Master Detective Archives: RAIN CODE

 Switch
User Score
8.4

Generally favorable reviews- based on 104 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 85 out of 104
  2. Mixed: 7 out of 104
  3. Negative: 12 out of 104
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  1. Nanashi95
    Jul 2, 2023
    9
    Never really played Danganronpa, but a big fan of a good detective story and of course anime. The game offers such an unique, fun and creative way to solve cases. Packed into an interesting and atmospheric world that I can't help but want to explore and uncover its secrets.
    While there are characters that can get annoying, most of them are pretty likeable and memorable.
    Overall, the game    Never really played Danganronpa, but a big fan of a good detective story and of course anime. The game offers such an unique, fun and creative way to solve cases. Packed into an interesting and atmospheric world that I can't help but want to explore and uncover its secrets.
    While there are characters that can get annoying, most of them are pretty likeable and memorable.
    Overall, the game can get so weird and random, but is also so unique, charming and creative. This alone makes me quickly forgive criticisms like annoying loading times or that some voice actors are far worse than others. Definitely one of my gaming highlights this year.    … Expand
  2. Hakz
    Jul 1, 2023
    10
    Spike Chunsoft did a turn with how they imagine the trials from danganronpa and it works so well. Its a wonderful start for a new licence.
  3. LilacZ
    Jul 2, 2023
    9
    Review of a long time Danganronpa fan, I found it quite difficult to isolate the influence of Danganronpa from this game.
    I have beaten the main story and completed everything that showed up on screen without extra research.
    Pros: - Great evolution from Danganronpa, carries the soul and feel of Danganronpa while breaking free of any confines set by being labeled "Danganronpa" - OST    Review of a long time Danganronpa fan, I found it quite difficult to isolate the influence of Danganronpa from this game.
    I have beaten the main story and completed everything that showed up on screen without extra research.

    Pros:
    - Great evolution from Danganronpa, carries the soul and feel of Danganronpa while breaking free of any confines set by being labeled "Danganronpa"
    - OST and voice cast are great
    - Satisfying storytelling for the most part, brings a much more interesting world than reusing Monokuma
    - Very exciting stage set for more series within "Master Detective Archives" universe without being re-hashes

    Mixed:
    - Familiar minigames, both good and bad, and can vary from exciting to off-putting depending on your individual taste
    - Writing carries the same energy, a bizarre world that is charming and captivating but also defies logic and hence carries loopholes if you nit pick
    - Each individual case is no longer a recast of the same large cast of characters. This provides a more interesting and suspenseful world with varied case formats but at a cost of a smaller cast per case that has less individual screen time making non-main characters less memorable

    Dislikes:
    - Huge loading screens and sometimes framedrops
    - Sidequests are quite tedious and not very interesting
    - Minigames and QTE portions make some text hard to read
    - Sidemodes are weak or non-existent    … Expand
  4. Thunderlit
    Jul 2, 2023
    10
    Came for the cute girl, and blown away by the mystery.

    One of the best detective games I've ever played. Liked how they weren't afraid to be risqué with it too. Was fairly dark, but some comedic relief, deep mystery, interesting characters, was an incredible game, even my wife got into it watching me play and she stayed up well into the night watching me finish it.
  5. terraangela
    Jul 2, 2023
    10
    One of the most engaging tutorial chapters I’ve played yet. It’s incredibly easy to spoil — so I’ll leave it at that — but interested parties should get to this game before the spoilers are all posted online
  6. Swichtman
    Jul 2, 2023
    9
    El juego es un clásico estilo Danganronpa pero en español en mi caso me sabe mejor ,excelente producción y ambientación ,el juego te lleva muy bien interesado en la historia ,el dinero es muy bueno ,guiños a Dalí ,a películas ,la música los colores y la ambientación más el carisma de los personajes hacen que te sientas hay dentro,tiene mucho potencia como game y como manga anime ,para miEl juego es un clásico estilo Danganronpa pero en español en mi caso me sabe mejor ,excelente producción y ambientación ,el juego te lleva muy bien interesado en la historia ,el dinero es muy bueno ,guiños a Dalí ,a películas ,la música los colores y la ambientación más el carisma de los personajes hacen que te sientas hay dentro,tiene mucho potencia como game y como manga anime ,para mi sobresaliente apuesta y fresca… Expand
  7. QueDuBonheur
    Jul 9, 2023
    9
    I finished it and it was a pleasant and satisfying detective game. Story definitely peak up near the end.

    Chapter 3 was the weakest part for me but it wasn't too horrible either. Culprits are somewhat easy to guess because the games give you all the hints to solve it yourself before the main character so don't expect Danganronpa level of non-sense but pure logic instead. Good cast,    I finished it and it was a pleasant and satisfying detective game. Story definitely peak up near the end.

