Dear RED: Extended

About

"Dear RED: Extended" is a 2D side-scrolling shooter game with a dark, dystopian atmosphere. As the player, you control a character named RED who fights against various enemies and bosses using an arsenal of weapons. The game features challenging gameplay, pixel art graphics, and a storyline that unfolds as you progress through the levels. Note: This summary was generated based on general information available about the game and may not include the latest features or updates.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

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

56%

Audience ScoreBased on 185 reviews

story38 positive mentions

replayability3 negative mentions

The game features a captivating narrative that evokes strong emotions and encourages players to explore multiple endings.
The pixel art and atmospheric soundtrack create a charming and immersive experience.
The game offers a unique mechanic of choices that impact the story, allowing for various outcomes and replayability.

The game is extremely short, with most playthroughs taking less than an hour to complete all endings.
The dialogue and writing quality are often criticized as poor, leading to a lack of engagement with the story.
Many players feel that the choices do not significantly affect the outcomes, resulting in a sense of dissatisfaction with the endings.

story
124 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
31%
64%
6%
The game's story is a mixed bag, with some players appreciating its emotional depth and multiple endings, while others criticize it for being disjointed, cliché, and poorly executed. Many reviews highlight the brevity of the narrative and the lack of character development, leading to a sense of dissatisfaction with the overall storytelling experience. Despite its flaws, some players find value in the unique approach to storytelling and the potential for replayability to uncover different facets of the plot.
- “Dear Red is a testament to the power of storytelling, reminding us of the beauty and fragility of life and the importance of connection.”
- “The story in this is well told between divergent paths.”
- “The game does have an interesting story; it takes multiple playthroughs to put the pieces of the story in order.”
- “The story is absolutely terrible and basically gibberish.”
- “It's a mess, that's how I describe the story.”
- “The story isn't clear at all and there's only a little conclusion.”
gameplay
28 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
11%
79%
11%
The gameplay is primarily dialogue-driven, resembling a visual novel with minimal interactivity, where players make choices to explore multiple endings. While the concept and art are appealing, the overall experience is shallow, lacking depth and meaningful engagement, with most playthroughs lasting under an hour. Players seeking substantial gameplay or a rich narrative may find it lacking, as the mechanics are limited and repetitive.
- “Dear Red – Extended is a good idea and uses a really cool mechanic that could have a lot of promise.”
- “Basically, the gameplay of this game is to test every possibility to see all endings and discover the story behind it.”
- “Red explores pretty effectively the mechanics and the narrative possibilities and outcomes of a branching story that relies completely on the player's actions.”
- “It tries to emulate depth with a 'choices matter' approach, but the gameplay is too shallow for any of the choices to carry any weight.”
- “The game's mechanics are poor and every 'ending' is completely without explanation or resolution.”
- “I thought I'd at least get two or three hours of gameplay, because I heard it was short, but all the endings can be found in 45 minutes or less, with some playthroughs being less than a minute long.”
music
25 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
52%
32%
16%
The music in the game is described as atmospheric and hauntingly beautiful, effectively enhancing the overall mood and storytelling. While many players appreciate the calming and dark themes of the soundtrack, some criticize it for being repetitive or mismatched with certain scenes. Overall, the music contributes significantly to the game's ambiance, though opinions vary on its execution and impact.
- “From the first moments, the game's stunning pixel art and hauntingly beautiful soundtrack create an atmosphere of quiet contemplation and gentle melancholy.”
- “The soundtrack is good.”
- “I enjoy the piano music in the background and the attention to detail in each frame.”
- “The game has a few cons; repetitive music, the save mechanic, and skipping mechanic.”
- “We have a girl speaking about her mother's murder and the music in the background is annoying and not fitting at all; it's not dark nor sad.”
- “Even though in most games music is not that important, in horror games, especially smaller ones like RPG Maker, it's crucial to building the right atmosphere, and this game is failing on that from the very beginning.”
graphics
19 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
37%
47%
16%
