KOEI TECMO and Gust are no strangers to the world of JRPGs. Known for developing the well-known Atelier series and titles such as Ar Tonelico, the team returned in 2017 with a completely new take on their signature "cozy game" style.
While Atelier allows players to live out a fantasy life as an alchemist and Ar Tonelico brought us to the rich sci-fi universe of EXA_PICO, their new title, Blue Reflection, was grounded in reality instead. Focusing on the life of a young girl in high school, it set out to evoke the feelings of depression that arise from the daily grind of being a student: waking up in the morning, attending class, not necessarily being loved by others, and the simple thought of being stuck in a rut you cannot escape. It is a gloomy world that showcases the harsh reality for many students today, but with a magical girl twist that acts as an escape from that reality.
With Blue Reflection: Quartet on the horizon—a collection containing every current entry in the series—we felt now would be the perfect time to finally revisit the franchise and review each title individually. To be perfectly honest, the original Blue Reflection is the weakest entry, but for the sake of this review, we will only be focusing on the here and now. We are looking at how it stands as a standalone title rather than what the series eventually became.
So with that being said, what is Blue Reflection exactly, and is it worth playing today? Furthermore, if not the original version, is it worth checking out as part of the collection? Well, that is going to depend on you and your own personal preferences because this is anything but a standard RPG. As previously mentioned, it is a cozy game with an RPG skin where relationships and life simulation are front and center from beginning to end.
The Story:
The story of Blue Reflection follows the life of a young girl named Hinako Shirai. Roughly a year prior to the beginning of the story, Hinako was a well-known ballet dancer who was loved by many. Sadly, after injuring her knee, she was forced into retirement, and her life as she once knew it was over. Struggling to accept this harsh reality, Hinako enters high school depressed and distant from others, but suddenly things change.
After meeting the mysterious sisters Lime and Yuzuki, she is given the powers of a Reflector—a magical girl who is able to enter a space known as the Common, which is a world created by the collective unconscious of the students attending the school. Here she is able to fight the monsters within that world and take away the negative feelings impacting her classmates. While Hinako initially doesn't care about others, she accepts her magical powers for one reason, and one reason only: her newfound abilities allow her to move freely once again in the Common, and the sisters promise this will eventually heal her in the real world as well.
So, with the goal of being able to dance once again, Hinako and her new friends dive into the Common and begin fighting off the horrors that await them within.
Gameplay:
The gameplay in Blue Reflection is split into two distinct parts: everyday school life and magical girl adventures within the world known as the Common. At the beginning of each chapter, players take control of the protagonist, Hinako, and have complete freedom over how she spends her days. The school is fully explorable via a fixed camera angle, and players can find students throughout the halls and classrooms or walk through the outdoor spaces. While there isn't much to do within the school itself, it serves as a hub for discovering items and conversation topics, which are then used for the true focus of the game: building relationships.
When speaking with other girls, Hinako can slowly build friendships represented by a meter that increases after each encounter. Upon reaching specific milestones, special events are unlocked, and viewing all of them eventually completes that character's story arc. These stories typically involve standard high school drama where characters struggle with adolescent issues, yet they remain entertaining. While some serious topics are addressed, the vast majority of conflicts involve problems that feel monumental in youth but seem insignificant as one matures. Ultimately, not everyone will relate to these characters, but learning more about them and seeing their stories unfold remains an enjoyable experience.
If a character isn't ready to advance their story, Hinako can take them to different locations across the city. These are small scenes without exploration—featuring only background art—but every location contains unique dialogue for each of the dozen-plus characters. Viewing these different conversations constitutes the vast majority of the game, and even extra activities boil down to additional chats. Typically, at the start of each chapter, Hinako can check her group messages to respond to dialogue, and at the end of each day, players decide how she relaxes in her room. While options like taking a bath allow Hinako to collect her thoughts and receive tips on what to do next, choosing "make plans" options will unlock additional dialogue scenes set before, during, or after class. This remains the core gameplay, making the second half feel somewhat trivial in nature.
Outside of school life, Hinako must transform into a magical girl and enter the Common. This is done by accessing a portal on the school roof or by talking to girls whose emotions have run wild. These NPCs appear during each chapter, and speaking to them pulls Hinako into the alternate world to resolve the girl's issues. In reality, these missions are repetitive, usually requiring the player to either defeat a specific enemy or collect items. Upon achieving these requirements, you can freely leave the area and finish the quest. Completing tasks grants points, and since a set number of points is required to advance the story, one cannot simply ignore these girls in need—though not all of them must be helped to progress.
Inside the Common, the structure is very similar to the Atelier series. Glowing spots on the ground serve as item harvest points, and players can attack enemies on the field to begin turn-based battles with an advantage. There is also a location for crafting items. While some items are needed for story progression, the vast majority are for healing or attacking in battle, though they are unfortunately not as useful as one might expect. While the Atelier series is known for punishing unprepared players, Blue Reflection hardly utilizes its crafting system or other mechanics.
