A.W.: Phoenix Festa

 PlayStation Vita
Metascore
55

Mixed or average reviews - based on 17 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 1 out of 17
  2. Mixed: 10 out of 17
  3. Negative: 6 out of 17
  1. Hardcore Gamer
    Aug 2, 2016
    70
    A.W.: Phoenix Festa attempts to combine an action RPG with a dating sim and is actually able to pull it off.
  2. Gaming Nexus
    Aug 24, 2016
    65
    Too simple for it’s own good, A.W. Phoenix Festa is a game that never truly commits to itself. That’s sort of ironic since dating and relationships are such an important part of the experience.
  3. Everyeye.it
    Jul 28, 2016
    65
    Quotation forthcoming.
  5. GameGrin
    Sep 20, 2016
    60
    A.W. Phoenix Festa does a decent enough job at transferring the characters and setting of the anime to the Vita but does a terrible job of explaining those things for newcomers. The combination of dating sim and battling works well but no individual part excels.
  6. Brash Games
    Sep 1, 2016
    60
    Nothing about Namco Bandai’s, A.W.: Phoenix Festa is particularly bad, but then again, nothing about it is especially great either.
  7. SpazioGames
    Aug 16, 2016
    60
    A.W.: Phoenix Festa is fresh and easy action game, mixed with simple dating sim mechanics. The light combat system and the pleasant graphics will help you enjoying this unassuming game, while the only few characters playable and the just two main modalities will easily bore you. In the end, a fair game that will entertain you for some hours, especially if you are a fan of the anime series.
  8. Digitally Downloaded
    Aug 16, 2016
    60
    I have zero doubt that, given extra time and material to work with, the developers could have produced one of the best anime-inspired video games this decade. What’s here is still modestly enjoyable, though, and this title is worth supporting just to champion the notion that anime games besides the Narutos and Dragon Balls of the world deserve localisations.
  9. PlayStation LifeStyle
    Aug 1, 2016
    60
    Vita’s already seen a number of dating sims, but none of them combine action-RPG gameplay with visual novel elements like A.W.: Phoenix Festa. Because it handles both of these decently, it’s worth checking out for fans of the Asterisk War franchise and anyone who thinks they might enjoy such a combination. Unfortunately, it’s way too light on narrative to leave much of an impact; for a game about a tournament, it lacks the sort of excitement and tension you’d expect, and even the dating sim elements pay off in thin dividends.
  10. COGconnected
    Aug 9, 2016
    53
    The game is most enjoyable for fans of the series, but an overall shallow experience sinks the title in an already small Vita pond.
  11. Gameblog.fr
    Jul 28, 2016
    50
    AW : Phoenix FIesta mixes action game and dating sim in a funny way, but fails to deliver really good action gameplay nor dating sim features.

Awards & Rankings

25
#25 Best PS Vita Game of 2016
23
#23 Most Discussed PS Vita Game of 2016
18
#18 Most Shared PS Vita Game of 2016

User Reviews

All reviews »
User Score
4.2

Generally unfavorable reviews- based on 11 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 4 out of 11
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 11
  3. Negative: 7 out of 11
  1. Rangertwin1208
    Aug 26, 2018
    3
    Incredibly underwhelming (and at the same time, unnecesary). Story is ultimately shallow with no consequences whatever path you take, theIncredibly underwhelming (and at the same time, unnecesary). Story is ultimately shallow with no consequences whatever path you take, the climax of the story was unsatisfying, light dating sim, combat lacks weight and suffers issues like the hit detection, some characters are stronger than others, some of MC's skills are weak and some are too OP, stereotypical characters that only peopel that only cares about cute girls and self-insert MC will like (in other words, people with mediocre taste), no online (only local 2 player), characters don't shout when during combat, endings for each girl are the same and graphics so mediocre that look like something out of a PSP game, s. I actually thing that the SAO games offers more replayable content than this game. Is obvious that A.W. PF is only for the fans, but I highly doubt they will even remembering this game, since I barely hear anyone talking about this game (even the PS Vita fanbase have forgotten about the game).

    Looking at the user score, I'm honestly surprised that there people who actually likes the game (of course, it could just mean that 1 person with 3 accounts scored highly the game). I get that not everyone will have the same taste as mine (I mean, come on, there are people out there who actually enjoy games like Umbrella Corps, Godzilla and Natural Doctrine) I mean, if the game was that good, there should have been Vita players on how much of a masterpiece this game was. Either that, or the reason why people aren't talking about this game is due to how dead the series is. Hopefully, is the    … Full Review »
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