RefRain - prism memories -

Ultra-stylish shmup that looks like an early 2000s forum signature in the best way possible, and lets you chain super attacks to rip through bosses.

If modern AAA games could be likened to long novels, STGs could be thought of as poems. Like a poem, STGs may be shorter, but they are no less powerful, condensing a complete experience into a lean, sculpted form with no room for excess. And while a poem’s content may be the same on each reading, what the reader finds in it—and himself—can change radically over repeated readings. And for my money, RefRain might be the most poetic STG ever made. Beauty suffuses every aspect of this game, from the character designs to the bullet patterns to the absolutely stunning OST. And, if you let it, that beauty can lead you to an ever-deepening understanding of its inner workings and a mastery of the challenges it presents to you. There are many great titles in this genre, but this is the one that made me love it.

[h1]IF you have a controller...[/h1] ...Only then would I recommend this (Pos. review because so far this is the only issue I'm having). Could be a me issue, but without a controller the game runs abysmally slow, I tried the very few suggestions I could find on the discussion page but to no avail, besides plugging a controller in before booting it up. If you can get past that major hiccup bordering on the edge of being a straight up barf, the game is absolutely beautiful, in it's UI and general design, soundtrack, and gameplay. As per most shmups, playing on a regular controller is difficult without adjustments, besides being a bit confusing they're luckily rather easy to configure here. I ADORE how the homescreen changes drastically with each character, it takes the computer desktop asthetic to a whole new level. Also, Mews can put her entire foot up my mouth, but that's a story for another time.

Very entertaining shmup, difficult somewhat if you're used to dodging-type shmups rather than the clear-focused style of RefRain, but manageable with frequent playthroughs. I love the characters; my favourite is Mews since Bronx Terror is the ship best suited to my playstyle. The OST is very good and not too repetitive which is good for a shmup that needs multiple playthroughs to master.

Amazing.

This game is really cool. It has that hackerman "I'm in." with a side of diving into the internet type of aesthetic that I adore. The ship variants have their own unique personality in their playstyles and even down to the little desktop environments before you hop into a run. Using your bombs as the gauge builds up lets you pull off combos that are really satisfying, and I like that if you do it right they have a portrait cut-in with extra effects. The boss fights have intricate patterns that are as fun to look at as they are to weave through. These also let you stack up TONS of extends if used in the right places, so that helps the game be more beginner friendly. The music is also very catchy. I like the notes provided from the composer in the music room, always nice to get insight on how they intended to make it sound like a perfect fit. Sound design in general tickles your brain. I think my only complaint is the noise when you shoot some of those cube enemies, it's INCREDIBLY GRATING, way louder than anything else like nails on a chalkboard, lol.