DATE A LIVE: Rio Reincarnation

About

"Date A Live: Rio Reincarnation" is a single-player Fantasy Role Playing game with an intriguing story, based on the light novel series and anime adaptations. As Shido Itsuka, interact with 11 characters and over 150 dating events, with the addition of the new character Rio Sonogami. Experience splendid graphics, a sensational soundtrack, and a wholesome story in this beloved game.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player Play through the game's story or campaign solo

DATE A LIVE: Rio Reincarnation screenshot

96%

Audience ScoreBased on 742 reviews

story88 positive mentions

atmosphere3 negative mentions

Great for fans of the anime, providing a rich story and character development.
High-quality art and animations, with fully voiced characters enhancing the experience.
Includes three games in one package, offering significant content and replayability.

Technical issues such as crashes and poor keyboard controls can detract from the experience.
Some routes feel repetitive and may require grinding to unlock all endings.
The true routes lack depth and can feel rushed compared to character-specific routes.

story
252 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
35%
62%
3%
The story of the game is a mixed bag, primarily appealing to fans of the "Date a Live" anime and light novels, as it builds on established lore and character relationships. While some players appreciate the emotional depth and engaging character arcs, others criticize the repetitive nature of the routes and the lack of significant plot variation across playthroughs, leading to a diluted main narrative. Overall, the storytelling is seen as enjoyable but not particularly deep, with many recommending prior familiarity with the source material for a fuller experience.
- “The storyline was enjoyable and kept me hooked until the end.”
- “The story was amazing with emotional and entertaining moments as well as brilliant animations, music, and art designs that really fit the mood.”
- “From a perspective of a Date A Live fan who reads the light novels and enjoys the Date A Live franchise, I would like to say that this is a really well-made visual novel with a rich story, fan service, and is really enjoyable for any Date A Live fan.”
- “It plays more like a kinematic novel with small detours since the main story doesn't change and there's no 'route' for each waifu.”
- “If you have to go through the same story 5 or 6 times but the only thing you change is the waifu you hang out with, then the main plot becomes kind of irrelevant, since you're not going to be reading what you've already read in previous playthroughs.”
- “The story in the three visual novels suffers from being written to not affect the light novels.”
graphics
54 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
41%
54%
6%
The graphics in the game are widely praised for their stunning quality, with many reviewers noting that the visuals surpass those of the original anime. The artwork is described as clean, detailed, and vibrant, featuring impressive animations and character designs that enhance the overall experience. However, some users have reported technical issues, such as memory leaks and performance problems, particularly when playing for extended periods.
- “The anime was amazing and the game provides tons of story time with great visuals.”
- “As I said, while it might be difficult to follow for newcomers, the graphics are incredible, each scene appearing as though it has the production quality and budget of an A-list anime.”
- “The artwork is clean and HD with 2D live animations; the graphics and character graphics are better than the anime.”
- “This game has a memory leak related to graphics and will run out of memory if you play too long.”
- “Date a live's graphics are decent but not perfect, where the game shines is through its aesthetics, animations, soundtrack, and its storytelling.”
- “Good game, but I do recommend you have a dedicated graphics card, because if you don't, you won't get far.”
music
50 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
44%
50%
6%
The music in the game is generally well-received, with many praising its ability to enhance the atmosphere and emotional depth of the narrative. While some users noted a limited number of tracks and the absence of vocal openings, the soundtrack is described as calming and fitting well with the game's aesthetic. Overall, the music contributes positively to the experience, with recommendations for mods to enhance the opening and ending themes.
- “The music kind of blends in with the environment, making it a part of the game while being unobtrusive.”
- “The soundtrack is exactly as it should be: emotional, beautiful, and adds much more to the general atmosphere of the game.”
- “The music is fantastic and enhances the scenes by a lot.”
- “The music is fine, but there aren't that many tracks, and sadly, there's no singing in the openings.”
- “Before playing, I highly recommend installing the music mod; those opening and ending songs were definitely worth the minute it takes to change the file names inside the movie folder to fit your current entry and to avoid spoilers, as the main opening was for the last entry and spoiled a lot.”
- “As opposed to the sound effects, the music fits each scene and sets the entire mood.”
emotional
32 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The emotional aspect of the game is characterized by a blend of heartwarming moments and tear-jerking scenes, creating a satisfying narrative experience that resonates with players. While some reviews note a lack of deeper emotional depth beyond surface-level charm, many highlight the game's ability to evoke genuine feelings through its storytelling, character interactions, and impactful endings. Overall, players appreciate the mix of humor, catharsis, and nostalgia, making it a memorable emotional journey.
- “The exclusive heroines were all cute and waifu-material, and the main plot related to them maintained a dal-ish atmosphere - energetic but also heartwarming and sometimes brings tears to your eyes.”
- “I straight up got so emotional at the true ending because the game is written so beautifully, and the events leading up to the climax all blend together into the finale, which is rare and hard to pull off.”
- “The story was amazing with emotional and entertaining moments, as well as brilliant animations, music, and art designs that really fit the mood.”
gameplay
25 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
16%
72%
12%
The gameplay of the reviewed titles primarily revolves around visual novel mechanics, featuring dialogue reading and decision-making that influences story outcomes. While some players appreciate the high production values and engaging character animations, others criticize the repetitive and grindy elements, noting that the gameplay lacks depth typical of other genres. Overall, the experience is described as lengthy and enjoyable for fans of dating sims, despite some flaws in execution.
- “The gameplay is similar in all three games, reading through dialogs and you have choices which allows you to follow the desired route.”
