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. 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
  2. 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
  3. 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
  4. 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

Awards & Rankings

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

Critic Reviews

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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.
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