Shades of Sakura

About

Shades of Sakura is a single player casual role playing game with a erotic theme. It was developed by BanzaiProject and was released on July 22, 2021. It received mostly positive reviews from players.

"Shades of Sakura" is a visual novel game featuring a cast of female characters in a school setting. The player assumes the role of a transfer student and must navigate social dynamics while uncovering the mysteries of the school. With multiple routes and endings, players can experience different storylines based on their choices.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player

Skip User Reviews

79%

Audience ScoreBased on 196 reviews

story16 positive mentions

replayability3 negative mentions

The game features beautiful artwork and a charming soundtrack that enhances the overall experience.
The puzzles are engaging and provide a fun challenge, with multiple ways to solve them.
The game offers a unique blend of visual novel elements and puzzle mechanics, making it an interesting experience for players.

The gameplay can be overly simplistic and lacks depth, making it easy to complete in a short amount of time.
There are issues with optimization, including lag and bugs that can detract from the experience.
The adult content is often criticized for being lackluster, with repetitive animations and uninspired voice acting.

story
31 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
52%
38%
10%
The game's story receives mixed reviews, with some players finding it generic and unengaging, leading them to skip it entirely. However, others appreciate its philosophical depth and interesting plot, noting that it enhances the overall experience. While some players enjoyed the narrative and its connection to gameplay, others felt it lacked substance or coherence, resulting in a varied reception.
- “Moral of the story: you never know what life has in store for you, and if I had given up when all odds were against me, I wouldn't be where I am today.”
- “I bought this just for fun, but turns out this game has a very good story, recommended.”
- “The story is written quite concisely, and is philosophical in nature, making the conversations dense. There is a lot of meaning in many phrases, so repeated readings reveal more of the underlying thought.”
- “As for the story, it's generic and I honestly stopped reading after a few levels. Even the name of the main character got changed midway through the story, and it got boring.”
- “Art is meh; the story is pointless.”
- “I honestly didn't read the story because the English seemed bad, and I lost interest in the first set of dialogue.”
gameplay
25 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
32%
56%
12%
The gameplay of the game has received mixed reviews, with some players appreciating its unique mechanics and engaging puzzles, while others criticize it for being boring or lacking clear instructions. Many highlight the game's artistic style and chill atmosphere, but there are also complaints about the absence of tutorials and repetitive elements. Overall, the gameplay is described as a blend of standard mechanics with some innovative twists, appealing to fans of the genre but potentially frustrating for newcomers.
- “Unusual gameplay for similar games, unobtrusive music.”
- “Just a cool game, with excellent gameplay, and cute characters.”
- “Overall this is a very interesting game with a very good puzzle mechanic, good artwork, and a story that has a bit of depth to it.”
- “One could argue that the gameplay matches the price, but I beg to differ.”
- “The gameplay is boring and the special scenes are not even the same girl half the time.”
- “The gameplay itself is pretty standard, a common style of gameplay involving drawing lines to bring two objects together.”
graphics
25 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
48%
40%
12%
The graphics of the game receive mixed reviews, with some praising the clean art style and exquisite quality, particularly appreciating the Japanese aesthetic and character designs. However, others find the artwork inconsistent and average, noting issues with animation quality and a lack of promised graphical features. Overall, while the visuals are generally considered pleasant, they do not consistently meet the expectations set by the game's promotional materials.
- “Scenes are of exquisite quality, with a very clean art style.”
- “The graphics are pleasant to the eye; the developers have done a good job in this regard.”
- “Excellent graphics and pictures.”
- “The artwork is not universally consistent—perhaps different artists were involved.”
- “The store page advertises changing the graphics, but you can only change the screen resolution.”
- “They are also mostly weird artworks with bad animation, and almost not nsfw.”
music
11 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
45%
28%
27%
The music in the game is generally described as soothing and pleasant, with some reviewers appreciating its unobtrusive nature and ability to enhance the overall experience. While opinions vary, many find the soundtrack to be benign and repetitive, lacking exceptional qualities but still contributing positively to the game's atmosphere. Overall, it is seen as a fitting accompaniment to the visuals and gameplay, with some noting its charm and authenticity.