    Chapter 3 was the weakest part for me but it wasn't too horrible either. Culprits are somewhat easy to guess because the games give you all the hints to solve it yourself before the main character so don't expect Danganronpa level of non-sense but pure logic instead.

    Good cast, good OST, Kanai Ward (the fictional city of the game) was great, gameplay loop works, 3D environments is a good addition but need more optimization.

    Overall, this is a promising new IP and I hope to see more episodes of it with some improvements. I definitely recommending it if you like the genre. Such an unique and weird game.    … Expand
  8. atmax1989
    Jul 8, 2023
    10
    the plot is just amazing, to me 10 out of 10!!! spiritual successor of Danganronpa series
  9. LuCkyNineoy
    Jul 3, 2023
    10
    I think this game is one of best game by Spkie Chunsoft ever made. Story, romanticsm, graphs and all other things are amazing. But weekness is game incloud some bugs too. But i can give still 10 score.
  10. Aquamarin4
    Jul 3, 2023
    10
    I've been waiting for this game for 4 years, if I may say so, in fact from the moment I got acquainted with the danganronpa franchise and passed V3, I wished with all my heart that the fourth part would be released.
    Rain code is what I missed so much, Kodaka, as always, pleased me with excellent crimes that are very interesting to unravel, and the final plot twist was just incredible, so    I've been waiting for this game for 4 years, if I may say so, in fact from the moment I got acquainted with the danganronpa franchise and passed V3, I wished with all my heart that the fourth part would be released.
    Rain code is what I missed so much, Kodaka, as always, pleased me with excellent crimes that are very interesting to unravel, and the final plot twist was just incredible, so if you are a fan of the Danganronpa series, I strongly advise you to play this game, and if not, then it's come time to become one.    … Expand
  11. Farisioy
    Jul 3, 2023
    10
    Recomendadisimo , lo tiene todo unos gráficos con un diseño artístico y una paleta de colores increíble una banda sonora con una inmersión flipantes y sobre todo una historia una jugabilidad y unos misterios q te mantendrán enganchado a la pantalla 10000/10
  12. RealCSGaming
    Jul 3, 2023
    10
    Raincode is a masterpiece. From well designed puzzles and an engaging story, this game will keep you hooked till the very end. 11/10
  13. hobbitwithoutHR
    Jul 7, 2023
    1
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. I bought the collector's edition of this game,but now I think it's wrong.Suffered from QuickTimeEvents,long and boring dungeon…and more…… Expand
  14. PinkyBloody
    Jul 3, 2023
    3
    Don't get me wrong, I bought the collector's edition of this game when I found out that the staff who created Danganronpa was working on it. When I started playing, to my surprise, I discovered that Kodaka did it again: introducing 5 intriguing characters just to kill them off in an attempt to say, "haha, I tricked you." It's interesting for those of us who follow the game, but for someoneDon't get me wrong, I bought the collector's edition of this game when I found out that the staff who created Danganronpa was working on it. When I started playing, to my surprise, I discovered that Kodaka did it again: introducing 5 intriguing characters just to kill them off in an attempt to say, "haha, I tricked you." It's interesting for those of us who follow the game, but for someone new who isn't aware of the marketing, they were just 5 random characters who died.

    I do like the characters with their radical personalities because it reminds me of Danganronpa, but after so many years, I expected the director to at least learn to give them some depth. But no, their personalities remain static from beginning to end. I hoped that Fubuki would be interesting and not fall into the classic "I forgot to even breathe" character trope, but this applies to the rest as well.

    The names... Man, I don't know who decided on these names or surnames, but they're horrendous. "Yomi Hellsmile," "Vivia Twilight"... It sounds like something you'd read in a Wattpad novel. Although this didn't ruin my experience, it just made me laugh.

    The music always delivers, that's what I liked the most.

    Regarding the design of female characters, I notice that the team keeps reusing faces. I keep seeing Enoshima's, Komaru's, or Sonia's everywhere. It's a shame, it would be nice if they tried something different.

    NOW, I'm going to give my reasons why I gave it a 3, to my regret, as I stopped at chapter 4.

    It's extremely easy, the game treats you like a fool all the time, and the killer(s) are too obvious once you start analyzing the situation.

    The labyrinth is tedious, long, and boring. I can't get over the fact that most of the time you're just walking through straight hallways, reading things you already knew, and on top of that, you're forced to answer obvious questions that were already told to you a while ago.

    I know the Switch is not a powerful console, but the graphics and character designs just look bad. It reminds me of the graphics in Danganronpa Another Episode, but in 2023.

    The story doesn't offer much, the characters and cities could have been explored more, but it suffers from the same problem I saw in Danganronpa: the chapters are too focused on a few characters, and then the plot is discarded.