- “But with the high production value (excellent voice acting, cute character animations) and a quest token form of gameplay, the experience feels fresh.”
- “Art is straight up amazing, the animation is fluent, and the CG all make the entire gameplay leaps and bounds better alone.”
- “All of them are pretty alike in their mechanics and controls.”
- “This isn't particularly stellar for visual novel standards in terms of writing or gameplay.”
- “So overall a pretty long, quality dating game, but with some annoying, grindy, and repetitive mechanics.”
character development
13 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
46%
31%
23%
Character development in the game is a mixed bag; while the character designs, animations, and voice acting are praised for their quality and appeal, some characters, like Touhka and Yoshino, are criticized for being one-dimensional and lacking meaningful growth. Overall, the narrative pacing and character development are considered solid, enhancing the storytelling experience despite the presence of numerous romance options.
- “The character designs, animations, voices, and CGs are really well done in my opinion; even the jokes came out pretty funny, which I really like.”
- “What makes the story even better is that the pace and character development were extremely solid throughout each event, even though there are so many girls available to romance.”
- “The 'Date a Live' series is full of excellent character designs, and the game is no exception.”
- “Touhka is way too one-dimensional of a character for me to truly like her, and Yoshino is just a bad character overall. Besides that, she barely progresses in character development throughout her entire story, making her part basically pointless.”
- “Storytelling and character development.”
- “What makes the story even better is that the pace and character development was extremely solid throughout each event, even though there are so many girls available to romance.”
humor
11 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is characterized by a blend of witty dialogue, amusing situations, and lighthearted moments that enhance the overall experience, particularly for fans of the associated anime. While the humor can be hit-or-miss for those unfamiliar with the source material, it often elicits genuine laughter and complements the romantic and cute elements of the visual novel. The combination of funny character interactions and well-executed visual art contributes to an entertaining narrative, despite some clichés in the overarching story.
- “The game is full of dialogues, everyday scenes, romance, humor, and cuteness.”
- “These visual novels are full of funny moments, fanservice, excellent visual arts, and beautiful characters.”
- “Although it is kinda cliché, the funny dialogue and the unique characters will make you wanna play more.”
optimization
5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
60%
60%
Overall, the optimization of the game is mixed; while performance is generally stable with no major issues reported, some users find the 30 fps frame rate unsatisfactory. Additionally, the save data interface lacks the typical optimization expected in visual novels, making it difficult to navigate specific scenes.
- “The performance is stable, but 30 fps is painful, at least to me.”
- “The save data interface isn't really optimized as a normal visual novel would be; it follows a typical Compile Heart's save data, leaving you a hard time backlogging specific scenes you want to check.”
- “Performance: no problems so far.”
- “The performance is stable, but 30 fps is painful, at least for me.”
- “The save data interface isn't really optimized like a normal visual novel would be; it follows a typical Compile Heart save data system, making it difficult to backtrack to specific scenes you want to check.”
- “Unoptimized porting.”
atmosphere
5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
40%
60%
The atmosphere is characterized by a simple yet effective soundtrack that enhances the emotional depth of the game, complemented by cute heroines and a plot that balances energetic and heartwarming moments. The environments and background music effectively create a typical "date a live" ambiance, with contrasting tones that heighten tension in key scenes. Overall, the atmosphere is engaging and evocative, capable of eliciting a range of emotions from players.
- “The exclusive heroines were all cute and waifu-material, and the main plot related to them maintained a delightful atmosphere - energetic but also heartwarming, sometimes bringing tears to your eyes.”
- “BGM and environments suit the atmosphere, with different background contrasts and darker tones in some tense scenes.”
- “The soundtrack's simple, but it helps keep the atmosphere.”
- “BGM and environments suit the atmosphere, such as different background contrasts and darker tones in some tense scenes.”
- “Typical date-a-live atmosphere.”
grinding
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players note that the grinding aspect of the game can be tedious, as certain characters are only unlockable after completing all routes, including bad and normal endings. While the game offers a lengthy and quality experience, the repetitive mechanics can detract from the enjoyment, especially for those aiming for 100% completion. However, many agree that the rewarding endings make the grind worthwhile, particularly for fans of the series.
- “The first game feels tedious, and in order to get the true ending, you have to play it multiple times.”
- “So overall a pretty long, quality dating game, but with some annoying, grindy, and repetitive mechanics.”
- “Honestly, this is almost the perfect dating sim for me, although it felt grindy sometimes if you want to 100% the game.”
replayability
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game offers significant replayability due to its multiple endings and the necessity to uncover various truths, allowing players to explore different outcomes without the fear of being penalized by bad endings. Overall, it is praised for encouraging repeated playthroughs to achieve the best true ending.
- “Very good visual novel with multiple endings; a lot of replayability as you need to uncover the truth.”
- “Great replayability; the game doesn't punish you with bad endings, and you can achieve the best true ending.”
stability
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
Users report occasional freezes occurring at the conclusion of character arcs, specifically just before the ending video plays, indicating a stability issue in these critical moments.
- “The game freezes sometimes when reaching the end of a character arc, just before the ending video plays.”
- “I experienced frequent crashes during gameplay, which made it frustrating to progress.”
- “There are numerous bugs that cause the game to become unresponsive, especially during key story moments.”
monetization
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The monetization strategy has drawn criticism for the removal of vocal tracks from cut scenes without prior notice to players, suggesting a lack of transparency and communication regarding changes that impact the gaming experience.