Stella Glow

 3DS
  • Publisher: Atlus
  • Release Date: Nov 17, 2015
User Score
8.4

Generally favorable reviews- based on 130 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 106 out of 130
  2. Mixed: 12 out of 130
  3. Negative: 12 out of 130
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  1. DanHazy
    Jan 17, 2016
    10
    I will tell my three favorite games so you will know what kind of gamer I am.
    Atelier Arland Totori
    Danganronpa series Fire Emblem: Path of Rsdiance The way I write these reviews is I list the good points of the game, then the bad, and finally talk about the gameplay and close the review with some comments. THE GOOD: Great gameplay: Gameplay involves quite a bit of strategy as    I will tell my three favorite games so you will know what kind of gamer I am.
    Atelier Arland Totori
    Danganronpa series
    Fire Emblem: Path of Rsdiance

    The way I write these reviews is I list the good points of the game, then the bad, and finally talk about the gameplay and close the review with some comments.

    THE GOOD:

    Great gameplay: Gameplay involves quite a bit of strategy as you can personalize your characters with orbs that grant various benefits. Also each character host a different playstyle and you can choose between about a dozen towards the end. I'll delve more into this further down in this review.

    Great music: Music was topnotch. The town music also changes at one point (like when the dorm music changed in persona 3 towards the end) which was awesome. Its all Japanese voiced music and intrumentals.

    Graphics: The character illustrations was great. The look of the fight scenes were rather strange. Everyone has a bobblehead doll look. You can turn these battle animations off though which also saves some time during battles.

    Replay value: My gqmeplay time was 45 hours when I had beat this game. It also has replay value as you can max out every social link the second playthrough. It also has multiple endings.

    Story: I've read previous reviews that said the story was drab. I dont think this is true at all. I have played avast amount of rpgs and this one had a storyline that was quite a bit above the medium. Its not every rpg that can make you like every single character but this game pulled it off with flying colors with great character interactions and character personalities.

    Voice acting: This game was voice acted about 60 percent of the time. It was voice acted more in the beginning and slowly dwindled towards the end. It was superb voice acting. The voice actors were almost on persona 4 level. Every voice fit every character perfectly.

    Difficulty: The difficulty was just right. You will have to spend a few hours in the game leveling up on bonus levels which is a perfect balance considering the game is about 45 hours long.

    THE BAD:

    There really wasnt anything I would complain about except maybe the time it took to complete a battle. Im used to quickly makely decisions, pressing the buttons, and ending the battle very quickly. This wasnt possible in this game as the enemys turns took longer than most rpgs. If you cancel the battle scenes though, it helps quite a bit.

    DETAILS AND COMMENTS:

    I'll start this section of with gameplay details. The game consist of two parts, free time and mission time. During free time, you can talk to your comrades, accept jobs, or go exploring. Talking to your comrades gives you a scene that delves into that characters personalities. After you have done this enough to advance the social link rank, that character will improve thier battle support effects and gain a helpful skill such as sp cost reduced. You can afvance the social link rank 3 or 4 times untill it maxes out. When a witch obtains a max social link, they obtain a new costume and a new and more powerful song. You should know you cannot change back to the previous costume though. Also, maxing out a witches social link requires tuning. Tuning is just a battle with sometimes special victory conditions. Some of these social link scenes are also voice acted which is quiet nice.

    Accpeting a job is just a way of earning extra money which isnt really necessary, and exploring allows you to obtain an item. I never did either of these much as social links seemed to be the most important.

    The battles were very strategic for a few reasons. The reasons were every character has a support skill that is always active if someone is adjacent to them, such as incresed dodge or increased critical chance. Of course, grouping your characters up is dangerous as many enemies have attacks that can hit a group of your characters. The second reason is orbs. Equiping orbs allows you to customize each character. Some orbs include, increased attack, increased aim, small chance of critical chance up upon killing an enemy, and lone orb which allows your character to deal more damage when NOT SUPPORTED. You can eventually equip about 5 orbs to each character as the weapons with more orb slots become available. The third reason the battles include strategy are level ups. When you level up, your character completly heals thier hp and sp, so keeping up with your exp guage is very important as it may prevent you from wasting a healing item and turn.

    Of course this game plays like the 2 previous Luminous Arc games, Fire Emblem, and Final Fantasy Tactics. Im refering to the grid based battlefield. If you have not played the Previous 2 Luminous Arc titles, i suggest you do, that is if you like Stella Glow as they are made by the same folks that brought you Stella Glow and play about the same. While i give this game a 10/10, i would hive the Luminous Arc games about a 8/10.
    Sadly, I have reached the type limit.HopeItHelps    … Expand
  2. Onizen
    Jan 16, 2016
    9
    A beautiful game to the very end. As Imageepoch's swan song title they really hit it out of the park, making it very sad to know this was end. For any JRPG, SRPG, or even just a fan of Anime, this game is well worth the purchase.

