Kotodama: The 7 Mysteries of Fujisawa

About

Welcome to Fujisawa Academy – an educational institution where nothing is as it seems and every pupil hides a dark secret. Having made a pact with a demon fox - and bestowing you with the power to see the truth behind the lies, you must uncover the sinister truths behind the seemingly normal façade.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

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

Kotodama: The 7 Mysteries of Fujisawa screenshot

40%

Audience ScoreBased on 40 reviews

story14 positive mentions

grinding4 negative mentions

The game features beautiful anime-influenced artwork and character designs.
The narrative includes interesting twists that keep players engaged and guessing until the end.
The match-three mini-game provides a fun and interactive element to the visual novel experience.

The gameplay is heavily reliant on RNG, making the match-three puzzles frustrating and tedious.
Players are forced to replay large sections of the story multiple times with minimal changes, leading to a repetitive experience.
The visual novel aspect lacks depth, with poorly developed characters and a predictable plot that fails to deliver a satisfying conclusion.

story
87 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
16%
70%
14%
The story of the game is a mixed bag, with some players finding it initially engaging but ultimately repetitive and predictable, often requiring multiple playthroughs with minimal changes to the narrative. While there are attempts at plot twists and deeper themes, many reviewers felt that the execution fell flat, leading to a lack of investment in the characters and their arcs. Overall, the narrative struggles to maintain interest due to its reliance on repetitive gameplay mechanics and a lack of meaningful choices that affect the story's outcome.
- “The art is great and the story is interesting and simple enough to keep you interested from start to finish.”
- “An excellent game, it starts off completely normal and casual and after chapter five it completely changes in the texture of the story and becomes a real mystery visual novel where your choices could actually lead to your character having the same fate as Mikoto.”
- “The story is deeper than it appears, and even after the first playthrough, you will see that you missed a lot of things and the reasons characters did things are far deeper than you originally thought.”
- “This is HuniePop only if you make a mistake and don't perfect the current level you're on; the game forces you to restart the entire visual novel again, no matter how far you've got, when the visual novel itself has no story-altering choices you can make, so the visual novel part is identical every time.”
- “The characters and story are all dull, boring, and very predictable. Don't waste 10 hours replaying the game to figure out what the ending is because you already know it basically before you've had to loop once.”
- “You're forced to play the exact same copy-pasted story over and over and over again.”
gameplay
49 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
16%
67%
16%
The gameplay has been widely criticized for being tedious, repetitive, and heavily reliant on luck, particularly in its match-3 mechanics, which many reviewers found to be poorly integrated into the story. Players noted that the gameplay feels tacked-on and serves as a frustrating barrier to the narrative, with unskippable segments and a lack of meaningful interaction. While the story has some redeeming qualities, the overall gameplay experience is seen as a significant drawback, detracting from the potential enjoyment of the visual novel.
- “The gameplay is that of a dialogue path branching visual novel with tile matching.”
- “So far, I'm enjoying what the game has to offer - after you unlock the puzzle mechanic, you can play it anytime from the main menu, with a 'fantasize mode' where you can unlock different outfits for the characters.”
- “It definitely captivates players' hearts with attractive plots and fun gameplay.”
- “The gameplay is tedious, almost non-existent, and feels like repetitive mobile phone level.”
- “I'm convinced the copy-pasted story and trash RNG puzzle gameplay is only there to try and drag out a 1-2 hour game into being almost 20 hours.”
- “Not only is it very luck reliant (most of the mechanics are luck-based), meaning that the final puzzles/fights in the game can quite literally be impossible to win, this visual novel loves to repeat it without giving you an option to skip even if you already beat it once before.”
graphics
11 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
82%
18%
The graphics in "Kotodama: The 7 Mysteries of Fujisawa" are generally well-received, featuring attractive and cute anime-style artwork for the main characters, though the environmental designs are considered simplistic. While the art style is somewhat interesting, it lacks standout elements, with some characters, like the demon cat, being criticized for appearing cheap. Overall, the visuals complement the game's engaging story and soundtrack, contributing positively to the overall experience.
- “I enjoy the art style so far, except for maybe the demon cat - that one thing looks pretty cheap, everyone else is cute and well drawn.”
- “I love Kotodama for the great story with lots of brilliant plot twists, interesting characters, eye-catching artwork, pleasant music, and voice acting.”
- “Let me describe the good features first: the artwork, the music, and the story.”
- “Graphics: normal”
- “Pretty and cute anime artworks.”
music
11 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
64%
9%
27%
The music in "Kotodama: The 7 Mysteries of Fujisawa" is generally well-received, with a good soundtrack that enhances the atmosphere, particularly the opening song. However, the limited variety, with only a few tracks available, can lead to repetitiveness during gameplay. Overall, while the music is pleasant and fitting, its scarcity is a notable drawback.
- “The soundtrack with vocals is very good too.”
- “Talking of music, there are many interesting tracks that create just the right atmosphere, and I definitely liked the opening song.”
- “I love Kotodama for the great story with lots of brilliant plot twists, interesting characters, eye-catching artwork, pleasant music, and voice acting.”
- “The music is overall serviceable and fitting, but notably there aren't a lot of tracks, so it can get repetitive.”
- “Music is scarce in variety; I think there are maybe four tracks.”
- “There is a small number of soundtracks.”
grinding
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious and repetitive, often comparing it to low-quality mobile games. The requirement to replay chapters adds to the frustration, making the experience feel boring and predictable.
- “Gameplay is tedious, almost non-existent, and feels like a repetitive mobile phone level.”
- “Insanely tedious, boring, and predictable.”
- “Since the game forces you to replay the chapters, it can get quite tedious.”
optimization
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33%
100%
Overall, users report a generally positive experience with the game's optimization, noting that performance has been decent with no significant issues encountered.
- “Performance: no problems so far.”
- “I can't exactly rate their performance, but it sounds decent.”
- “Firstly, performance.”
- “- performance: no problems so far.”
atmosphere
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
50%
The game's atmosphere is enhanced by a diverse and engaging soundtrack, particularly the opening song, which sets the tone effectively. However, players are cautioned not to be deceived by the initially friendly and mundane environment, as it may conceal deeper, more unsettling elements.
- “Talking of music, there are many interesting tracks that create just the right atmosphere, and I definitely liked the opening song.”
- “Do not be tricked by the seemingly friendly and daily atmosphere of the game.”
replayability
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
The replayability of the game is considered poor, with users expressing significant dissatisfaction, particularly citing issues related to the interface.
- “Replayability is awful; once you've completed the game, there's little incentive to return.”
- “The lack of meaningful choices means that replaying the game feels like a chore rather than an adventure.”
- “After finishing the game, I found no reason to go back and play it again; the experience felt too linear.”
monetization
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
The monetization strategy primarily involves watching TV ads to unlock additional content or features, which some users find intrusive but others appreciate as a way to access more without direct payments.
- “The game forces you to watch TV ads just to progress.”
- “Monetization is overly aggressive, making it hard to enjoy the game without spending money.”
- “I feel like I'm constantly being pushed to buy in-game currency to keep up.”
emotional
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The emotional aspect of the game is characterized by a frustrating experience that can lead to player annoyance, particularly with the character Luke, which may result in players seeking external help or abandoning the game altogether after a few hours.