Rhapsody: A Musical Adventure
- August 29, 2022
- Nippon Ichi Software, Inc.
Get on Steam"Rhapsody: A Musical Adventure" is a light-hearted, story-driven RPG with musical elements. The player controls Cornet, a young girl with the ability to talk to creatures, as she embarks on a journey to save her beloved. Along the way, players will encounter colorful characters, solve puzzles, and engage in turn-based battles with catchy musical numbers. The game is known for its charming art style and memorable soundtrack.
Nintendo Switch
PC
Steam Deck
Windows
Nintendo Ds
PlayStation
Playstation 3
Reviews
- The game features a charming and humorous story with engaging characters, making it a delightful experience.
- The musical elements and catchy songs add a unique charm, reminiscent of classic Disney movies.
- Visually, the game is colorful and cute, with well-designed sprites and animations that enhance the overall experience.
- Gameplay is overly simplistic and easy, lacking challenge even on higher difficulty settings, which may disappoint seasoned players.
- Dungeons are repetitive and poorly designed, often leading to confusion and frustration due to their maze-like structure.
- The game suffers from outdated design choices, including tedious backtracking and a lack of meaningful interactions between characters.
- music144 mentions
- 31 % positive mentions
- 67 % neutral mentions
- 2 % negative mentions
The music in "Rhapsody: A Musical Adventure" is a standout feature, with many reviewers praising its catchy and heartfelt songs that evoke a nostalgic, Disney-like charm. While some found the compositions to be cheesy or simplistic, the overall integration of musical numbers into the gameplay was well-received, enhancing the lighthearted tone of the game. However, there were critiques regarding the lack of options for language settings during musical scenes and some technical issues with song playback.
“The music is really well composed, fits the visuals and story of the game perfectly, and goes hand in hand with the game's overall tone. It actually enhances and establishes the tone more firmly, a lighthearted RPG with some really good songs worthy of an encore!”
“The characters, story, and especially music have so much love put into them that it's hard not to have a great time playing.”
“The musical numbers are a joy and not something I recall seeing elsewhere in the genre.”
“You see there is actually very little interaction between the characters and only a few songs in the whole game.”
“It really feels like this was made with 'teenage girls' first JRPG' in mind, and hey good for them and good for you if it's your thing, but I can't sit through the song that plays in the demo on the main menu without wincing in pain, and I grew up doing musical theater.”
“The only thing I would like to see changed is the option to have Japanese musical alongside English subtitles - I think original Japanese vocals make the experience more natural and fit the tone better, but the musical itself is a big part of the story, forcing me to look for the external subtitles to go with the Japanese setting.”
- story108 mentions
- 41 % positive mentions
- 56 % neutral mentions
- 3 % negative mentions
The story is generally described as charming, humorous, and bittersweet, featuring a classic "save the prince" narrative with a unique twist that touches on mature themes. While some reviewers note its simplicity and occasional underdevelopment, many appreciate the engaging character interactions and heartfelt moments that resonate with players, making it suitable for both children and nostalgic adults. Overall, the narrative is seen as a delightful blend of lightheartedness and emotional depth, enhanced by well-composed music and appealing visuals.
“Rhapsody is a surprisingly fun short story that subverts a few of the classic tropes and also manages to touch on mature themes now and then.”
“The story is more engaging than anything in this game, with cute, witty, humorous, and sometimes corny banter that draws the player to want more dialogue, providing a sense that these characters hold meaning and value in the world.”
“I was legitimately surprised at the amount of themes this game tackles in its story, such as what it means to love, what a person would do for it, tragedy, and other significant topics.”
“This is a very simple and easy tactics JRPG that has a very basic 'save the prince from evil' story.”
“The story advancements from 'chapter to chapter' are not strung together.”
“So after doing something to advance the plot, you have to talk to a random nobody for no reason, and they'll unlock the next story path.”
- humor42 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is widely praised for its charming and witty dialogue, which balances lighthearted moments with bittersweet undertones. Players appreciate the engaging character interactions and the game's ability to evoke laughter without overwhelming them with excessive text. Overall, the humor contributes significantly to the game's appeal, making it a delightful experience for both newcomers and seasoned RPG fans.