    Quick time events in 2023.

    I have no idea if the game improves after chapter 4, I will never know. I really liked the second chapter, but the third was unbearable. I wanted to turn off my Switch when it forced me to deactivate bombs and solve a too-obvious mystery. It was a waste of time.

    It's better if Kodaka returns to Danganronpa or something similar because for me, Raincode doesn't work. Nonetheless, I hope it sells well. It's an interesting concept, but oh boy, this thing just goes from bad to worse. My favorite case was 0/1, and the worst was the third. I don't know, it feels really disappointing.    … Expand
  15. mike4156
    Jul 18, 2023
    0
    boring not like danganronpa and just repeating the same scenario over n over in the characters head for hours like we get it bro we understand what happened you said it twenty times!
  16. bnan_j
    Jul 17, 2023
    3
    Would have been perfect if the juvenile mini-games are not there. I know, its for the Danganronpa fans and people who follow its creator for a particular "style" but that does not translate into better gameplay. Its just weird that a lot rides on mini-games, in a world where story and presentation is king. Graphics are great in this version though, along with almost fully voiced lines.
  17. PsykoMutt
    Jul 18, 2023
    6
    I wanted to like this game. After having to wait an extra two weeks for my physical copy due to the asinine decision to release the collector's edition separate from the base, and my store mixing it up, I wanted this game to blow me out of the water, and bring back all the morbid fascination I got from their predecessors.
    Instead, I got an admittedly fascinating story, crammed so full of    I wanted to like this game. After having to wait an extra two weeks for my physical copy due to the asinine decision to release the collector's edition separate from the base, and my store mixing it up, I wanted this game to blow me out of the water, and bring back all the morbid fascination I got from their predecessors.
    Instead, I got an admittedly fascinating story, crammed so full of ideas lacking any polish that there are literally cutscenes between cutscenes. Where do I begin.
    Firstly, load times. I get this is on the Switch, but why do we have to be introduced to a scenario, get a load screen, then answer 1-3 questions in a variation of an answer selection minigame, which will then dump you to another loading screen, put you in a room where you get another clue, then ANOTHER loading screen, before you're dumped in an endless hallway where you're supposed to "keep moving forward" until the dialogue between characters ends, or the game arbitrarily decides you may move on (I suspect this is a hidden loading screen, but honestly I would have preferred still images with dialogue playing automatically. I may as well just tape the control stick forward.
    The minigames are downright obnoxious too. The pop-up pirate-esque word guessing game may have more flair than the usual word guessing games from Danganronpa, but it takes so long, especially when the letters are so perfectly placed that after you get one, you have to wait a full rotation to get another.
    The "combat" scenarios are... fine, I guess. I'll admit to having fun with it, and I bet they may get downright challenging later on, but they hardly make up for the myriad of other issues.
    The story, as expected, is excellent. I'll say no more on that topic, it's very, very good. However, the overall lack of polish and bloat of systems, as well as segmented design philosophy makes it a hard sell. I'd honestly say, just go back and play Danganronpa again. If you haven't played it, you can get all the games except the third-person shooter spinoff as the Decadence collection on Switch, so just go for that instead.    … Expand
  18. Tortor
    Jul 24, 2023
    4
    The writing for this is terrible. I'm a huge fan of danganrompa and bought this game full priced fully expecting some comparably good story. The main plot and side quests just don't hold up with its writing for such a story heavy game. Some of the writing is just laughably bad with the side quests that I wish they just didn't include the side quests if they wernt even going to try. TheThe writing for this is terrible. I'm a huge fan of danganrompa and bought this game full priced fully expecting some comparably good story. The main plot and side quests just don't hold up with its writing for such a story heavy game. Some of the writing is just laughably bad with the side quests that I wish they just didn't include the side quests if they wernt even going to try. The horrible attempts at story telling really breaks the immersion.

    For example on how bad a side quest is: you'll get a side quest from a teacher who claims to be getting stalked, everywhere she goes she sees a shadow following her, she's terrified and needs your help to find out who it is.
    You then talk to 4 students that are in the immediate area, with icons above them and takes like 45 seconds to round up the information of some mindless observations by the students. You then tell the teacher that the music teacher is stalking her. Yuma then points to a music teacher behind them, who pops out and days 'oh sorry, your said you liked me' then the teacher apologizes that it was a misunderstanding. They both then metaphorically shrug their shoulders like it was no big deal and quest ends (what happened to being terrified? Why stalking for so long? Is no one going to question anything about this?). It just feels so lazy. There are so many mindless side quests like that. The quests give nothing to the story and feel painfully tacked on in both mechanics (because it's always a 'talk to # of people') and story (because the poor writing is always similar to that example I just gave).

    Everytime I see side quests it just feels like a terrible waste of time and pulls me out of the games atmosphere with its bad writing.