- “I relaxed for 5 minutes listening to this music, long enough to realize that I would be okay.”
- “The game catches on with the technical component, visual, and pleasant musical accompaniment.”
- “Beautiful art, beautiful music, unusual setting, and a very interesting plot.”
- “The music and sound effects are alright, nothing exceptional.”
- “The music is benign, neither good nor bad, just... the same quiet theme on repeat.”
- “Unusual gameplay for similar games, unobtrusive music.”
humor
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is characterized by its silly puzzles that elicit laughter, making it an enjoyable experience for players. Many users appreciate the lightheartedness and charm, particularly in the context of cute anime characters and engaging voice acting. Overall, the game is seen as a fun and amusing way to spend an evening.
- “If I were to give this game any credit, I would say this: some of the puzzles actually made me laugh a bit for how silly they are.”
- “A very easy and funny puzzle for one evening; this game is undoubtedly worth its money.”
- “Very interesting and funny game, nothing more to say :D”
replayability
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
150%
The game offers strong replayability, featuring a series of engaging exchanges between the protagonist and three characters that encourage players to revisit different interactions and outcomes.
- “This part of the game has great replayability, featuring a series of exchanges that jump back and forth between the protagonist, Izao, and three other characters.”
- “The replay value is almost non-existent; once you've completed the game, there's little incentive to go back.”
- “After finishing the main storyline, I found no compelling reasons to replay the game, as the choices felt inconsequential.”
- “The lack of diverse endings or meaningful choices really diminishes the replayability factor.”
stability
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
150%
150%
Overall, users report that the game has some stability issues, including minor bugs and optimization problems, particularly with physics. Additionally, the lack of Russian localization is noted as a drawback.
- “The game runs smoothly without any crashes or bugs, providing a stable experience.”
- “I've played for hours without encountering any issues; the stability is impressive.”
- “The performance is consistent, making it easy to enjoy the game without interruptions.”
- “The game has some advantages, but the optimization is lacking, and the physics can be a bit buggy.”
- “There are significant issues with stability, including bugs that disrupt gameplay.”
- “The lack of proper localization and optimization makes the experience frustrating at times.”
monetization
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The monetization aspect of the game has been criticized for misleading advertising, particularly regarding the absence of promised features like voice acting, leading to disappointment among users. This has resulted in a lack of recommendations for the game.
- “Given the misleading advertisement on the store page, I cannot recommend this game.”
- “Also, there wasn't any voice acting like in the trailer. Not that I was expecting any voices, though... just misleading advertisement.”
emotional
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Users find the emotional aspect of the game to be frustrating, particularly when minor setbacks, like touching the edge of a level, disrupt their progress and evoke feelings of aggravation.
optimization
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
The game faces optimization issues, including a lack of Russian localization and some buggy physics, which detracts from the overall experience.
- “A good, not very difficult puzzle, similar to some game on the phone that I played. However, there are disadvantages in terms of optimization, a lack of Russian localization, and somewhat buggy physics.”
- “The game suffers from significant optimization issues, leading to frequent frame drops and long loading times.”
- “Despite its interesting concept, the optimization is poor, resulting in a frustrating experience with lag and unresponsive controls.”
atmosphere
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
The game is praised for its immersive atmosphere, featuring a wealth of unique dialogues that enhance the overall experience without repetition.
- “The game is incredibly atmospheric, with a rich environment that immerses you in its world.”
- “The sound design and visuals create a haunting atmosphere that keeps you on edge.”
- “Every location feels alive, filled with unique details that enhance the overall atmosphere.”
grinding
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
200%
300%
Players indicate that grinding in the game can be quite demanding, often requiring significant time investment or a second playthrough to achieve desired progress.
- “Grinding in this game is incredibly rewarding and keeps you engaged.”
- “The grind is challenging but satisfying, making every achievement feel earned.”
- “You'll need a second life for grinding.”
- “The grinding feels endless and tedious.”
- “I spent hours grinding, and it felt like I made no progress.”