Fairy Fencer F: Refrain Chord

Disclaimer: This review is written more than two years after completing the game. Also disclaimer: I still cherish the experience. In this alternative re-telling of Fairy Fencer F ADF, Fang gets to go look for more furies, that are magical swords. The catch? One of them accidentally gets broken, which leads the plot wildly off-track. That's the whole summary. Now let's start with the bad parts. The player is absolutely expected to fully clear Fairy Fencer F before even starting this game. It pretty much makes the game a sequel, that is not actually a sequel. The game has no english dub, which is a first. And it's an entirely different genre compared from the first title - the first one was a Neptunia-style dungeon explorer (which, to it's credit, had a sizeable degree of difficulty). This one is a grid-based turn-based strategy game, and it's pretty long too. And it's horribly expensive with no discount. And it has a bunch of new, questionable characters. Now, just one of those may be off-putting, but with all of those you can almost hear thrown tomatoes landing in our direction. So what does this game have to offer us to sit through all that? The gameplay, if you can enjoy slow…

This is one of those times when I wish there was a third option between a positive and negative review. Fairy Fencer F: Refrain Chord is a game made only for fans of the series. If you're a fan of the series, you'll be able to overlook the boring combat system. Battles drag on for a long time due to the lengthy animations of the enemies and their considerable number. The story is still entertaining and makes you laugh like the classic FFF. I was a little disappointed when I found out that Refrain Chord is another timeline and not a true sequel to ADF. At least I hope they use Refrain Chord as the basis for the next Fairy Fencer, in the hope that CompileHeart decides to continue with this project. I recommend only buying this game on sale.

Fairy Fencer F: Refrain Chord, developed by IDEA FACTORY, COMPILE HEART, and STING and published by Idea Factory International, takes a noticeably different direction from its predecessors by transforming the series into a tactical role-playing experience. Instead of building upon the turn-based structure of earlier entries, this installment shifts toward grid-based combat, emphasizing positioning, coordination, and planning. It’s a deliberate attempt to broaden the identity of the franchise while still retaining its core personality—colorful characters, anime-inspired storytelling, and a balance of humor and drama. The result is a game that feels both familiar and experimental, sometimes successfully blending its ideas, and other times revealing the friction between its old identity and its new structure. The narrative revisits Fang and his companions, placing them once again in a conflict shaped by divine forces and the power of Furies. While it does not strictly demand prior knowledge, the story clearly assumes some familiarity with the series, as it reintroduces characters and dynamics without extensive recontextualization. A major addition comes in the form of the Muses, char…

Blades awaken gods Friendship bends forgotten fate Songs restore the world

ok you literally fight against the same muse commander every fight. who designed this trash

love it