    The first few chapters are just bad too. I wish that prologue bit was handled better. It felt weird trying to go all out that quickly like that for characters you just met. It's cheap. It feels like no time was spent thinking through some of these story structures for a story driven game.

    This is a walking-sim, visual novel with mini games similar to danganrompa.

    The story is the main feature and I just had a hard time latching onto the bad writing and poorly developed characters.

    In danganrompa you spend so much time with the same characters through out the game and can see them grow and get attached to them the more they flesh out. This game the murderers just feel so empty. Heck the first murder is a good example in the prologue on what it consistently feels like. By the end of that prologue you really know nothing about the murderer or care about them because you just don't spent enough time to attach to them to care or the victims.

    Each chapter sorta rinse and repeats the same issue of trying to speed along the victims and murderers characters that ends up making them feel very wooden.

    I just don't get it. Did they not playtest this story or did they rely too heavily in the zany stuff with the labrynth to distract with just how bad the writing is?

    The co-stars to each chapter really don't help either other then variety to the mechanics. It's such a waste too. For example the co-star detectives are really caged in to just play into a trope like the character that just cares about money, the character who is a creep for girls, the ditzy girl, etc. etc. Their characters just rarely stray from the trope designated for them and really makes everything going on with them so predictable.

    Danganrompa did this too with tropes but because you spent so much time with the characters you got to experience character growth and see how they interacted with the world. They felt less caged in to just their trope because of the time they was given to flesh them out. This game just doesn't do that and doesn't leave much room to do that.

    Overall, this was a huge disappointment. It taught me to research bad reviews more and not rely on the name of a developer.    … Expand
  19. gingersnap225
    Aug 18, 2023
    7
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. I love Spike Chunsoft. Huge fan of Danganronpa. But this game falls a little short. Would I recommend it? I don't know. Certainly, if you like Spike Chunsoft style visual novels. Let me say that the visuals were great. Character design was cool (Danganronpa was better). Music was good. But the story. The story. It's so important and it's just not good enough. Some was too obvious from early on. Some was never guessable and revealed too late. I would have been much happier if the big reveal was earlier on and they had time to better flesh it out.

    I played this game because I love Spike Chunsoft. I want to support their visual novels. I want them to keep making them! The prelude was AMAZING. 10/10. Chapter 1 was great. I would have been so much happier if the whole game was similar to those two. I would rather pocket detective stories than the overarching story they decided to do. It's obvious that masked guy is masked for a reason. Can we have a masked guy for once whose face literally doesn't matter?    … Expand
  20. LastHope17
    Jul 29, 2023
    9
    Better than Danganronpa IMO. There are more scenarios with more variations since they aren't tied to a school. Pretty much Fully Voiced in Japanese and English so you don't have to read for hours and hours if you don't want to.
  21. J8bit
    Jul 12, 2023
    9
    I loved this game! The story from beginning to end was so engrossing, with great dialogue and voice acting. The characters each had distinct and likable personalities that showed growth over the course of the game. The art style is one of my favorite aspects, showcased within a city that felt unique and vibrant. I was so enamored with each new locale that the story moves through. The musicI loved this game! The story from beginning to end was so engrossing, with great dialogue and voice acting. The characters each had distinct and likable personalities that showed growth over the course of the game. The art style is one of my favorite aspects, showcased within a city that felt unique and vibrant. I was so enamored with each new locale that the story moves through. The music was very catchy, with a lot of variety that suited the mood well. There was alot of variety to the gameplay, shifting with each mystery. I couldn't put this game down, and am hopeful this series continues as there's a wonderful foundation to build on. The only negatives I had with the game are pretty minor. One, is that within the mystery labyrinths, there are times where you're just walking forward listening to dialogue. I didn't mind it personally, but it felt like a missed opportunity where there could have been some form of gameplay like sneaking or hiding from enemies. The second minor gripe is a technical one. I'm not huge into fps or resolution, but there were times that the character looked blurry/lower res. Neither problem though takes away that this has been one of my favorite games to date on Switch. Bring on a sequel!… Expand
  22. ProfessorXyZy
    Aug 23, 2023
    9
    For me it was the art style of the game, which drew me in. But as an RPG player this is so much different for me. And I really like this game. It's fun, it's mystery and such a beautiful neon noir world where it plays. Only thing that is a bit nerve racking are some really loooooong text phases between characters.
  23. jhghjhj
    Jul 23, 2023
    10
    Amazing mystery visual novel with interesting interactive gameplay. Defenitly an innovation from the prior games from Kodaka, you can really feel the love and passion we missed since the Danganronpa series ended and the Worlds end Club dissaappointed. This truly is a spiritual succesor of the Danganronpa series and without a doubt a must play for every Fan of the Series. This game is alsoAmazing mystery visual novel with interesting interactive gameplay. Defenitly an innovation from the prior games from Kodaka, you can really feel the love and passion we missed since the Danganronpa series ended and the Worlds end Club dissaappointed. This truly is a spiritual succesor of the Danganronpa series and without a doubt a must play for every Fan of the Series. This game is also my personal game of the year so far, i love that it takes Inspiration from all danganronpa titles, especially "Danganronpa 2 Another Episode" which is to this day my favourite and in my opinion the most underappreciated title of the series!
    All that are pretty good signs for the future of the new IP's from Danganronpa Creators Kodaka and defenitly a right step in the right direction, so I will defenitly Look forward what the future holds for us because I see a lot of Potential in his works.    … Expand
  24. RayNheartZ
    Aug 13, 2023
    9
    Master Detective Archives: Rain Code feels like a spiritual successor to the Danganronpa series.
    The gameplay, minigames, formula, artstyle and even storytelling and music all feels similar to it, yet it manages to give itself it's own identity.
    The cases felt a little simpler than Danganronpa, but there was no dud cases unlike that series. I really hope that this turns into a series.    Master Detective Archives: Rain Code feels like a spiritual successor to the Danganronpa series.
    The gameplay, minigames, formula, artstyle and even storytelling and music all feels similar to it, yet it manages to give itself it's own identity.
    The cases felt a little simpler than Danganronpa, but there was no dud cases unlike that series.
    I really hope that this turns into a series.
    I still haven't played the DLC chapters, but I'm sure those are great too.