In battle, there appears to be a lot of depth. There are three party members to control, each with their own set of skills and abilities. Abilities are unlocked by spending skill points on specific stats during level-ups—which occur automatically as you progress the story—and an Overdrive ability allows for multiple attacks in a single turn. Friends met throughout the game can be assigned as support members to provide occasional attacks, and players can guard during an enemy's turn to negate damage. Additionally, Fragments unlocked from friendships can be equipped to skills to add buffs. This allows for significant customization, letting players build their party as they see fit. Overall, Blue Reflection features a well-developed RPG system at its core, but it never fully capitalizes on it.
Putting these mechanics aside, Blue Reflection often devolves into a simple routine: enter a battle, use area-of-effect attacks, and watch enemies fall. Outside of the early chapters, there is little risk involved. Fights become a chore due to a lack of enemy variety and victory cutscenes that play for too long. While boss fights technically require more strategy, they usually boil down to taking out smaller targets before unleashing strong skills on the main body. This gameplay makes it obvious that Blue Reflection is a visual novel and life simulator first, with an RPG system tacked on that isn't used to its full potential. It is perfect for newcomers to the genre, but seasoned players may find it disappointing. Despite the T rating and some of the subject matter, one could easily mistake Blue Reflection for a game aimed at a younger audience; the inclusion of an Easy Mode—which makes the experience even more of a cakewalk—only reinforces that impression. And that's okay.
The Creative Direction:
One thing that Blue Reflection simply excels at is its general tone. This is a dark, moody real world where rain is common, the school looks bleak, and one can't help but feel a sense of sadness while exploring its halls. It manages to capture that same sinking feeling of stepping foot into school on the first day of class and continues to hold it throughout the year. With Hinako being a new student, it is easy to relate to the feelings she is experiencing; despite her situation improving over time, the gloominess remains until the end of the school year.
On the flip side, the Common is a complete contrast to daily life and fully embraces the fantastic. This world is bright and colorful with catchy music and multiple unique biomes to explore. It is a complete reflection of Hinako's desire to return to her life before she was injured and is the one place she can truly feel like herself. While the maps themselves are nothing to scoff at, their artistic design is a standout part of Blue Reflection. This escape from reality is exactly what Hinako needs, and it is a nice break from the dreariness of the real world.
When it comes to the music, Blue Reflection doesn't disappoint. Gust is typically known for having great soundtracks, and that same quality is on full display here. While it doesn't have as large of an OST as their other titles, what is here perfectly complements the moment-to-moment gameplay. Quite a few of these songs also made it into Atelier titles following the release of Blue Reflection, so fans can continue listening to their favorites without needing to fire up Blue Reflection itself.
Should you play it?
To be completely honest, I am clearly not the target demographic of Blue Reflection. I am not, nor have I ever been, a high school girl; many of the issues on display are not something I encountered during my school life, and at times it was simply hard to relate to the story being told. However, Hinako actually shared a lot in common with my wife, so I was able to connect on at least some level because of her. She too did ballet as a kid, and her knees are a wreck as a result. Personality-wise, Hinako also shares some similarities, so it wasn't too hard to relate to her, but even so, I struggled to put myself in her shoes.
Despite this, I still enjoyed the story for what it was, and there are a few really interesting twists along the way. They set the stage for the future of the series and help make the buildup to these points worth it. While some of the side stories were nowhere near as captivating—to the point where I had the urge to just skip the dialogue—in general, the story was still a fun time.
What wasn't as enjoyable, however, was the lackluster gameplay, or rather, how underused it was. There is a really fun turn-based battle system at play here, and there are tons of customization options—they just are not that useful. Past the intro, the game becomes extremely easy, and fighting the same enemies over and over again becomes more of a chore.
With gameplay that boils down to simply jumping into one of a handful of main locations just to kill the same enemy five times or pick up five of the same item, it gets stale pretty quickly. As someone who ensured I received the Platinum Trophy, which requires doing nearly everything, it was a bit exhausting by the end. While one could argue that's my own fault for trying to do it all, in reality, the tasks needed to unlock all of the trophies are actually a part of the game's general progression; skipping any of it means missing out on large chunks of the story as well. In short, this is a game designed to be completed, not just beaten, and players should make an alternate save prior to the point of no return just in case they missed something. Thankfully, many of these issues are resolved in the sequel, but for the original, it really is a shame just how underused its RPG gameplay truly was—to the point that the title could've been better if it were simply a visual novel.
Overall, Blue Reflection is a gloomy yet cozy high school life simulator with a touch of escapism. While its underused RPG mechanics had the potential to be great, they ultimately fall flat due to how simplistic the game truly is. Although not everyone will be able to relate to its story, the narrative is what makes the title worth experiencing and is the primary reason one should consider playing. However, if playing as a high schooler and encountering school drama isn't up your alley, then this one will not be for you.
VERDICT: Maybe
Reviewed on PlayStation 4
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