    Goods: Stella Glow brings a very anime feel to the SRPG genre, with great deep story telling, interesting casts of characters, great voice acting and a fun    A beautiful game to the very end. As Imageepoch's swan song title they really hit it out of the park, making it very sad to know this was end. For any JRPG, SRPG, or even just a fan of Anime, this game is well worth the purchase.

    Goods: Stella Glow brings a very anime feel to the SRPG genre, with great deep story telling, interesting casts of characters, great voice acting and a fun addicting battle system. Each battle can take between 10-30+ minutes but never did it feel boring, even when grinding for levels and money, I enjoyed it.
    The games difficulty never felt to overbearing, or ruthless like games like Fire Emblem, which can be a let down at some points as sometimes it even felt like the AI purposely avoided killing my party members in situations I would have been screwed. But things got more sense of danger as the story went on which made things more thrilling. The whole all gameplay reminded me of Final fantasy Tactics Advance, just with a much more basic skill structure, as each character has their own set of unique skills they can learn but not customize i.e FFTA or FE Awakening. The game makes up for this in equipment such as materia like objects called Orbs, used to add additional effects and power to a character.

    Bads: There wasn't too many things I found wrong with this games except for a few grips with the game mechanics themselves. For example, battles can tend to drag on longer than they need to simply because you are forced to watch the opponents take their entire turn without a fast forward or skip button, outside of the battle animations. this goes double for the special Witch's songs that go into a whole scene each time, that is unskippable. I also felt some characters had huge potential to be really good based on their skills and capabilities, but fell short and got overshadowed simply because they were slower, or had far less movement, making speedy characters and ranged characters the golden ticket.

    Conclusion: Overall the game was great, and I enjoyed my 70+ hour playthough with it to the very end, even if it left that bittersweet taste knowing this was the end, but I am hopeful for a possible sequel, and anyone with a 3DS that has a love for JRPGs and Anime, should definitely give Stella Glow the love it earned and deserves!    … Expand
  3. Locke_VI
    Dec 14, 2015
    8
    A solid SRPG that, while it doesn't quite live up to either game, captures elements of both Final Fantasy Tactics and Fire Emblem. Wonderful musical score, and generally good voice acting - though at time overly melodramatic. The battles are almost exclusively "kill all enemies", but the story and characters are written well enough that the lack of mission variety never really left me wanting.
  4. bloodless08
    Dec 8, 2015
    9
    As a JRPG fan, I like Stella Glow a lot. Only complaint, too easy if you instinctively grind. And it sort of soft caps your level unless you focus on free battling.
    Still, in my Top 5 3DS exclusives hands down.
  5. BowserTheBig69
    Jan 10, 2016
    10
    Best SRPG I've played since long, long time ago. Great story, good characters. +40 hours of gameplay. Plus, there are a lot of terms in the game about philosofy. If you like Fire Emblem, buy it.
  6. Darormor
    Feb 26, 2016
    10
    One of my favorite games for my 3ds and worth anyone's time to check out. I'm not a huge fan when it comes to this type of game play, but the story and characters make it a really enjoyable experience and the combat too is very in-depth. 10/10.
  7. Zach_Ganta
    Apr 20, 2016
    8
    Overall, I enjoyed this game alot. Even as someone who doesn't really play turn based strategy games such as Fire Emblem and so forth, I would definitely recommend it.

    Pros: -Art style is absolutely gorgeous, even with the typical jagged edges of character models observed on other 3DS games -Story is quite entertaining. Add a rather admirable translation job that puts a certain other    Overall, I enjoyed this game alot. Even as someone who doesn't really play turn based strategy games such as Fire Emblem and so forth, I would definitely recommend it.