    9/10, would Rain Code again.    … Expand
  25. Maou6
    Aug 7, 2023
    9
    SPOILER FREE Review upon full completion.

    Graphics: 9/10 Story/writing: 10/10 Gameplay: 8/10 Characters: 10/10 Music: 9/10 Content/longevity: 7/10 (The game doesn't take too long to complete but it wouldn't stay interesting if it was dragged on too long. Still, a 7 I think is a fair assessment, especially with DLCs on their way) Master Detective Archives: Rain Code is blessing and a gift    SPOILER FREE Review upon full completion.

    Graphics: 9/10
    Story/writing: 10/10
    Gameplay: 8/10
    Characters: 10/10
    Music: 9/10
    Content/longevity: 7/10 (The game doesn't take too long to complete but it wouldn't stay interesting if it was dragged on too long. Still, a 7 I think is a fair assessment, especially with DLCs on their way)

    Master Detective Archives: Rain Code is blessing and a gift from heaven for people who love mistery games or mistery stories in general.

    I may be biased as I played Persona 4 (hey, it's a murder mistery after all), the whole Ace Attorney series and Danganronpa series and of course the Zero Escape series. But I think the review can still be accurate for even players that aren't usually accostumed to play these kind of games, in fact it is very welcoming.

    Honestly, rather than giving a fully detailed review as much as I'd like to I'm just here to tell everybody to go and and get it and experience a high quality product, of which we are in dire need especially in recent years.

    Seriously, grab this one IF you can get behind two key characteristics:

    1 - You like or don't mind anime styled characters.

    Hey, they're not for everybody but if people want they are fully voiced in EN as well, and the game is most likely translated rather surprisingly decently in your language (I know it was in Italian which was surprising but I don't mind. I played it anime style, JP voiced and EN subs) so you won't have too much trouble coordinating yourself in the most hectic phases of the game. The characters are all very detailed and charismatic thanks to the creative team behind Danganronpa but with this game they've pulled out all stops and truly, each one is a gem which you won't be forgetting anytime soon. With their overthetop personalities and fun moments you'll come to love every member of the cast.

    2 - You can get past the poor man's frames in most of the game.

    This is honestly the only truly negative point for me, the game dips, hard (enough of you yo notice) at several points, even menus. The performance will frustrate you a bit especially if you're accostumed to PC gaming but it doesn't make the game unmanageable. But it would surely help if everything was smoother. Sadly, that's on the Switch. Here's hoping to a soon to be released Switch 2 with retrocompatibily or, more logically a PC port. Even tho I understand why they chose to make it an exclusive.

    Summary/personal views: This is a game that you can love, and that you can cherish in your heart as a precious memory for a long time if not forever. You can notice the love and care that was put into this. The attention to details and high, on point witty writing and characterization of the whole cast.

    This is a game to remember. To remember as one of the best mistery games ever made.
    This is a game mainly for mistery lovers, especially noir but it can freely be enjoyed by everybody. Undoubtedly a High Quality product that you won't regret spending your hard earned money on.

    I hope this is the start of a new series of Master Detective titles. There's a lot to go on after all!

