Science Girls

About

Science Girls is a single player role playing game. It was developed by Spiky Caterpillar and was released on March 20, 2014. It received mostly positive reviews from players.

"Science Girls" is a turn-based combat game where schoolgirls use their science skills to fight alien invasions. Players can customize characters' skills and choose from three difficulty levels. The game features time-travel and paradox-filled alien worlds, with a light-hearted storyline and geeky jokes. Characters earn experience in battle, and swapping active combat members is allowed at any time.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player

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69%

Audience ScoreBased on 216 reviews

story24 positive mentions

grinding26 negative mentions

The game features a charming and humorous storyline with unique characters, each specializing in different scientific fields.
The turn-based combat system allows for strategic gameplay, with a variety of skills and abilities for each character.
It's a fun and light-hearted RPG that appeals to fans of anime and quirky narratives, especially at its low price point.

The combat can become repetitive and grindy, with slow pacing and a lack of engaging mechanics, leading to frustration.
Technical issues such as poor graphics, clunky controls, and a lack of meaningful recovery options detract from the overall experience.
The game feels incomplete and unbalanced, with a thin storyline and underdeveloped characters that may not satisfy players looking for depth.

story
68 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
35%
61%
4%
The game's story is characterized as lighthearted and humorous, featuring a simple and quirky plot about a science club's battle against plant-like aliens. While some players appreciate its comedic elements and unique characters, others find the narrative shallow and forgettable, with minimal depth and a reliance on clichés. Overall, it offers a mix of fun and silliness, appealing to those who enjoy unconventional RPGs, but may disappoint players seeking a more substantial storyline.
- “The plot is very simple and quite silly: aliens that look like plants from another dimension are invading Earth and it's up to the girls from the school's science club to stop them.”
- “I thought the game was cute, had an interesting story and characters, and I liked how it incorporated little science facts and premises into everything.”
- “While the technical side and the wild story clearly show that this game is one of Hanako's early games, the mix of cute and weird characters and funny dialogues makes the game a must-have for fans of unconventional RPGs.”
- “It has bad characters, a dumb story, and its brand of humor is sophomoric at best.”
- “It was slow, had no real story to speak of, troped characters, and tedious combat that monopolizes the majority of the game.”
- “There isn't all that much of a story either - just a few lines of comedy and simple decision points stuck along a linear narrative.”
gameplay
48 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
13%
74%
13%
The gameplay is characterized by standard turn-based combat with an emphasis on formation and SP management, but it suffers from repetitiveness and clunky mechanics, leading to a dull experience over time. While the game features cute characters and some tactical elements, many players find the overall gameplay slow and lacking depth, with issues such as crashes and unresponsive controls further detracting from the experience. Despite its casual appeal, those seeking a more engaging or innovative gameplay experience may be disappointed.
- “So if you want a decent JRPG with some tactical gameplay that doesn't take itself too seriously and embraces the anime silliness, I can recommend this one.”
- “Fun to be had by anyone, those looking for casual play or a challenge, Science Girls offers a unique gameplay style that is a steal at $5.”
- “Mechanics are not unnecessarily complicated, and there is plenty of room for basic tactics.”
- “This game feels like it had a character/settings designer, a gameplay designer, and an RPG mechanics designer that were all making a game on their own, and they just patched them together.”
- “The gameplay responsiveness is unreasonably crunchy, and shortly into the game battles just become increasingly numbing repeats of your team against armies of self-replicating enemies that just take too long to clear, only to get into another same-same-same fight moments later, taking even longer as it becomes more costly for your characters to perform their actions.”
- “Short version: good characters, but slow and repetitive gameplay that gets slower and more repetitive.”
grinding
26 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The grinding aspect of the game is heavily criticized, with many players finding it tedious and repetitive, particularly due to the slow combat and the necessity to grind for experience points to progress. While some mechanics, like "finishers," can aid in leveling up, the overall experience is marred by a lack of equipment upgrades and an unfair final boss that requires extensive grinding or luck to defeat. Despite these issues, a few players appreciated the game's pacing and found it manageable within its six-hour playtime.