    Pros:
    -Art style is absolutely gorgeous, even with the typical jagged edges of character models observed on other 3DS games
    -Story is quite entertaining. Add a rather admirable translation job that puts a certain other 3DS RPG to shame and you've got a winning combination
    -Characters are genuinely entertaining and go through nice little arcs
    -Opportunities to grind for resources and EXP if power leveling is your style thanks to optional battles

    Cons:
    -Game can be INCREDIBLY frustrating; some missions require you to defend a character that will just stand there as enemies chip away at their health. If they were to, say, be controllable or even just RUN AWAY then I wouldn't be so salty
    -Recommended level for missions is sometimes misleading, as a mission with a recommended level of 18 might have a boss monster that is, say, level 23 and capable of one-shotting some of your characters. For this reason, the optional missions come highly recommended unless you want your magic and stealth-based characters to last more than four turns
    -Objectives for some missions are vague at best; you may be tasked with something like "Defend So-and-SO", with the failing scenario being their death. You logically take out the low-level monsters as they attack him/her, but just as you finish off the last low-level monster before tackling the boss, the boss proceeds to summon more monsters because, hey, they can sometimes do that, apparently. That's because you were just supposed to tackle the boss and disregard his/her minions

    All in all, I think that this is one JRPG that you shouldn't skip. Keep in mind, though, that it has its faults. Save often, and grind even more often.    … Expand
  8. Jennygreens
    Jul 18, 2020
    10
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Incredible gameplay for a turn based rpg. Each if the witches sings to empower your players in battle and strangely enough the songs are GOOD. I cannot believe how much I loved this game. If you have a 3ds do NOT miss out in this one!… Expand
  9. jholden3249
    Nov 20, 2015
    10
    What I expected was a good- not great but good SRPG. What we got was quite easily the best 3DS release of the year, and the best SRPG I've ever played since Jeanne d' Arc aside from Fire Emblem.

    Buy this game.
  10. midipon
    Nov 19, 2015
    10
    This game is wonderful. A total throwback to Luminous Arc made with lots of love from the original developers of the Luminous Arc trilogy. I don't get why main character death has to be game over for this title, but it doesn't detract TOO much from the experience.

    Imageepoch really went out with a bang with this wonderful game.
  11. randolfarevalo
    Nov 18, 2015
    8
    not so many Strategy RPG choice for 3DS. Stella Glow fills the void that FF Tactics is missing and as an alternative to Fire Emblem Awakening. The stuff includes in the launch edition are cute :)
  12. Mando44646
    Nov 20, 2015
    9
    Fantastic SRPG. Too bad the game is marred by occasional unnecessary immature 'fan service'. I'd prefer female characters treated like people, just like male characters in my media. Regardless, fantastic gameplay
  13. Godlygamer
    Jun 21, 2016
    10
    Call me crazy, but I think this is my favourite game of all-time. This is really the first SRPG I've ever played, and it is AMAZING! I found the music to be catchy as hell, and there wasn't a single track I didn't like. Bear in mind, if you dislike anime and J-pop, you might not like the soundtrack as much as I did (basically, the "witches" songs are sung by professional Japanese singers).Call me crazy, but I think this is my favourite game of all-time. This is really the first SRPG I've ever played, and it is AMAZING! I found the music to be catchy as hell, and there wasn't a single track I didn't like. Bear in mind, if you dislike anime and J-pop, you might not like the soundtrack as much as I did (basically, the "witches" songs are sung by professional Japanese singers). The game looks nice enough, with chibi models on the battle field and anime portraits during free time (plus, there are some beautiful anime cutscenes thrown in there). The gameplay was very addictive, and there wasn't a single moment where I was bored. The plot, albeit cliched, has some of the best writing I've seen in a video game. And the game is LONG, too! It'll take you roughly 50+ hours (unless you grind), and there are multiple endings to be achieved. GET THIS GAME! Even if you hate anime, don't be off-put by the anime-style of the game: you regret the time you spend in Stella Glow.… Expand
  14. cowinspace
    May 17, 2016
    9
    I was expecting to like this game given the developers previous series (Luminous Arc). What I wasn't expecting was to be playing a game that I already consider one of the best of 2016 (poor European here, game released in March thanks to NISA Europe. Why does Atlus hate Europe so ;_;). Right now it is my GotY for the 3DS, and the only two titles I see that could change that would be FireI was expecting to like this game given the developers previous series (Luminous Arc). What I wasn't expecting was to be playing a game that I already consider one of the best of 2016 (poor European here, game released in March thanks to NISA Europe. Why does Atlus hate Europe so ;_;). Right now it is my GotY for the 3DS, and the only two titles I see that could change that would be Fire Emblem: Fates or Zero Time Dilemma, both series that I am a fan of.

    I love the graphical style, I know that chibi models on the battlefield might not be to everyone's taste but they are well done and the bright look and soft focus give the game a feel that is entirely its own. The sprite art for the visual novel sections is also extremely good and accompanied by some top quality voice acting. Oh and the music is outstanding, Listening to the witches songs was what convinced me to put my money down on the launch edition of the game.

