Shattered – Why Not Me is the game that began the Shattered series. It begins the story of Lady Briella Brukton, daughter of a minor noble, the first in generations to wield her house’s magical sword, Silvergleam. Beginning her story dreading the prospect of marriage, she soon finds herself embroiled in a much more literal fight she never asked for, with powers she can barely control.
Shattered combines first person swording/brawling with magical powers inspired by retro and retro-style shooters with narrative sections somewhat inspired by western RPGs. It was billed as an action game/visual novel, but this description is not very accurate. There are also a few scripted story sequences with limited animation.
Created for the first Magical Girl Game Jam in 2020, it definitely missed the mark on being a mahou shoujo game. It draws heavy inspiration from western fantasy for its worldbuilding, and the story beats are basically those of a superhero origin story. Still, the game remains one of my favourites, and took first place in the Creativity category of the jam.