    OVERALL: 9/10 the last 1 you'll find in the game.    … Expand
  26. Bkillinm
    Aug 26, 2023
    9
    I wasn’t sure what to expect from this game or if it would be for me, but it has pleasantly surprised me. Even tho Im not the largest spike chunsoft supporter I have really enjoyed what I have played of this thus far. It almost feels like an excellent anime that is controlled by the player. The story is stellar and the game play is good enough to keep me invested. Iam not the biggest fanI wasn’t sure what to expect from this game or if it would be for me, but it has pleasantly surprised me. Even tho Im not the largest spike chunsoft supporter I have really enjoyed what I have played of this thus far. It almost feels like an excellent anime that is controlled by the player. The story is stellar and the game play is good enough to keep me invested. Iam not the biggest fan of the “combat” if you will but you play this type of game for the story.… Expand
  27. Shatterglass
    Aug 1, 2023
    7
    This was a very fun and enjoyable game. I enjoyed the story and the mystery labyrinth loop works. I was hooked from the beginning because I was so curious what was going to happen next. I think it had a great cast of characters and I thought the English VA's were excellent. My biggest complaints are of course the graphics were kind of meh and it bothered me that the audio didn't match upThis was a very fun and enjoyable game. I enjoyed the story and the mystery labyrinth loop works. I was hooked from the beginning because I was so curious what was going to happen next. I think it had a great cast of characters and I thought the English VA's were excellent. My biggest complaints are of course the graphics were kind of meh and it bothered me that the audio didn't match up with the characters' mouth movement. I also found some of the cases very predictable. I didn't really like the Reasoning Death Matches that much. I found them pretty frustrating at times. I still think it was a unique take on the Danganronpa formula. Overall if you are a fan of the Danganronpa series, this game is definitely worth it to check out. I hope they decide to release more of these types of games!… Expand
  28. T00nbink
    Jul 15, 2023
    9
    This game was extremely fun start to finish for me but I do think some chapters are way better than others.

    If I had to rate the chapters it would be 5 > 2 > 4 > 0 > 1 > 3. I was a very big fan of the final chapter, without giving any spoilers the climax was amazing with interesting plot twists and an excellent ost to back it up. There was one specific plot twist at the end that only    This game was extremely fun start to finish for me but I do think some chapters are way better than others.

    If I had to rate the chapters it would be 5 > 2 > 4 > 0 > 1 > 3.

    I was a very big fan of the final chapter, without giving any spoilers the climax was amazing with interesting plot twists and an excellent ost to back it up. There was one specific plot twist at the end that only really works if you played a Danganronpa game before which was amazing and I will definitely not spoil it as it was one of my favorite parts of the game. That said I do think the third chapter was pretty weak and I thought the first one was a bit too scattered to be satisfying.

    I was debating giving it an 8 or a 9 because a 8.5 isn't possible but the ending was so entertaining that I decided to go with a 9. I do personally recommend playing with the original Japanese dub, the cut scenes are completely out of sync with the English one which is very distracting, I also just personally thought the performances of the Japanese cast was overall better but some voices still work really well in English, either way whatever dub you use the game is fantastic.    … Expand
  29. PGNC_BSG
    Jul 4, 2023
    8
    Started off a little slow and some of the dialogue is long-winded. The main character's God is funny and annoying at the same time. But you'll get used to the humor.
    Overall the game is interesting, with poor pacing and not a lot of action, more cutscenes, and some of the free-roam is quite boring.
    I wanted to really love the game, as it's basically a Persona-like art style. I do love    Started off a little slow and some of the dialogue is long-winded. The main character's God is funny and annoying at the same time. But you'll get used to the humor.
    Overall the game is interesting, with poor pacing and not a lot of action, more cutscenes, and some of the free-roam is quite boring.
    I wanted to really love the game, as it's basically a Persona-like art style.
    I do love that it's completely voice acting, but the mouth doesn't animate the words, just blank stairs with voices in the background.
    Overall if you like the previous games that are like Danganronpa, you'll for sure like this! Not a bad game, but not great either.
    But definitely one for the collection.
    Reviewed by Amber M. of PGNC    … Expand
  30. Saucce82
    Aug 21, 2023
    8
    A strong 8, but I didn't fall in love with it in the same way I did with Danganronpa. It's managed to balance being the successor of danganronpa while still being its own game, The mystery labyrinths were great. The story did start to drag on for me a little bit at the 30 hour mark for me and $60 feels like a bit much to ask but I have zero regrets buying it for that much.
  31. LynxRecruit
    Jul 4, 2023
    8
    Master Detective Archives: Rain Code is an Excellent addition to the roster of Spike Chunsoft games, however, it doesn't come without its faults.

    I will not be divulging into the games major plot twist and ending as this review solely focuses on what I enjoyed about the game and what I didn't enjoy. Minor Spoilers will be present, so if you do not wish to read ANYTHING correlating to    Master Detective Archives: Rain Code is an Excellent addition to the roster of Spike Chunsoft games, however, it doesn't come without its faults.