    As an SRPG it isn't particularly challenging, I've lost a few battles but I've never once found myself stuck at a mission, even grinds where you simply have to hold out were not much of a problem to beat. However I am a turtle when it comes to games like this and I always level my squad evenly and I have entered every story mission at its recommended level so if a challenge is what you're after then remaining slightly under-levelled would increase the difficulty. I have also focussed on raising my affinity with team members rather than working or exploring so I have more secondary abilities opened up. Each character being their own class and having relatively unique abilities is a great thing (I love job systems, but there is always something special about unique classes).
    The plot is pretty predictable and is full of clichés and tropes but it is well executed and I felt genuinely attached to the characters in a way that this jaded old gamer hasn't experienced in more than a decade. Again the voice talent, script, translation, and localisation are incredibly well done and help bring the story up to a height where it can stand against the best.

    Are there issues? Yes, and they all relate to the battlefield interface. The inability to rotate the view is a little frustrating, as is the small scale of the maps. If it weren't for the varied terrain this could have really impacted the enjoyment of the battles. The lack of unique effects for AoE abilities can get a little stale though the cutaway animations help alleviate this. Finally the lack of mission types with almost all missions being "kill everything" could get boring but the extra objectives (some of which can be damn hard to get) in the story missions can impact how you approach a battle and add some incentive to change up your strategy.

