Heartopia: the NPC, romance and friendship guide (2026)

Released worldwide on January 7, 2026 on PC, iOS and Android, Heartopia has established itself within a few weeks as the darling of cozy life-sim fans. The title from XD Games is built around a town shared by up to twelve players and gentle activities. One question keeps coming up on all the French-speaking Discords: can you build a romance with an NPC, marry them, start a family? This guide breaks down what actually exists in 2026, the gifts to give, and the friendship milestones between players that unlock interactions very close to romance.

Heartopia, a cozy MMO built around social bonds

Heartopia is described by XD Games as a "slow life simulation": no combat, no punishing timers, a pace dictated by your own desires. What sets the title apart from Palia or solo farming games is its MMO side: your town permanently hosts other players, and the social fabric is at the heart of the game design. Every non-player character (NPC) is a craftsperson, shopkeeper or resident of the town, available to chat, hand out quests, sell items, and above all build a friendship that unlocks perks and exclusive dialogue. The hobby mentors (gardening, fishing, cooking, bug catching, birdwatching) form the core of the roster and are, unsurprisingly, the first NPCs worth pampering.

The mood and affinity system explained

Every NPC has a mood meter that increases through three levers: daily dialogue, completing their quests, and above all gifts. Here are the rules to remember:

• One gift per NPC per day, resetting at midnight in-game. You can't stockpile them; skip a day, and you lose the chance.
• Every gift falls into four categories: loved, liked, neutral, disliked.
• Rough scoring: +15 to +20 points for a loved item, +5 to +10 for a liked item, +1 to +3 for a neutral item, and up to -20 points for a disliked item (trash, an old boot, a broken object).
• Birthdays triple the gains: a loved gift on birthday day sends the meter jumping from 45 to 60 points in a single interaction. Check the community calendar every week.

Progression follows five tiers: Stranger, Acquaintance, Friend, Close Friend, then Best Friend. Expect an average of 40 to 60 real-world days to max out an NPC playing every day. Good news: unlike Stardew Valley, your affection never drops on its own, even after a break.

Credit: XD Games

Hobby mentors and their favorite gifts

These are the NPCs most worth prioritizing: every tier unlocked with a mentor improves recipes, boosts their hobby's yield, and gives you access to exclusive tools.

• Blanc — gardening mentor, runs the seed shop. Loves: rare flowers, bouquets, perfect-quality vegetables. She also appreciates exotic seeds and well-crafted gardening tools. Avoid: raw meat and industrial items.
• Vanya — fishing mentor. Adores legendary fish, golden koi, deep-sea creatures, and rainbow trout. She'll even take your "fished-up junk" without complaint, making her the most tolerant of the cast.
• Massimo — cooking mentor. He melts for gourmet dishes, rare ingredients, and exotic spices. A truffle risotto literally moves him to tears of joy.
• Naniwa — bug-catching mentor. Give him rare specimens (luminous moths, seasonal beetles); common insects still count as "liked".
• Bailey J — birdwatching mentor. She lives for gold-quality bird photos and nature-inspired items (handcrafted birdhouses, rare feathers).
• Bill — advanced fishing mentor, unlocked later. XXL fish, premium bait, and precious shells guarantee maximum points.

The village's shopkeepers and residents

Around the mentors are several figures essential to daily life. They don't grant hobby recipes, but befriending them unlocks 10%, then 20%, and finally 30% discounts in their shops, along with wacky dialogue lines.

• Bob — architect and carpenter. His passions: hardwood and strong coffee. He appreciates stone, iron ingots, and quality tools. He hates flowers and sweets: avoid the Sunday muffin.
• Mrs. Joan — owner of the pet shop on the central square. Animal-related items (toys, premium kibble) and textile creations hit the mark.
• Dorothée — clothing shop. Rare fabrics, vintage buttons, and haute couture accessories delight her.
• Ka Ching — general store. Since he sells a bit of everything, he likes a bit of everything: unique decorative items score the most points.
• Patti — resident artist. Art supplies, colorful toys, and candy always win her favor.
• Cassie, Eric — passing residents with less defined preferences; go for cooked dishes and flowers.
• Mayor Atara — the town's official figure. She's fond of festive dishes and items evoking local history (old documents, rare coins).
• Star Spirit — mystical guide tied to the Astralis quest. Star fragments and nighttime items earn his thanks.
• Albert Jr. — traveling merchant. A demanding customer who favors refined items and rare pieces.
• Oak-Oak — a wandering oak tree rewarded with golden acorns, also unlocked via Astralis.