- “After a certain level, you will obtain powerful high-damage skills called 'finishers' that will increase the amount of experience earned by a character if she kills an enemy with a finisher. This is handy for grinding, but some finishers are way better than others, making it a hassle to level up everyone effectively.”
- “The combat is slow, tedious, and poorly designed.”
- “It was slow, had no real story to speak of, featured trope characters, and had tedious combat that monopolizes the majority of the game.”
humor
22 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is described as lighthearted and often funny, with a mix of cute and quirky characters that contribute to its charm. While some moments may veer into educational territory or come off as sophomoric, the overall writing is entertaining and provides a casual comedic experience. Despite its shortcomings, many reviewers find the humor to be a highlight, making it enjoyable for fans of unconventional RPGs.
- “The storyline is lighthearted and often humorous, but rather short.”
- “It’s cute, it’s funny, it’s great entertainment.”
- “While the technical side and the wild story clearly show that this game is one of Hanako's early games, the mix of cute and weird characters and funny dialogues makes the game a must-have for fans of unconventional RPGs, and due to the low price, it is certainly worth a try.”
graphics
18 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
17%
66%
17%
The game's graphics feature 2D sprites and hand-drawn anime-style visuals, which contribute to its indie charm despite appearing rough and amateurish. While the overworld tilesets and monster designs lack variation and polish, many players find the overall aesthetic endearing and fitting for the game's style. Overall, the graphics may not be impressive, but they complement the game's character and charm.
- “This game only uses 2D sprites for the gameplay and hand-drawn anime-style graphics for the visual novel segments and backgrounds.”
- “Despite the flaws and annoyances, the graphics are charming, the game has interesting characters, and the battles can be challenging until you get the rhythm.”
- “The graphics for the overworld tilesets look pretty rough and give off a sort of amateurish vibe, which adds to the game's doujin charm.”
- “The graphics for the overworld tilesets and stuff look pretty rough and give off a sort of amateurish vibe, which isn't a great thing but I believe just adds more to the game's doujin kind of charm.”
- “Graphics have nasty color shift.”
- “As it is an indie game, it is understandable that graphics are reused in many places and don't bring a whole lot of variation.”
music
16 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
19%
62%
19%
The game's music is generally decent, featuring a variety of battle themes that help prevent repetition, though the quality of tracks can vary significantly. Many players appreciate the nostalgic old-school RPG feel of the music, particularly in battle and overworld themes, but some find it lackluster and lacking urgency. Overall, while there are standout tracks that players enjoy, the desire for a separate OST suggests a mixed reception.
- “I'd still love to find a way to listen to the game's OST separately because I find myself liking a couple of them a lot.”
- “Music for the overworld is also mostly pretty decent, atmospheric enough in a way.”
- “Even the music has the nostalgic RPG feel to it.”
- “The music is lackluster and carries no sense of urgency.”
- “The game's music is pretty decent, but the quality greatly varies from track to track.”
- “The music frequently had an old school RPG style battle music feel to it.”
replayability
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
50%
The game offers strong replayability due to its diverse range of science-themed attacks, a variety of food items, and adjustable difficulty levels. Additionally, the engaging music and random assortment of elements contribute to an enjoyable experience that encourages players to return.
- “The variety of imaginatively science-themed attacks, food items that could be dispensed with, and difficulty that could be increased mean that this game has great replay value.”
- “It also has good music, a random assortment of food items, and strong replay value.”
atmosphere
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The atmosphere of the game is enhanced by decent and atmospheric overworld music, contributing positively to the overall experience.
- “The music for the overworld is mostly pretty decent, creating an atmospheric experience.”
- “The overall atmosphere is enhanced by the immersive sound design and music.”
stability
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game has experienced some stability issues, particularly crashing during boss fights; however, these bugs appear to have been addressed in recent updates.
- “A little buggy (crashed on a boss fight - seems to be fixed now).”