    TL;DR - A fine swansong from an under-appreciated developer that hits well above its weight. It is a great way to introduce someone to SRPGs due to its gentle difficulty curve and is an enjoyable experience for anyone that already likes the genre.    … Expand
  15. EpicAceMin
    Apr 10, 2016
    10
    I got this on Thanksgiving break in 2015 cause I was bored and wanted to do something on my break. I'm glad I did. The voice acting the soundtrack is so good. This game is a lost jewel and needs to play through the very end to experience the adventure. If your someone who wants challenges then this game may not be for you as its mostly for beginners. But I was able to overlook that. SureI got this on Thanksgiving break in 2015 cause I was bored and wanted to do something on my break. I'm glad I did. The voice acting the soundtrack is so good. This game is a lost jewel and needs to play through the very end to experience the adventure. If your someone who wants challenges then this game may not be for you as its mostly for beginners. But I was able to overlook that. Sure it maybe a bit cliche but will develop. Maybe predictable but good timing to reach the feels. At the first few hours it would be around a 7.5 or an 8.5 but will develop and becomes a great game. At the end In logical choice I would give it a 8.7/10 but in feels and experience 10/10! Those that want challenges i wouldn't recommend this game though. I'd say that everyone should pick up this game. Sure it maybe a little pricy but I think that the developers did that cause it was their last game and they made it up with the box. Never forget Imageepoch! They were the ones who develop Stella Glow although have made a lot of bad games but this redeem themselves though won't be revive with just this. Remember Atlus and Sega are not the ones who develop Stella Glow they're the ones who localize the game.… Expand
  16. astrogal
    May 27, 2016
    10
    As JRPG Fan this game is well worth the play through. Anyone who is a fan of this genre should give this game a go. I am personally enjoying the storyline, I like the relationship building aspect and I like the battle system, so it hits all the marks for me.
  17. Kasafeara
    Jun 11, 2016
    8
    It is wonderful spiritual successor to the Luminous arc series, the characters are engaging and the concept of song magic is fantastic. The combat can be a pain at certain points and the new game plus could use some work, but overall it is a beautiful and fun game.
  18. mathshk20012001
    May 10, 2018
    9
    This story is with a good plot, excellent music, and kind of challenging difficulty.
    The voice actors are also performing well.
    Really did not expected that this SRPG could be so funny. I thought it will be boring... but turns out make me enjoy.
    You are just like inside the anime to feel it real
  19. Yoshi87
    Jan 29, 2018
    10
    I was planning on getting Stella Glow back when it first came out, but I just didn't get around to it. When I bought a "New" 3DS XL I thought there may be a demo in the eShop, and sure enough there was. Very long demo too taking me through the hole beginning of the game. When the demo was over, I was blown away by how intriguing the story and characters where and how well it left meI was planning on getting Stella Glow back when it first came out, but I just didn't get around to it. When I bought a "New" 3DS XL I thought there may be a demo in the eShop, and sure enough there was. Very long demo too taking me through the hole beginning of the game. When the demo was over, I was blown away by how intriguing the story and characters where and how well it left me wanting more. I love tactical RPG's like Shining Force 1 and 2 from the Sega Genesis and this game feels a lot like that but with more modern amenities. I knew at that moment I needed the full game. So I went to ebay and got the game. Now that I finished the game I can truly say I totally loved it. When I look at the sales of this game on VG Chartz and see how low they are I just want to cry. Stella Glow is my favorite story of any RPG that I've ever played. The game has lots of plot twists that I didn't see coming that blew my mind at the extreme talent behind this games story and awesome characters. I got emotional many times playing this game as I even felt like I was in the story myself. The character costumes look so cool and are made to perfectly presents each personality. I love the adult humor all over this game too. I hope that more people will get this game for their 3DS. According to how much I completely loved Stella Glow, I feel a lot of people will enjoy this game as well.… Expand
  20. iMustang
    Jun 18, 2019
    9
    This under the radar release by Atlus ended up being one of my favorite games on the system, combining elements of Fire Emblem with elements of Persona, and greatly appealing to the anime fan within me along the way. The characters in this game have been some of the most uniquely written of any JRPG that I've ever played (and that's saying a LOT) and the story is a fantastic journey thatThis under the radar release by Atlus ended up being one of my favorite games on the system, combining elements of Fire Emblem with elements of Persona, and greatly appealing to the anime fan within me along the way. The characters in this game have been some of the most uniquely written of any JRPG that I've ever played (and that's saying a LOT) and the story is a fantastic journey that occasionally brought me to tears. The vibrant art and amazing music also kept me engaged constantly, and they was never a single moment I was playing that I felt burnt out or didn't want to see what happened next. Shucks even after finishing the game I had to go on Youtube and watch some of the endings, because there are over a dozen! I could rant all day on what an amazing game Stella Glow was, but simply put, if you like JRPGs, strategy games, or just want a fantastic fantasy journey to go on, Stella Glow is an amazing game and a true hidden gem in the 3DS library. It was also the last game this team made, and they went out on a glorious note. I'm adding this to my permanent collection of 3DS games with no intention to sell it any time in the near or far future.… Expand
  21. HidaK
    Oct 28, 2020
    10
    I adore this game. It has it's pros and it's cons, but I strongly feel that the positives outweigh the negatives in this case. It has much in common with Fire Emblem due to being able to form relationships with party members through unique conversations with each and the second playthrough allows you to experience all of them.
    Pros: Varied game play including the need for various    I adore this game. It has it's pros and it's cons, but I strongly feel that the positives outweigh the negatives in this case. It has much in common with Fire Emblem due to being able to form relationships with party members through unique conversations with each and the second playthrough allows you to experience all of them.
    Pros: Varied game play including the need for various strategies, unique characters, gorgeous visuals and soundtrack, interesting plot twists, serious replay value, quality voice acting.
    Cons: Some bizarre mechanics that may not be palatable to most players, repetitive and tedious grinding if you prefer fast battles, cast is not very diverse despite being from different locations.    … Expand
  22. OchiDiaz
    May 16, 2021
    10
    The game is really good, it is my childhood you dont even know how POGGERS this game is.
  23. Nebby
    Feb 23, 2022
    8
    This game is a hidden jem for the 3DS. Good characters, great VA for the most part even in English, the gameplay is fun and a lot like Fire Emblem in a lot of ways, and the music is amazing! If you like anime this is a great game to play.
  24. hasanlin
    May 28, 2022
    10
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. If I had to describe this game in one word it would probably be 'magical'. This game has great and interesting characters (especially the witches), great gameplay, an amazing story, and a mesmerizing soundtrack. This game is one of the only games that had me glued to my 3DS and remember that time with nostalgia. 10/10 if I could erase my memories, I would do so, play this game once again and experience the magic… Expand

Awards & Rankings

16
#16 Best 3DS Game of 2015
11
#11 Most Discussed 3DS Game of 2015
7
#7 Most Shared 3DS Game of 2015

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
79

Generally favorable reviews - based on 32 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 24 out of 32
  2. Mixed: 8 out of 32
  3. Negative: 0 out of 32
  1. CD-Action
    Jun 29, 2016
    85
    A surprisingly solid tactical game with interesting characters and well-written (even if sometimes too long) dialogues. [06/2016, p.64]
  2. Areajugones
    Apr 12, 2016
    90
    Expectations have been exceeded once again with this tactical RPG game that stands out in every way. It has great duration, but above all, a story that will make us want to play in order to enjoy the game as much as possible, even if it only features one language, English.
    Read full review
  3. XGN
    Apr 11, 2016
    80
    Stella Glow turns out to be a very pleasant surprise. The story and characters are written well and while the gameplay isn't very innovative, it's highly addictive. If you like story-based tactical JRPG's, we can recommend you pick up Stella Glow.
    Read full review
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