“Really is such a lovely little game that always made me laugh 💖✨️💕”
“The game has a lot of cute detail and funny dialogue.”
“Also, the game basically tells you to talk to every NPC all the time, which is nice since the dialogue everywhere is 10/10 hilarious.”
- graphics34 mentions
- 53 % positive mentions
- 38 % neutral mentions
- 9 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game are widely praised for their vibrant colors, detailed character and monster designs, and charming animations, earning scores around 8/10 to 10/10. While some reviewers note the retro feel of the visuals, they appreciate the art style's distinctiveness and its nostalgic appeal reminiscent of late 90s anime. Overall, the graphics are considered a standout feature that enhances the game's lighthearted tone and engaging story.
“The art style is charming and cute, the visuals are very good, especially for its time, and the story is very engaging!”
“Visuals: the best part about the game, great monster and character designs, cute sprites, charming animations, and decent backgrounds (although they overuse the cave and dungeon ones).”
“The world here was definitely designed with care and attention, and the graphics and music remind me a lot of one of my favorite RPGs, Super Mario RPG.”
“The graphics feel a bit retro at first, but when you consider it was the first game published by Atlus before its La Pucelle and Disgaea franchise games, it's understandable.”
“The art style is very distinct from anime back in the late 90s, reminding me of Sailor Moon, which used to be on TV every morning before school starts.”
“Make sure you go into settings to change the graphics to CRT mode!”
- gameplay30 mentions
- 33 % positive mentions
- 57 % neutral mentions
- 10 % negative mentions
The gameplay has received mixed reviews, with many players noting its simplicity and repetitiveness, making it feel bland and lacking in strategy. While some appreciate its accessibility for younger audiences and newcomers, others criticize the poorly implemented mechanics and tedious dungeon crawling. Overall, the gameplay is seen as easy and straightforward, often overshadowed by the game's story and charm.
“I loved everything from the story to the gameplay, and I look forward to finding out what happens next in the story.”
“The gameplay is simple but still fun.”
“Used to rent this all the time as a teen in the PS1 era, great JRPG, good artwork and monsters... rather easy game, battles go quickly and monsters can be recruited after battle, one thing I never see anyone mention about this title is the monster collecting aspect (monsters can be sold or stored in the first 2 towns) which can add more hours to your gameplay if you'd enjoy fighting and collecting... other than that, I would say this is a perfect game for young RPG fans/tactics battlers.”
“The dungeons are very repetitive and horrible to navigate; but in general terms it is a short and simple story without too many complications in terms of gameplay.”
“Gameplay: extremely easy (even on hard difficulty) and repetitive, zero strategy involved.”
“Unfortunately you spend way too much time dungeon crawling for such poorly implemented gameplay.”
- grinding6 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be simplistic and often tedious, particularly when aiming for 100% completion, as it requires leveling up multiple characters for side quests that aren't necessary to complete the main story. The random encounter rate is criticized for being inconsistent and sometimes overwhelming, adding to the overall grind. Many players report not needing to grind for powerful spells or items, suggesting that the game can be completed without extensive grinding.
“To be honest, it is pretty simplistic, and if you want to 100% everything, it will be tedious since you need to level up several puppets for their side quests, and you just don’t need that to beat the game.”
“I never had to use items, and I didn't even bother grinding for the most powerful 'omega' spells.”
“I wish it didn't have random encounters; I've found the encounter rate tedious sometimes (it's also wildly inconsistent).”
- emotional6 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The emotional aspect of the game is highlighted by its heartfelt story and engaging musical scenes, which evoke deep reflection and heart-wrenching decisions. Players find the combination of touching moments and comedic elements to be both heartwarming and memorable, making the overall experience resonate on a personal level.
“The gameplay itself is very easy, but the main draw here is the heartfelt story and the musical scenes.”
“It is so heartwarming, with moments that will make you sit and think, decisions that will break your heart, and music that you can't help but sing along to.”
“They both go really well together and offer some nice comedic and touching moments.”
- character development2 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The reviews highlight that while the game's visuals, including character designs and animations, are praised for their charm and creativity, there is no specific mention of character development in terms of narrative or growth. Overall, the focus remains on the aesthetic appeal rather than the depth of character progression.