The graphics of the game are characterized by a charming retro aesthetic, often described as beautiful and clean, with a notable 16-bit style that appeals to fans of pixel art. However, the limitations of the RPG Maker engine result in poor fullscreen performance and lack of HD support, which detracts from the experience for modern gamers. Overall, while the artwork and sprites are praised, the technical execution leaves much to be desired.
- “The aesthetic is beautiful and daunting.”
- “Neat retro (16 bit?) style graphics.”
- “On a positive note, though; the sprites and artwork are beautiful, the music is nice, and the additional content they've thrown in is neat.”
- “As with all RPG Maker games, the poor quality engine displays badly in fullscreen and doesn't have full HD support or any graphics tweaking options, making this unacceptable for any dedicated modern PC gamer.”
- “Graphics: 4/10”
- “Well-made for something which can have all its endings cleared in 10 minutes; clean graphics, smooth camera, horrifying and eerie music to fit the mood, and no true satisfying ending.”
emotional
7 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The emotional aspect of the game is highlighted as a deeply engaging experience that masterfully weaves a range of feelings, from joy to heartache, within a brief playtime. Despite its short duration, the narrative evokes strong emotional responses, encouraging players to connect with the characters and their journeys. Overall, it is praised for its honest portrayal of vulnerability and emotional depth, making it a standout in independent game development.
- “A deeply emotional journey that pulls you in with its captivating narrative and leaves you wanting more.”
- “Dear Red weaves a tapestry of emotions, from the joy of rediscovering your past to the heart-wrenching pain of losing loved ones.”
- “It's rare to find a game that embraces emotional vulnerability with such honesty and grace.”
atmosphere
7 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
86%
43%
The game's atmosphere is characterized by stunning pixel art and a hauntingly beautiful soundtrack that evokes feelings of quiet contemplation and melancholy. While many players appreciate the unique and intriguing atmosphere, some critique the music's effectiveness in enhancing the overall experience, particularly in the horror genre. Overall, the atmosphere is a significant draw for players, with comparisons made to other successful RPG Maker titles.
- “From the first moments, the game's stunning pixel art and hauntingly beautiful soundtrack create an atmosphere of quiet contemplation and gentle melancholy.”
- “The soundtrack is pretty and atmospheric, dark even at some scenes, and the game features some voice acting in several scenes.”
- “It has many endings and a unique atmosphere.”
- “Even though in most games music is not that important, in horror games, especially smaller ones like RPG Maker, it's crucial for building the right atmosphere, and this game fails at that from the very beginning.”
- “The lack of ambient sounds and unsettling music makes the game feel lifeless and fails to immerse the player in its world.”
- “The visuals are decent, but without a compelling atmosphere, the game feels flat and uninspired.”
humor
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is described as silly and often poorly executed, with dialogue that detracts from the overall experience. However, some players found moments of unintentional comedy, such as the overtly revealing name "murderer," which initially seemed like a bad choice but later turned out to be a clever twist.
- “The fact that it spoils who killed her father by having his name as 'murderer' was hilariously terrible to me at first, and I thought it could have been a good twist. But after playing enough, I found a cutscene that revealed why, and it's a good twist.”
replayability
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game has limited replayability, with players noting that once all endings are unlocked—typically within about 74 minutes—there is little incentive to play again, as the experience does not offer new content or challenges.
- “It took me about 74 minutes to unlock all the endings, and once done, it had no replay value.”
- “There's no replay value in it.”
- “I enjoyed my time with it, but the rest of the time spent was just idling for cards as there is no more replay value in this one.”
character development
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
Character development in the game is criticized for being lacking, with players noting that while the beginning is engaging, the overall story and character arcs fail to deliver a satisfying conclusion.
- “The start of the game is very intriguing, but none of the endings feel satisfying; the story and character development are also non-existent.”
- “Character development is shallow and lacks depth, making it hard to connect with the characters.”
- “The characters feel one-dimensional, and their growth throughout the game is minimal at best.”
monetization
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
The monetization strategy of the game heavily relies on advertising, to the point where it feels like the ads dominate the gameplay experience.
- “Well advertised game, but the advertisement is essentially the entire game.”
- “The monetization model feels exploitative, making it hard to enjoy the game without spending extra money.”
- “It seems like every feature is locked behind a paywall, which ruins the overall experience.”