Blue Reflection Reviews
Blue Reflection doesn't offer much as an RPG but it does carry a certain charm. The gameplay loop can get repetitive while the customization and combat system are fairly simple. The art style might make it feel like a typical slice of life anime but the game attempts to target the magical girl genre with its gameplay.
Blue Reflection is a solid, if somewhat fanservice-y, JRPG that suffers from some poor pacing issues. The characters themselves are decently fleshed out, and it's worth sticking with them to see how their arcs develop, even if there is a lot to keep track of. The skill customisation is a lot of fun to mess around with, but combat is the weakest part. Despite the excellent combat tracks, most battles feel like a drawn-out exhibition more than anything else. As one of Gust's best titles in years, however, it's definitely worth checking out.
The overall experience of Blue Reflection is enjoyable even if it does rely heavily on yuri tropes. The high school setting, particularly what the player does in their free time and tries to befriend the other students feels like the developers took some pages from the Persona 4 book and mixed it into the Nights of Azure Atelier.
Pleasant and engaging jRPG from Gust, exploiting the forgotten Magical Girls theme. It has some flaws, but a tale about handicapped girl trying to fulfill her dreams is interesting enough to give it a chance.
Review in Polish | Read full review
Complemented by a strong sense of style in its gorgeous presentation, this is one of the stronger titles in Gust's library.
Blue Reflection is a game that displays a heartwarming amount of beauty and grace even in the face of some tragically ugly flaws and mistakes. On a gameplay level, it never reaches the heights it wanted (or deserved) to, but as an overall experience, it feels like something special in a way few other games do.
Blue Reflection tells an accurate story of a high school girl who is coming to terms with becoming a magical girl. The game is graphically one of the best looking games from Gust that I have played and I applaud them for trying something new. There's a lot to see in Blue Reflection if players put the time into the story, but if you're looking level grinding and item collecting, this isn't going to be the game for you.
Blue Reflection is a good start for something even greater. It manages to perfectly capture the atmosphere of classic magical girl anime series, and does so with some of the prettiest visuals I've seen in a Japanese PS4 game. Unfortunately, it fails at making a truly engaging JRPG to go with it. The lack of a focus on combat is interesting, but it ends up making combat feel more like an afterthought than it ought to be. I hope Gust is willing to put out a sequel, because with some of these issues tackled, this could end up being my new favorite JRPG series.
As a brand new IP, Blue Reflection does its job well and may serve as a good foundation for a sequel, with an enjoyable (albeit not all that original) story, good character development, a unique leveling system, and a stylish presentation. Sadly, most of the game's features resemble too much those found in the latest Persona games and, as such, the game doesn't feel very unique, while the low difficulty level prevents the RPG mechanics from reaching their full potential.
Gust's new turn-based RPG presents good ideas as a more accessible combat system than the Atelier saga or the possibility of choosing which song to listen to. However, the division by zones, not have English voices or the little challenge presented in fighting makes Blue Reflection undeserving of more praise.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
The art style of Blue Reflection is absolutely gorgeous and truly sets it apart from Gust's other IPs.
Blue Reflection is definitely a solid JRPG title presenting an interesting story and a lead that one can get behind with her various struggles.
Blue Reflection will not revolutionize the JRPG genre, but its tale of magical high school girls fighting an otherworldly invasion is far more grounded than I expected it to be. Players looking for an endearing adventure backed by an entertaining combat system and a gorgeous art style won't be disappointed with GUST's latest release.
Blue Reflection is a new IP from a familiar developer in the JRPG community, Gust. Best known for their popular Atelier titles, I went into Blue Reflection without knowing much about the game. After having spent a significant amount of time with it, I am happy to say it is a fantastic experience and one that I hope garners future titles in a series.
I really liked Blue Reflection for the changes it made to the RPG system, eliminating grinding for character progression is an interesting way to respect the characters time. I do wish the game was a bit harder since it felt like the focus was in the story (which is a good story) with battles as a mean to have some gameplay between the other sections. But other than that, if you are a fan of RPGs, then this is a good one to try.
Blue Reflection has minor issues here and there but it tells its story well with likable characters, well-integrated mechanics, solid combat and a unique magical girl style.
Blue Reflection is lacking in a few areas, but it still has enough going for it to offer an overall enjoyable experience that fans of the magical girl sub genre will enjoy.
Blue Reflection is Gust's best new IP and one that would've been a better game had Koei Tecmo put some actual effort into localization wise.
Visual novels and other titles like Sword Art Online: Lost Song have attempted to capture anime style in video games , but none have done it quite as well as Blue Reflection. In this magical girl Persona-like JRPG, you play as the lost and broken former ballet dancer Hinako.
Blue Reflection surprised me much more than I initially expected. Accompaning Hinako in her journey back to ballet got me interested in her story and in all the characters that support her. The battle system became more interesting with new mechanics that were added, even if the challenge never made those additions necessary. Blue Reflection is a great RPG, but one that requires a lot of patience from the player, so that it can slowly show everything that makes this game so special.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review