, in their youth, were magical girls keeping the world safe. Now, they’re busy navigating adulthood while making use of their magical girl powers — while they still can.
The game has four endings in total, although it’s pretty straightforward to figure out how to achieve each one. Their outcome depends on the dialogue choices you make throughout the game, which influence Sherri and Kealey’s relationships with Ruby, a young magical girl they take under their wing, as well as Nina, a fellow magical girl who has incorporated her magical-girl persona into her idol life.
By The Powers of… a 9-5 Job?
The plot is a unique story merging the fantastical world of magical girls with the dark side of reality, as Sherri investigates a string of murders with no clues in sight. It deals with themes of dreams, growing up and, most importantly, loss. The loss of a friend, the loss of your youth and the feeling of moving into a new stage of life are all explored throughout the story, and as someone in a similar life stage, I couldn’t help but relate.
Sherri and Kealey’s relationship was one of the biggest highlights for me. Their marriage is established well from the beginning, and their affection and familiarity with one another make them feel like a couple who have genuinely known each other for years. They even have little moments that show their age, such as when the topic of “stanning” celebrities comes up and their absolute misunderstanding was hilarious.
Despite the main protagonists being a yuri couple, the game doesn’t make their relationship the sole focus. Instead, its themes of acceptance and representation are naturally woven into the story without defining the characters entirely. I always appreciate seeing inclusivity treated as a natural part of a character’s life rather than their only defining trait.
Not Everything is as it Seems
The game’s melancholic atmosphere made me slightly uneasy at times, and I eventually realised that this was intentional as the story takes a more serious turn later on.
For the most part, the darker elements were kept relatively light in their visual representation, aside from one particular event. Without spoiling anything, this was actually one of my favourite moments because it showed just how effective the darker side of the story could be. I would’ve loved to see the game lean into this side of itself more, as I think it would’ve driven home the darker parts of the story even further.
Visually, the art style immediately drew me in, with each character having their own colour theme that helps them stand out. The game is mostly static, but it does include a short and fun magical-girl sequence, while the fight scenes are represented through text alongside little animations of their moves. The more grotesque parts, such as the Consumed (monsters), are also mainly conveyed through descriptions rather than being shown directly.
My favourite element of the game was definitely the music. Each piece felt like a perfect choice for the scenes, especially with how well it captured the melancholy that runs throughout the game. I especially loved the magical-girl theme, which felt like such a fitting part of the experience.
The game also includes a small ‘Data’ section, which acts as an index for the characters and cases you’ve encountered, as well as Steam achievements, including one that I particularly enjoyed discovering during my playthrough. There’s also an ‘Extra’ menu where all the CGs and music are unlocked after finishing the game, which naturally gave me an excuse to spend a little time listening to the soundtrack again. These little extras were a fun addition, although I would’ve liked to see more, especially given how much potential there is in the game’s world and characters.
8/10
Lock & Key: A Magical Girl Mystery tells a touching story about acceptance, growing up, loss; and along with its beautiful art and lovely music, it creates a magical yet bittersweet tale about what happens after the adventure is over.
You can purchase Lock & Key: A Magical Girl Mystery on Steam.
This review was written as part of the Fall in Love Visual Novel Festival on Steam, and I was kindly provided with a review code by Studio Élan.
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