    I will not be divulging into the games major plot twist and ending as this review solely focuses on what I enjoyed about the game and what I didn't enjoy.

    Minor Spoilers will be present, so if you do not wish to read ANYTHING correlating to the story, please get off this review.

    First of All, Master Detective Archives: Rain Code did a lot of things that I'm not particularly fond of and that's using characters to conceal other story relevant characters, this is especially apparent for the master detectives you encounter in chapter 0, These characters are devoid of any defining character traits besides general cliche's, The nice woman, the quiet over intelligent loner, the brass and rude guy, the nice guy, so on so forth, which given the track record of games that do this, it was incredibly predictable that these characters were going to die in the first hour of the game, in which I was correct.

    Melami, Pucci, Zange and Aphex are completely killed off within the first investigation and chapter of the game, making me and quite a lot of people wonder why they were ever advertised in the first place, This however becomes a reoccurring issue in this game.

    The game has an incredibly difficult time trying to hook you to characters that you meet throughout the chapters as some are devoid of personality or are one of the... ugh... Villains... however, thats not to say every character is bland.

    The only exception to this rule was chapters 2, 4 and 5 which were EXCELLENT chapters, both gameplay and writing wise.

    But... lets get to the part of the game that gave me a headache and really hurt the games experience and tension all together.

    The Peacekeepers, oh dear god the peacekeepers, What on earth were they trying to do with you, Yomi Hellsmile, Martina Electro, Seth Burroughs, Dominic Fulltank and Guillaume Hall are completely, uninteresting, incompetent, sad and pathetic excuses of villains, Not only do they get very little screen time in the game, they are very quickly discarded chapter by chapter, some of which getting little to no screen time to actually make them an intimidating force, Even Chapter 2 which I think is one of the best chapters FAILED at making Martina Electro even the slightest bit intimidating.

    These pathetic excuses of Villains hurt my brain as I genuinely wanted to like them, but they were devoid of personality, didn't come across as imposing or intimidating, didn't even hinder the player or Yuma in any capacity and everytime they had the crew in a bad situation they couldn't get out of any and all tension was undone by a single word. Plot Convenience.

    The amount of times the villains will have you cornered even after you solve the case, actually making them feel intimidating only for it to be undone by characters like Halara and many other characters made them one note, boring and uninspired, there was nothing driving these characters nor did they have any defining traits, anytime I saw one appear I groaned, because they were just going to disappear forever after you completed the chapter.

    The peacekeepers are a complete joke and whether or not this is by design is unknown to me, but I refuse to count them in the mystery labyrinth as screen time as they only serve the purpose to be roadblocks, not actual living beings.

    However, there are characters in the game that really brought the experience to life, the stars of the show obviously being Shinigami and Yuma, as these two are meant to be your leash into the game.

    But characters like Kurumi Wendy who's a reoccurring side character is one of the best written characters in the game, both for how she helps Yuma grow, but also how she has a genuine personality unlike 70% of the games cast.

    The best part of the game is hands down the investigation sequences of the game and the mystery labyrinths, however, The Mystery Labryinths are not perfect by any means, sometimes controls are poorly explained, some sequences you are not allowed to pause to read the questions and worst of all, how easy they are.

    Chptr 3 had the easiest Labyrinth in the game that I did chapter 2's labyrinth and the entirety of Chptr 3 in a single day.

