Death end re;Quest Reviews

Death end re;Quest is ranked in the 40th percentile of games scored on OpenCritic.
7 / 10
Feb 18, 2019

Compile Heart set out to prove they could do something different by making Death end re;Quest, and they absolutely succeeded. Unfortunately, the interesting ideas at the heart of the game are undone by the groan-inducing and lengthy dialogue that often tries too hard to be taken seriously. Edgy writing aside, Death end re;Quest has marvellous gameplay that kept me glued to my controller. It's a strong package for JRPG fans, but you might end up wanting to use that skip button during cutscenes.

Read full review

Feb 11, 2019

With it's disquieting atmosphere and horror-fueled setting, Death end re;Quest is one of Compile Heart's most intriguing titles to date. However, much like other entries under the Galapagos RPG brand, it occasionally feels like the core gameplay plays second fiddle to everything else.

Read full review

45 / 100
May 6, 2019

Death end re;Quest is not a terrible game, but it certainly doesn't do much to stand out from a crowded and trope friendly glut of JRPG titles. The battle mode plays like a game of pool and has a lot of interesting features, but the writing is tired, the characters are overly sexualized and mentally deficient as always, and the game is set in a bland world with little detail or points of interest. Death end re;Quest is another game for fans of long dialogues leading nowhere.

Read full review

7 / 10.0
Feb 20, 2019

Death end re;Quest is far from perfect, with pacing and creative choices dragging things down. However, a simplistic, yet appealing combat and well-delivered character-based narrative make this a journey RPG fans can sink their teeth into. It may not be for everyone, but it has merit.

Read full review

7 / 10
Apr 4, 2019

Death end Re;Quest is good mix beetween an original J-RPG and a visual novel, with two different heroes.

Review in French | Read full review

7 / 10.0
Feb 22, 2019

Death end re;Quest proves it can tell an engaging and darker story in an RPG/visual novel, even though it doesn't do too much to make it stand out above the rest

Read full review

8.5 / 10.0
Feb 19, 2019

Death end re:Quest is not for everyone. Many people will be made uncomfortable by its moe aesthetic. However, if you have similar experience with games such as Danganronpa, Doki Doki Literature Club, or anime such as Magical Girl Site, Made in Abyss, or No Game No Life, then you will not only be able to tolerate Death end re;Quests aesthetic, you might even enjoy it, and that leaves you free to experience the incredibly ambitious and innovative game underneath.

Read full review

7.5 / 10.0
Feb 19, 2019

The visual novel side of the game is definitely the strongest part, and it’s a shame that the RPG sections aren’t quite as engrossing.

Read full review

Feb 5, 2019

Death end re;Quest doesn't always hit the nail on the head, but when it does, it's bang on.

Read full review

68%
Jun 23, 2021

Though Death end’s engaging narrative pushes me to reconsider my skepticism of games whose titles include semicolons, this Switch port’s monotonous combat system, cookie-cutter progression mechanics, and serious technical failings keep me from dumping this aversion altogether. For fans of top-notch visual novels willing to tuck in for the hours of tedium much the rest of the game amounts to, I can wholeheartedly recommend Death end re;Quest — just not on Switch. To all others: steer clear of this one or, if you can’t resist experiencing this odd series for yourself, nab this on PS4 or PC and dodge this technical travesty.

Read full review

7 / 10
May 17, 2019

The port performs well, and I'd wager for 90% of users the state of it will be enough. It's just disappointing that it launched in such a barebones state.

Read full review

RPG Fan
Top Critic
80%
Mar 5, 2019

Death end re;Quest's haunting atmosphere pairs up well with the dread-inducing story, making for a worthy experience.

Read full review

2 / 5.0
Feb 5, 2019

Death end re;Quest tries to be more than the sum of its parts, yet fails to achieve it. The story could've been interesting with less mystery or at least thrilling if it had a large enough budget to give some of the dead ends/deaths animations/scenes. Sure, several people probably don't want to see a cut girl sliced in half or killed a number of ways but anything is better than just explaining how they die a multitude of times. Combine this with an extremely linear world and relatively bland combat and you have something that just doesn't stand out in any way.

Read full review

RPG Site
Top Critic
7 / 10
Feb 8, 2019

As far as new IP’s go, Idea Factory has provided a solid entry and deserve credit for trying something drastically different from their previous works.

Read full review

7 / 10.0
Feb 21, 2019

Death's End re;Quest has an interesting story to tell, but sometimes struggles with the ways it tries to tell it.

Read full review

6 / 10.0
Feb 28, 2019

Fans of Compile Heart/Idea Factory will find a darker take on the old formula. Death end re;Quest has its best moments when it tells its gripping mystery story during the visual novel segments. The grim tone is undermined by anime tropes and fan service, though. Pacing problems and mediocre JRPG elements drag down the narrative, but at least the billiard-esque combat system is fun.

Read full review

Spaziogames
DottorKillex
Top Critic
7.6 / 10.0
Mar 5, 2019

Death End re;Quest is Idea Factory's and Compile Heart's best work to date, with believable characters, a fresh combat system and an interesting twist con virtual reality-themed topics.

Review in Italian | Read full review

Fextralife
PrimeraEspada91
Top Critic
9 / 10
Feb 6, 2019

A game for anime JRPG lovers, Death End Re;Quest delivers a good story with plenty of choice and exploration, with a beautiful design backdrop. Providing a good rpg system with plenty of replayability and multiple endings, the game is good value for fans of the genre.

Read full review

3.5 / 5.0
Feb 19, 2019

Death End re;Quest combines a well-constructed JRPG with a visual novel that results in an experience of varying quality.

Read full review

Cubed3
Nayu
Top Critic
9 / 10
Jul 14, 2022

Death end re;Quest is making its mark on Nintendo Switch with a fine balance of cute anime style graphics to temper the exceedingly malevolent and gruesome violence that truly is necessary for the plot. By the time the end game approaches a melancholic air descends because time is almost up for the beloved Shina and her sweet smile. Replayability is a must for completionists who want to encounter every clue in the game, and also for those who love the very screwed up universe in World Odyssey. Apart from occasional confusion on story progression, there are minimal negative aspects, with difficulty levels making lesser skilled players able to enjoy the intricately layered plot and higher skilled players able to sink their teeth into the complex battle mechanics.

Read full review