Birthdays, dialogue, and small gestures

To maximize your gains, adopt a daily routine: start the day with a walk around the village to greet every priority NPC (each day's first dialogue gives a small mood bonus), then deliver your daily gift, and finish with the daily quests. These often grant 5 to 15 friendship points with the quest giver and unlock dialogue cutscenes as the gauge fills up.

Starting at the Close Friend tier, NPCs invite you to their homes, share personal anecdotes with you, and offer you exclusive recipes. At the Best Friend tier, each character unlocks a skill: Blanc doubles your seed earnings, Vanya lends you a gold-plated fishing rod, Massimo passes on the "Perfect Meal" recipe that restores all gauges. Suffice it to say the race for friendship is far from purely decorative.

Romance and marriage: where does the game really stand?

Let's be transparent: as of July 2026, Heartopia still doesn't include a romance or marriage system with NPCs. No hearts to unlock, no first-meeting cutscenes, no ring to offer. The topic is the most discussed one on the Steam forums and the official Discord, and an April Fool's post from XD Games on April 1, 2026 reignited the community's hopes. The developers remain vague: they acknowledge "taking note" without confirming any timeline. At this stage, aiming for the Best Friend tier with an NPC, particularly Vanya, Massimo, or Blanc, is the closest thing to it, with affectionate dialogue, dedicated cutscenes, and a title displayed on your profile. If you're looking for actual playable romance right now, it happens between players, through the friendship system detailed below.

Friendship Marks between players and the Soulmates status

Heartopia makes up for the lack of NPC romance with a very well-developed multiplayer friendship system. Every interaction performed together with a friend in the same town — high-five, hug, dance, meteor watching, selfie, waltz, holding each other's face — generates a Friendship Mark (one per action per day). These marks raise a Friendship Level across 10 tiers:

• Levels 1-2: basic greetings and pats.
• Levels 3-4: hugs and pats, unlocks affectionate emotes.
• Levels 5-7: shared activities (dancing, shooting star watching).
• Levels 8-10: intimate interactions (waltz, close-up selfie, holding each other's face), culminating in the Soulmates title visible on your profile card.

The maximum tier takes several weeks to reach but offers the closest experience to an in-game couple. To speed things up: the Parasol café, equipped with an AI translator, is the ideal spot; the Friendship shop there also sells bonus emotes.

Pets: cats, dogs, and Oak-Oak

It's impossible to talk about "relationships" in Heartopia without mentioning four-legged companions. To adopt one, you need to reach level 12 of the Builders Association Membership Guild and then visit Mrs. Joan on the central square. Three cats and three dogs are available each day, with automatic renewal. Beware: you must adopt a cat first and complete the tutorial before the dog option unlocks. The final limit is set at five cats and three dogs.

Each pet has a breed, gender, and personality (calm, energetic, clumsy, sociable, cuddly, daredevil…). Daily care includes feeding two to three times, petting without limit, playing once, bathing once, and, for dogs, walking and training tricks (Find Treasure, Give Paw, Shake Head). Feeding them their favorite food maximizes affection gains. Tiers range from Stranger to Best Friend and, just like with NPCs, never decrease. Finally, Oak-Oak, unlocked via the Astralis quest, appears each day at three random locations for up to three collections: it's completionists' favorite quest companion.

To get off to a good start, focus on Blanc and Vanya during the first two weeks (their favorite gifts — flowers, fresh fish — are available from day one), note down birthdays, always give a loved item, upgrade the Builders Association Guild to adopt a cat by around day 5-6, and team up with a regular friend for Friendship Marks. The Soulmates title and Best Friend status with three NPCs are achievable within a month and a half with this routine.

Heartopia may not yet be the dream romance simulator, but its affinity systems, multiplayer friendship tiers, and roster of companions already offer far more relational depth than most of its cozy competitors. While waiting for a potential romance patch, pampering your NPCs, your favorite duo, and your cat remains the best way to turn your village into a true home.