    Overall the games experience is hampered by some weird decisions, specifically characters personalities and the uninteresting villains, but the game more than makes up for it with some of its cast and its unique approach to Danganronpa's gimmicks, while I am upset at the switch exclusivity, I hope to see it on PC later down the line along side a sequel, so I can see the game in its beauty at 60 fps or higher rather than a very choppy 30 FPS.
    I recommend the game if you are capable of over looking the issues, but if you want a clean and concise story, You might be let down to what this game fails to offer.    … Expand
  32. AlexYT365
    Jul 10, 2023
    10
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Quizá no sea el mejor crítico de videojuegos del mundo pero realmente este me parece uno de los mejores juegos del 2023 sin lugar a dudas, desde el inicio te muestra a lo que va con uno de los mejores primeros capítulos que he jugado en mi vida "Masacre en el Amaterasu Exprés" nada más iniciar te enseña como este juego no se va a guardar nada y si es necesario matar a alguien para avanzar la trama lo hará, no sólo eso te demuestra el conflicto de la historia y del propio protagonista desde un inicio, con detalles de los cuales no te darías cuenta al iniciar la historia por primera vez o con su propia narración en la historia la cual es magnífica y muy atrapante, el conflicto y como da van juntando las piezas de un puzzle durante el juego el cual desembocará en el misterio final es genial, mostrando una historia la cual no te aburrirá en ningún momento, la relación de el protagonista "Yuma" y la coprotagonista "Shinigami" es fantástica, poco a poco shinigami se va emcariñando con Yuma y se va humanizado poco a poco y Yuma al mismo tiempo entiende las diferencias entre ellos dos y forja una gran relación la cual tiene un gran final en el último capítulo el cual te deja triste pero feliz al mismo tiempo, un sentimiento el cual no se puede explicar con palabras, el epílogo es bastante bueno mostrándote lo que paso después del último capítulo y explicándote algunos misterios los cuales no se explicaron anteriormente y por último dejando esa chispa de eseparanza de que haya una secuela con una escena final la cual te deja un sentimiento de melancolía con el deseo de que Yuma y shinigami se puedan reencontrar una vez más.
    Muchas gracias por leer y en serio, recomiendo totalmente esta entrega.    … Expand
  33. ElliottHeutel
    Jul 13, 2023
    7
    This is pretty good but falls short when it comes to the overarching plot. The individual mysteries are pretty good, though
  34. alexky09
    Jul 21, 2023
    10
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Es un pedazo de juego con un sistema de batalla que junta la rapidez con el pensar rápido, también es un juego que satisface mucho en el momento que entiendes todo y haces parecer un genio, los laberintos misteriosos son muy variados el único que diría que es regular es el del capítulo 3 siendo el del capítulo 5 el mejor para mi, su final es una completa joya y cierra todos los misterios que había juntando también un final abierto, la despedida de shinigami me hizo llorar, pero me dió alegría ver que la novia de Yuma (No me acuerdo del nombre) tiene el libro de muertos, creo que es un completo imprescindible… Expand
  35. loboterra
    Aug 7, 2023
    10
    The evolution of visual novels and an excelent one about solve crimes, with the classic art of the danganronpa creators with many twists of fate.
  36. Alarchou
    Aug 29, 2023
    9
    Le jeu est juste sympa pendant les 2 tiers du jeu mais les 2 derniers chapitres sont classiques et rendent le jeu génial, les ost et la DA sont super mais les textures sont bof probablement à cause de la switch et gâchent un peu tout. Absolument tout les chapitres sont ultra prévisibles et bien trop long pour rien avec des passages vraiment inutiles cependant je me suis énormément attachéLe jeu est juste sympa pendant les 2 tiers du jeu mais les 2 derniers chapitres sont classiques et rendent le jeu génial, les ost et la DA sont super mais les textures sont bof probablement à cause de la switch et gâchent un peu tout. Absolument tout les chapitres sont ultra prévisibles et bien trop long pour rien avec des passages vraiment inutiles cependant je me suis énormément attaché à Kanai Ward et ses habitants et quand j'ai terminé la fin du jeu qui est juste parfaite j'ai ressenti un grand sentiment de nostalgie malgré les critiques que j'ai pu faire durant le jeu. C'est pas le Danganronpa 4 que j'espérais mais finalement c'est tant mieux. PS : le 1er DLC sur les 4 étant sorti et que j'ai pu faire, je conseille de le faire à la rigueur avant de finir le jeu mais une fois le jeu fait il n'a aucun intérêt. Je suis obligé de noté sur 10 donc j'ai mis 9 mais si j'avais le choix j'aurais mis 19/20.… Expand

Awards & Rankings

70
#70 Best Switch Game of 2023
11
#11 Most Discussed Switch Game of 2023

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
77

Generally favorable reviews - based on 64 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 42 out of 64
  2. Mixed: 22 out of 64
  3. Negative: 0 out of 64
  1. Starbit
    Mar 12, 2024
    70
    The game delivers a very competent experience when it comes to its fun, varied gameplay, going from action/adventure to visual novel, and its stunning presentation fits in nicely with a well written plot. It leaves the players wanting for more, though. The supporting characters deserve a lot more protagonism, its hub world would benefit greatly from sidequests and further exploration, and some occasional performance issues need fixing.
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  2. LEVEL (Czech Republic)
    Jan 22, 2024
    80
    Unlike mystery games, such as Sherlock Holmes, this game is much more linear and partially guides you forward by asking questions to which you have a choice of several answers. This mix of game and novel allows the creators to tell a much more interesting and complicated detective story than usual. [Issue#329]
  3. PLAY! Zine
    Sep 15, 2023
    85
    If you are a Danganronpa fan, this is a title to shake up the genre we don’t see much of nowadays. Master Detective Archives: Rain Code is a gloomy and mature, yet wacky anime thriller mystery that promises a lot and delivers exactly as much. Presuming you don’t mind slower pacing and loads of loading screens, we can say with zero doubt - you are in for a treat.
    Read full review
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