I'm a Gust fan - together with Atlus and IF - so I was legitimately hyped for this game: alongside Atelier, most of their games tend to be rough around the edges but enough quality to make it shine. This means that while their games are good, it will only interest a very small amount of players.
And this game is no different than the rest of them I'm afraid
Let's start with theI'm a Gust fan - together with Atlus and IF - so I was legitimately hyped for this game: alongside Atelier, most of their games tend to be rough around the edges but enough quality to make it shine. This means that while their games are good, it will only interest a very small amount of players.
And this game is no different than the rest of them I'm afraid
Let's start with the basics: this game is a turn based rpg set in a high school for girls and the protagonists can turn into magical girls who can with magic in a world named Common, where every feeling is unbound and materialized. By using fragments from other girls they get stronger and the school is your general hub where you can quest and interact with said girls.
The setting is very similar to Persona 5 (and Akiba's Beat too) but unlike that game, Blue Reflection also focuses on the simple things of a girl's life: the main protagonist, Hinako, is struggling to live a normal life after the loss of her ability to dance, due to an injured knee that doesn't let her dance anymore. The game has some dark parts too but the game is also about slice of life storytelling, and that's not always a bad thing...if you're into girl talk. Granted I'm a guy but I've lived with only a mother and sister for many years, so their chat doesn't really bother me.
On the other hand, I can see most people bored to death about hearing girls talking about making friends, boyfriends, and other stuff. Not that the dialogues are badly written: it's just not for everyone.
Another big thing is the combat: it's turn-based which means only a few will like it. Granted the combat is actually very good due to its similarities to another classic: Grandia. Basically, by using knockbacks you can delay the enemy attack and you can potentially never get hit once this way - even though you recover hp and mp at the end of every battle.
The dungeons in the Common are extremely small and that's a big shame considering they're incredibly well done in style: the graphics in this game are very clean and "realistic", but not "too realistic" and the dungeons are instead brimming with color. It feels I'm watching a 3d anime so to speak
And one last thing that I usually don't bring up in my reviews: the music is AMAZING. If you're into trance or dance music, this game will be a treat: the combat track ("OVERDOSE") it's so good, so cheerful and so full of energy, I never got tired of listening to it while fighting. Or another example of greatness is the track called (and I'm not kidding) "DNF FW15C -II-". It starts odd but once I listen to it, I feel I'm listening to one of my old dance music tracks. I simply love it and it's why I love Gust's soundtracks: so full of energy.
Well that's all I can say about the pros...let's go to the cons now:
For starters combat grants no exp
Yep you read it right, combat grants no exp. It's nothing new of course since Mana Khemia also did the same and some of the crappy final fantasy games I guess. Anyway, with the lack of exp from combat, which is VERY good, it makes the only fun thing of the game redundant. It's not AS bad as, say, Paper Mario Sticker Star since you still get items from enemies, but this makes combat completely and utterly pointless in most case scenarios.
In other to level up you basically finish dungeons OR do "missions" at school which aren't bad honestly and requires to do specific things, it's definitely not a bad system but I'd like it to be AN OPTION and not the only way. It's also sad because leveling up is kind of interesting since you upgrade 4 stats and depending on the level of each you gain different skills. It's similar to Dragon Quest 8 in that regard...except it actually shows you what you're learning!
You will only control 3 characters and that's it: the other girls you might get are only supports, which occasionally get into the fight by pressing a button. They grant different effects and they can be useful...but besides them, you'll be stuck with the 3 main girls, which is a little of a shame but they clearly went for quality over quantity.
Not sure what else I can say honestly because it's a very interesting game, it has pros but also cons, but the cons can become more or less depending on your mood. It's definitely an acquired taste: I personally love it and I can't wait to play more but even a game like Neptunia, filled with girls and other things, it's much better because it's more straightforward and simpler in terms of gaming control.
So do I recommend it? Honestly no, at least not when there are much better games around, BUT if you're into these niche kind of games I'd highly recommend to at least look at some videos. The game has a lot of flaws, but also a lot of pros!… Expand
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